Wingback Chair Reupholstery London
Wingback chairs are one of the most rewarding pieces to reupholster. The high back and prominent wings make the fabric the focal point of the chair. Get it right and you transform the room. We reupholster all wingback styles at our Tottenham Court Road workshop, starting from £700.
Wingback Styles We Work With
Queen Anne.The original wingback. Cabriole legs, curved wings that sweep from the high back down to the arms, and a tight seat (no loose cushion). These are typically 18th or 19th century pieces with beech or walnut frames. We strip back to bare frame, check every joint, replace the webbing and hair stuffing where needed, and re-cover. Most Queen Anne wingbacks take 8–12 metres of fabric.
Modern wingback. Straighter lines, often with a loose seat cushion and squared-off wings. These are simpler in construction but the clean lines demand precise fabric placement. Pattern-matching on a striped or geometric fabric across the wings and back panel is critical. We pin and adjust on the frame before final fitting.
Mid-century wingback. Lower back, splayed timber legs, and often a buttoned back panel. These tend to use foam over springs rather than traditional stuffing. We replace degraded foam with high-resilience equivalents and can add a layer of stockinette-wrapped Dacron on top for a softer feel without losing the mid-century shape.
Choosing Fabric for a Wingback
The wings and high back of a wingback chair put your fabric on full display. Bold prints, large-scale florals, and statement velvets all work exceptionally well. This is the one piece of furniture where you can go loud with the fabric and it will look intentional rather than overwhelming.
For a more restrained look, plain linens, herringbone wools, and textured weaves give depth without pattern. Two-tone schemes also work well on wingbacks: a feature fabric on the front with a coordinating plain on the back and outside wings. This is a classic upholstery technique that reduces fabric cost while creating visual interest.
We carry over 12,000 fabrics and 200 leathers from suppliers including Warwick, Cristina Marrone, and Designers Guild. Browse our fabric library online or order free swatches to compare at home.
Not sure what will work? Read our guide on how to choose upholstery fabric for practical advice on durability, pattern scale, and colour selection.
Pricing
Wingback chair reupholstery starts from £700 in fabric, excluding the cost of the fabric itself (we supply at trade price, or you can provide your own). Typical price ranges:
- Standard wingback in customer fabric: £700–£950
- Queen Anne with traditional hair stuffing: £900–£1,200
- Buttoned-back wingback: £850–£1,100
- Leather wingback: from £1,000
- Show-wood leg refinishing: from £80
These prices include stripping, re-webbing, padding replacement where needed, and re-covering. Frame repairs and spring work are quoted separately after inspection.
How We Restore Wingbacks
Every wingback is stripped down to the bare frame. We check all joints, re-glue and clamp anything that is loose, and replace broken dowels or corner blocks. The frame has to be solid before we put a single tack in.
We then rebuild the seat: new webbing, springs re-lashed or replaced, a fresh hessian base, and new stuffing. On traditional pieces we use curled hair over coconut fibre. On modern frames we use high-resilience foam cut to the exact profile.
The covering is cut, pinned, and fitted on the frame. Wings are done last because they have to wrap cleanly around the curves without pulling the back panel out of line. We hand-stitch the joins where the wings meet the back rather than machine-stitching, which gives a tighter, neater finish.
Turnaround is typically 3–5 weeks. We collect and deliver across London.