Spruce

I took a chair recovering class with my sister in-​laws and my mom at Spruce this past weekend. Katherine and Lilly were both so sweet and so informative. They worked so hard helping and teaching us for two days! The class was very hard but we learned so much! We had such a great time and could not have asked for a better experience or better people to work with!
Thank you Spruce!

I received a chair class at Spruce as a Christmas gift from my mother-​in-​law. I couldn’t say more good things about the class or our instructor, Katherine and her helper Lilly. The two days were hard work, but very fun, interesting and rewarding! I have a new found appreciation for the art of upholstery and the hard work, craftsmanship and skill that goes into it!
Once we got connected by email, Katherine was super responsive with details we needed to know to prepare for the class. I emailed her several photos of my chair and fabrics and she was very useful in helping me select a fabric that would be lovely but still easy enough to work with for my first project.
The class took place over two days — a Saturday and Sunday — and it took the whole time and more! Katherine taught us out how strip our chairs down to just the frame and then rebuild them piece by piece. She was extremely patient with all of us and mixed a good balance of helping us and letting us do things ourselves. She worked with us until we got them looking great, which was awesome for me as I tend to be a perfectionist. She even stayed late to make sure we all got all the critical parts of our chairs finished by the end of class.
Spruce’s studio was well organized and they had all the tools we needed to reupholster our chairs. I had no idea the amount of tools or supplies that would go into the project, but it was so nice to have everything you needed set out and never more than a few feet away.
Overall, the chair class was a wonderful experience. I would highly recommend it to anyone interested in learning more about upholstery!!!

THANK YOU SPRUCE FOR SAVING MY ANTIQUE CUSHIONS!!!
The score of my life has been this amazing Heywood Wakefield couch that had original fabric on it in mint condition due to it always being covered. Seriously gorgeous fabric that in a bout of panic my dog completely shredded during a rain storm. She’s never seen me so angry. Perfect, original cushions with springs and everything. I thought the couch was ruined.
We took it to Spruce and the ladies didn’t want to promise us anything at first, and I don’t blame them as what was left was a bit of a mess. However, they looked things over and determined they could save a good chunk of the fabric and replace portions with a solid. We found something that matched as closely as possible and I left everything in their hands.
Oh. My. God! It looks AMAZING! They were able to salvage the top and most of the sides and even the springs that were part of the guts. They added zippers to the whole thing so we can easily remove the covers and just did an outstanding job. I was concerned they’d look weird with the remaining cushions that survived, but it looks terriffic. I have my couch back!
You may pay a little more here, but the quality is definitely worth the price.

We so wanted to like this company. We went in on a Saturday and brought in one of our dining chairs with us to get an estimate on the cost of recovering all 7 of them. The two employees there were friendly and helpful and there were nice samples of their work in the store. We picked out a fabric that, according to their price listing, was $ 35.90/yard. I quickly calculated an estimate for the labor, fabric, and foam, but the employee said that she couldn’t give us an «official» bid until Tuesday. Having quickly calculated the estimate on-​the-​spot ourselves, we were confident that the «official» bid would be about $ 898 and that seemed a reasonable price for recovering 7 dining chairs. We decided to leave the dining chair we brought with us because we figured we would probably accept the «official» bid.
As promised, we received the official bid by email on Tuesday, but the cost was $ 1,206.99, much higher than expected. The employee wanted to charge us $ 74/​yard of fabric rather than $ 35.90/yard. She also asked for photos of my chairs, which was odd because we had left the chair there so that she could draft her «official» bid. I had to remind her that the chair was there.
Not at all satisfied with this «official» bid, I did a very quick search of the fabric online and found the fabric on sale on several sites for as low as $ 28.72/yard. So, I went back to Spruce today and said that I wanted to retrieve my chair and explained that we would still consider having our chairs recovered by them, but if so, the bid would need to be redone because the bid for the fabric was more than double the price on the list in the fabric swatch book.
One of the employees who had been there on Saturday and helped us with the fabric remembered that the price was definitely not $ 74/​yard. We eventually found the fabric swatch book and found that the price was, indeed, listed as $ 35.90/yard. The other employee there (not the same one who helped us that Saturday) then looked up the price online and said that the fabric had increased in price to $ 37/​yard. I mentioned that I had found it online for as low as $ 28.72/yard and asked whether I could buy the fabric myself and bring it in for them to use. She said «Yes, but we’ll have to charge you $ 7.50/yard.» This, I think, is very unreasonable.
Given the negative experience we had with the «official» bid, one would think that a good business practice would be to offer to forego at least the $ 7.50/yard fee for bringing in one’s own fabric or offer some similar discount. Nothing of the kind was offered, so we will be looking elsewhere for reupholstery.
Buyer beware! Be sure to do your own calculations and scrutinize your bid from Spruce!

