Randell Design Group are a supporting partner to Chichester Festival Theatre. Led by their talented interior design team, Hilda’s Lounge was commissioned to help revive the existing furniture in the Minerva lounge bar, as part of a larger refurbishment project.
The upholstery commission included four lengths of banquette seating wrapping around the circumference of the room, three rotund booths, around 100 dining chairs, some interesting caterpillar-esque foyer seating, and indoor/outdoor scatter cushions.
The brief asked us to be as resourceful as possible with what was already there, but with some fresh contemporary styling. On inspection, the foam fillings all seemed sound, which was a significant tick for both sustainability and budget. The interior designers chose a vibrant, uplifting scheme, including a fresh cardamom faux leather by contract brand Panaz, and I suggested a faux fluted look to elevate the finish.
By building the fluting as shallow, sewn channels, I was able to complete a large portion of the work in advance in my workshop. The new covers could then be applied directly over the original foam without replacing or adapting it in any way. For the flutes themselves, I chose to use springbond insulator padding in place of foam — a low-cost recycled product, like synthetic wadding but more structured, and lightweight enough to feed easily into the channels.
There are always logistical considerations with contract jobs, and the main challenge here was completing all onsite work in the window between one theatre production finishing and the next beginning — approximately three days in total. I measured, templated, cut and stitched as much as I could beforehand, and booked another local upholsterer, April, to work alongside me. With a strong plan of action and the experience to anticipate potential problems, we worked well as a team and completed everything on time.
The bar chairs were completed in phases, which worked well for both parties — the bar remained in continuous use throughout, and it allowed us to manage workshop capacity effectively. During this time I was also able to offer work experience to an upholstery student, Julie, whose contribution was significant. A large contract project like this is highly repetitive, but it offers excellent grounding for anyone early in their career.
