Professional Upholstering: All the Trade Secrets Paperback – January 31, 2011

After reading reviews I decided to order this book, knowing that while most loved it some people felt it was a waste, with too-small pictures and “specific” projects that did not relate to what they were doing. After sitting down with this book today and looking over every page, I beg to differ. I have lots of sewing experience and Ive done some simple upholstery jobs, but I was looking to get into something a little more complicated this time and felt I needed more knowledge and proper techniques along with the tools to make it professional quality. The fact that the main project shown is a wing chair may be why people thought it was too specific. I think he chose it because it’s complicated! You can apply all of those techniques on simpler designs. If you can upholstery a wing back chair, you can do most any chair (except maybe a channel back).Theres a chart for fabric yardage, there’s sewing terms and tool descriptions, tips are given for using the tools, for selecting fabric... I could not ask for a better reference book. The pictures are small but there are so many and they do show you exactly what he is referring to in his descriptions. If you hate to read and want to learn everything through photos, then go to YouTube and watch videos. If you want a complete reference you can use for years to come on many different projects, This is a great manual. But you gotta read...

When I first looked through this book I was a little disappointed. I'm pretty visual, so the small pictures didn't grab me at first. Then I started reading the text. Whew! This book is absolutely crammed with useful information. Every paragraph is filled with detailed instruction. The pictures aren't meant to be eye catching and pretty, they are meant to be as functional as possible. This author has done an excellent job anticipating questions and potential problems encountered by new upholsterers. For example, most books I've looked at don't say much about how to properly line up upholstery patterns so that they fall where they are supposed to. I can't imagine anything more frustrating than to work hard on a project, only to have the pattern slightly crooked or misaligned in the final product - that's all I'd ever notice afterwards. This book addresses how to avoid that problem. Needless to say, I am very glad I got this book. Thanks Frank - I'm looking forward to your next one!

I bought this book to help me reupholster a chair. While I have yet to take on the chair, this book was VERY helpful in recovering slip seats with webbing. Very thorough and lots of clear photos.

This book is pretty good for most upholstery projects. "All the trade secrets" not quite! Don't go looking for channel back construction instruction because it is not in there. Things are explained pretty clearly and there are photos to refer to.

Easy to follow, concise, helpful tips that made my project easier. I took a class that Frank offered at a local fabric store a couple of decades ago and enjoyed it immensely. I was so excited to find this!!!

So much left out! Been doing upholstery off and on for many years, so I do have a good working knowledge of the subject. Would be nice if he would cover more topics and projects. The information included is good and usefull. Just not what I was expecting from the description of the book.

I own many upholstering books, and I purchased this book expecting more of the same (but hoping for something different). I ordered it last week and I am pleasantly surprised! I am not a beginning upholsterer, but found this book pointed out easier techniques then the way I was taught. If you haven't upholstered before, this book is for you too. Everything is explained, step by step, in easy to understand terms with LOTS of pictures to guide you along the way. This isn't just "another" upholstery book. It is by far, the best I have seen! Highly recommended!

I bought this book in order to replace a chair cushion with a burn hole in it. The step by step instructions and pictures are very clear and it made taking on this project easy for a beginner like me. I have never reupholstered anything before and I am proud of how well the cushion turned out. All in all I would recommend this book to anyone interested in trying their hand at an upholstering project. It is a great resource for the trade, full of helpful instructions and tips for all kinds of upholstering projects.

Really useful reference book to have in the workshop armoury

This is one of the most informative upholstery books that I have read. Great illustrations and instructions.I would highly recommend this book to anyone interested in upholstering.

Aufgrund der engl. Rezensionen bei amazon.com erwartete ich einen Einblick in die "Secrets", also spezielle Tipps und Tricks. Für mich war das Buch jedoch nicht sehr informativ, ich würde es nicht wieder kaufen.

this is a fab book for serious upholsterers. loads of info and tips on how you really upholster a chair.

Rather disappointing. Not quite what I was expecting, but has been of some use.