I recently had some sofa cushions re-​stuffed here and it was one of the best customer service experiences I’ve had in a long time! Clar was so incredibly helpful and accommodating, she helped me time it just right so I was only without my cushions for a day, answered all my questions and gave me a bunch of options to ensure I’d end up with just what I wanted. Beyond that, the quote I got from them was far less than at other Austin area upholsterers and the cost ended up being even less than that. Thanks Spruce!

Had great experience at Spruce with Claire & Elizabeth. They repaired a split seem in my sofa in one week. Although their location was not on my side of town, I chose them because of positive Unilocal reviews. The girls were awesome and friendly. Quick turn around, nice clean store, and they responded quickly to both email and phone calls. I’d recommend this independent store for any upholstery needs.

We brought a chair to be covered, overall it turned out great. Fabric selection is nearly endless, which can be a little difficult trying to find the right pattern at the right price. We were steered towards a couple of books, so I really can’t fault that.
Although the quote seemed a little pricey, it came out very well. You get what you pay for these days.
Communication was excellent and job was finished ahead of time. I’m sure we’ll be back with more chairs.

Updating/​upgrading my review since I got a nice note from Spruce. Turns out they DO have Sat classes (but you do have to look closely on their class site — it’s not in bold like the other days/​times, but rather in a drop down). So, I stand corrected!

As a consumer, my knowledge of upholstery is quite limited. Therefore, I have spent some time educating myself in order to respond to Amanda’s comments.
As ‘experts’, employees of Spruce should provide ALL relevant information to potential customers, so that they are able to make an informed decision:
1. My choice of fabric for the sofa is actually recommended, [by the manufacturer], for drapery.
2. Goose down mixed with feathers is ‘top of the line’ and would have achieved the ‘yummily plump’ cushions I specifically requested. It is ‘about double the price of foam.
3. High-​end sofas often come with ‘eight-​way hand-​tied springs. They’re comfy but expensive.’
TO SPRUCE: A bit of common sense:
1. Fabric intended for a window will not be durable for a sofa.
2. Low cost foam will be insufficient to provide the level of ‘cush’ I requested.
The damage, [to the left arm], does not affect:
1. the comfort of the cushions,
2. the mis-​matched fabric,
3. the frayed fabric where the cushions meet the sofa,
4. fabric that is fading from sitting on it,
5. cushions that slide back into the sofa and get hung up on the springs,
6. OR ‘reasonable wear’.
My ‘displeasure’ is that, [within less than 6 months], the ‘excellent craftsmanship’ of Spruce has resulted in a sofa that is increasingly uncomfortable. It does not meet the specifications I stated when placing my order, my minimum expectations OR represent the value of what I paid, $ 1714.68.
If you want a lesson in salesmanship, Spruce is the place to go. For upholstery needs, go elsewhere — OR regret your decision within a VERY brief period of time.

Spruce Upholstery is by far the best store in Austin for finding the most current fabrics, furniture, and accessories in the market today. I found pictures in magazine of fabric I wanted to look at, and Meredith found all the samples for me! Spruce has recovered a twenty year old couch, 6 dinning room chairs, a head board, 2 wing back chairs, and numerous pillows from contemporary fabric to a Lee Jofa tapestry. The huge selection of fabrics will appeal to everyones taste and style; from traditional to modern. I recommend Spruce to everyone.
Keri C. Lakeway, Texas

Spruce converted my mid-​mod ebay and thrift shop purchases to like new condition. They took great care, gave me a lot of personalized attention and suggestions and generally handled the process as if the furniture was their own. The staff are friendly and the folks out back doing the reupholstering take pride in what they do. I would recommend Spruce to anyone interested in quality at a fair, not low, price.

This place is great!
I needed help finding fabric for a project and the girls working here were super nice and helpful. They pretty much saved my life.

