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Fully Re-Covered Upholstery: Five Years of Care, Craft and Community

In a small home workshop in Upper Cumberworth, Huddersfield HD8, furniture that has seen decades of family life is being carefully stripped back, repaired and given a new lease of life - not to erase its past, but to honour it.


Fully Re-Covered Upholstery is the business of local upholsterer Vicky Spencer, who marks five years in business this year. What began as a creative outlet alongside a career in HR has grown into a full-time craft rooted in patience, skill and a deep respect for well-made furniture.


Vicky first started learning upholstery around nine years ago. Sewing had always been part of her life - making clothes, curtains and soft furnishings for herself - and upholstery offered a hands-on way to explore creativity beyond the desk-based world of HR. The original plan was to keep it as a side project, with a view to becoming a part-time occupation later in life. That plan gradually changed.


After training, Vicky was offered a role teaching upholstery, which she balanced alongside her HR career and her own upholstery commissions. Over time, it became clear that what had started as a creative outlet had become something more. In 2021, she took the leap and committed to upholstery as her main occupation.


Fully Re-Covered Upholstery focuses on thoughtful reupholstery that helps furniture last longer - from well-loved older pieces to more modern, high-street furniture. Some projects involve in-depth work, including stripping pieces back and making repairs where needed, whilst the majority are about carefully re-covering existing furniture to refresh its look, improve comfort and extend its use.


Whatever the job, each piece is treated with care rather than simply applying new fabric as a quick fix. Vicky works extensively with chairs and explains that “Chairs especially tend to carry so much history.

They’ve been there through everyday life - family gatherings, quiet moments, celebrations and losses. They hold memories.”


That emotional connection is central to how she works. Every project begins with a conversation, understanding not just the practical needs of the piece but what the owner wants it to feel like when it returns home. Sometimes that means a completely new look; other times it’s about preserving a link to the past. In some cases, original fabrics are carefully saved and reintroduced into the finished piece so those memories remain part of it.


For families restoring furniture belonging to a loved one who has passed away, Vicky has even created small fabric hearts from the original material as a keepsake that allows the story of the piece and the person to live on beyond the furniture itself.


Sustainability is a strong thread running through Fully Re-Covered Upholstery. Vicky is passionate about saving quality furniture from landfill, particularly older pieces that were built to last, offering an alternative to the fast-fashion approach that dominates much of today’s furniture market.


Working from her home workshop, Vicky serves customers across the local area, with the majority of her work coming through word-of-mouth recommendations. She is open about being content with the size and pace of her business, choosing to work independently rather than pursuing growth for its own sake.


A core value of Fully Re-Covered Upholstery is simple: doing what was promised, by the date promised, for the agreed price. No hidden surprises, no rushed finishes and no compromise on quality, and Vicky remains committed to developing her skills and refining how she works, ensuring she can manage multiple projects efficiently without losing the care each piece deserves.


She also works closely with a number of local businesses, including Ashley Interiors at Springfield Mill in Denby Dale, Furniture Care in Scissett, Scissett Farmer’s Market and RS & Sons Removals, forming part of a wider local network built on trust and collaboration.


As Fully Re-Covered Upholstery reaches its five-year milestone, it is perhaps customer feedback that best reflects the impact of Vicky’s work. Clients regularly praise her attention to detail, describing her as “someone who clearly has an eye for detail and loves her work,” and noting that she “goes out of her way to make extra effort in the small details that really matter.” Others speak about the difference her work has made in their homes, saying she has “transformed our living space,” and calling her upholstery “the most stunning.”


Five years on, Fully Re-Covered Upholstery continues to do exactly what it set out to do - careful, considered work, carried out with respect for furniture, memories and the people behind both.


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