Pre-festival courses 2026
The best bits of the courses
Four courses with leading upholstery experts, in the days before the Festival.
Pre-festival courses 2026
Four courses with leading upholstery experts, in the days before the Festival.
A look back
Before the 2026 Festival opened, students and professional upholsterers spent two and three days learning from Gareth Rees, Gregory Cupitt-Jones, Armand Verdier and Oliver Piepereit. From hand-stitched bolsters and traditional fluting to a Louis XVI dossier à tableau and surface finishing, here is what they got up to.
Three-day course
With Gareth Rees
This three-day course, led by Gareth Rees, focuses on the making of a hand-stitched traditional bolster, using traditional upholstery techniques.
Two-day course
With Gregory Cupitt-Jones
A two day course learning traditional fluting (channel back upholstery), a distinctive technique used to create structured vertical channels within upholstered backs.
Three-day course
With Armand Verdier
This three-day course, led by Armand Verdier, focuses on the construction of a Louis XVI “dossier à tableau”, a classic rectangular back detail commonly found in French period furniture of the late 18th century.
Two-day course
With Oliver Piepereit
Focusing on surface finishing techniques for upholstered furniture, Oliver will guide the group through a range of finishing approaches, tailoring techniques to suit each individual piece.
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