Like my Grandmother used to say, if you want quality, don’t go cheap. This rings true at Spruce. If you are a person who doesn’t want to settle or has a disdain of the status quo, you must go to Spruce for your home décor needs.
Meredith was very helpful in assisting with fabric choice and has a great eye for mixing fabrics. My grandmother’s chair is beautiful. It looks great with the red walls in my bedroom. This place has a fantastic selection of fabrics, better than anyplace I have been in Austin.

I found Spruce on Unilocal and am so grateful to the Unilocalers for recommending them. I have a chair I love but the seat was so flat and worn. Meredith had me fixed up in just a few days and the chair looks new. The shop itself is an attraction and a great spot to find something vintage and unique. It was a great experience and I will definitely be back… in fact, I’m looking around for things I can recover.
Spruce is one of Austin’s little shiny gems. Go there!

The ladies of Spruce are absolutely amazing. They are endlessly stylish, super-​helpful and so friendly, really know their stuff, have amazing craftsmanship and an astonishing selection of hip, beautiful, high-​quality fabrics (very rare in Austin).
I went in expecting my project to be a 6 month affair, starting with me walking in and saying «I am looking for a small chair, something from the 20s-​40s, then redone in funky fabric, preferably loud fuzzy… GO!» Thinking I would hear from them in the distant foggy future when they found something. But instead it went something like this:
Saturday afternoon I stroll in. I give them the scoop. I point to a nearby rocking chair and say, «something like that, but not a rocker.» Taking me to a back workroom, Lizzie points at a lonely chair ready for a revamp and says, «You mean, like that?» Y-​E-​S, just like that! They had snapped the chair up in their travels… The arm was broken and the horsehair was springing out of the ancient leather, but they swore it could all be made beautiful again. The gem in the rough — that was my chair.
Now for fabric: I am thinking I will need to go rounds and rounds, since I am picky-​as-​heck designer and looking for something funky in the hot pink /​magenta family. After looking at a few pieces, again, the gals work their magic, flipping to a piece of fabric that is everything I wanted — and then some.
And that was that.
Three weeks later I picked up my custom beauty. The cracked arm had been repaired perfectly, the old wood still had it’s amazing antique patina just minus the cobwebs and grime, and the fabric was perfect — diamond tufted to exacting perfection. Amanda even carried it out to my car despite her adorable (and cream-​colored) outfit.
Friendly, helpful, beautiful gals of Spruce, I love you.

I love Spruce! I uploaded a picture of the sofa they did for me… The piece is about 10 years old, and was completely worn in & honestly ugly.
The girl that I worked with was incredibley helpful especially since I am not very visual. The patterns and colors are things I never would have been able to come up with on my own!
The sofa was done incredibley quickly and they handled getting it delivered to my condo. I’ll be heading back the next time I need something done.

A true credit to North Central Austin, and a much-​needed attraction on North Lamar.
(Sucks that classes are during church, though.)

I recently had a chair completely made-​over by the fantastic ladies of Spruce and I could not be happier! First, they are lovely to work with. So nice and professional. Second, they are good at helping you take the ideas you have for your projects and making them beautiful realities. My «new» chair has received many compliments and I cannot wait to get my other one redone too!
Also, their shop is to die for! Just walking in, you are surrounded by all these phenomenal pieces of furniture that you immediately want to purchase. If I had unlimited budget, I probably would have bought out the whole place because it’s all so beautiful and well done.

Spruce impressed me — I had a small rip in the cushion of a beloved couch that needed repair. They were able to make things right again very quickly — even offering to shift other work around a bit if I needed things done faster. I probably paid more for their work than at another shop in town, but their professionalism was a big plus. I’ll be back to Spruce with other ‘projects’.

My husband and I had a ragged, but well loved mid-​century sofa we wanted reupholstered. I heard about Spruce from a local vintage shop in town. They indicated that Spruce Upholstery specialized in mid-​century furniture. Their quote was reasonable and they gave me some good recommendations on fabrics (but also mentioned they could order some for me). My sofa also had original down cushions that were looking a bit flat, when they reupholstered the sofa, they put in foam and added down top pillows, to keep the down feel with a more structured look.
My husband wanted to toss the old sofa out, but once he saw their work, the sofa redeemed itself. He now says it’s the most comfortable coolest looking sofa in the world… I think he’s right.
Thanks Spruce!