michael's upholstery ca.'s Profile

I put bed linens together (sheets/duvet cover/pillowcases) in the matching pillowcase or sham when I pull them out of the dryer. No more digging in the linen closet to find the missing pillowcases when changing my sheets. Works great with my teenager's too. They can find their clean bedding easily.

All labor quotes should be in writing and any possible "add on's", work that may be needed once the fabric is removed from the furniture should be spelled out in advance. Every piece of furniture offers up a few surprises, many because of poor quality reupholstering in the past but it's difficult to determine exactly what ails a chair that's sagging until the fabric is removed.
California has a law for furniture upholsterers stating "Sections 19162 & 19163 of the Business & Professions Code provide that no charge shall be made in excess of the estimated price without the oral or written consent of the customer."

Labor costs will vary greatly by area. I manage an upholstery shop in the San Francisco Bay Area and our labor prices are easily 30-40% higher then the prices quoted above by the DC area designer. We are not the most expensive shop in the area but we are not the cheapest either. My advice is to check around, see if you can visit the work room and see examples of their projects first hand. Ask your friends, ask at fabric shops in the area. Be careful of upholsterers without licensing or insurance. Their overhead is going to be lower but their quality may be too.