Wills Bisgrove – The Perfect Restoration of your Heirloom Furniture.

Antique and period furniture require expert care and knowledge in its restoration and refurbishment. The Wills Bisgrove team offers over 80 years of real experience and understanding of traditional upholstery and its requirements. A true restoration requires much more than a simple makeover of fabric or leather. The Wills Bisgrove team will strip the original furniture piece back to its frame and, where necessary, replace springs, wadding, framing and cushioning breathing new life and vitality into your valuable heirloom furniture, whilst maintaining the integrity and original specifications of each precious piece of furniture. 

At Wills  Bisgrove Furniture, the same time-honoured methodologies used to create your beautiful furniture will be called upon to restore and repair it. Feather down, handtied springs, selected timber framing and fabrics and leathers of the same quality and materials. No short cuts, no substitutions.

Heirloom Antiques and well-preserved upholstered furniture can provide a difficult dilemma. Do you repair, restore and reupholster? Or do you simply replace it with new furniture, fashioned traditionally by the same skilled craftspeople and artisans, using the tried and true methods and materials utilised in the original creation of your superb furniture.

Often it comes down to the real condition of the piece being considered. Is it merely cosmetic – fabric, springs, webbing or cushioning? Or is it substantial – the frame, the actual integrity of the piece? For instance, if the frame is insect ridden (wood borers or termites) there is really no purpose in restoring it. In this case the Wills team can advise you of a suitable replacement piece, with the character and style of your existing piece.

Wills Bisgrove Furniture, with over 80 years’ experience in furniture construction and restoration, can provide you with a thorough, honest and knowledgeable assessment. If you decide to proceed with restoration, the Wills team of Craftsmen and Craftswomen will restore your furniture piece to its former glory.

Our Artisans – Upholsterers, Machinists and Seamstresses will repair and restore the entire piece of furniture, not just its coverings. The Wills Bisgrove team take prided in faithful restorations of exquisite heirloom pieces, recreating the luxury and comfort of the past for your enjoyment. At Wills Bisgrove, we reupholster and repair lounge suites, sofas, dining chairs, bedheads and ottomans, returning them to you in better condition probably than when first built. It becomes that feature piece of furniture you are simply proud to own and display, but more importantly to sit on and enjoy.

Wills Bisgrove Furniture maintains a strong connection with the craftsmanship and artisanship of the trade in earlier times through the stewardship and direction of Paul Newham, the son of the original upholsterers from the Newham family – the creators of the Wills Furniture range. The same rigid quality standards of the original factory are maintained today ensuring the same excellence in presentation identifies a Wills Bisgrove Furniture creation or restoration.

Contact Wills Bisgrove Furniture by calling us on 03 9815 0111 or email us at willsfurniture@bigpond.com with a photograph of your treasured item of furniture and arrange a visit to our showrooms at 1346 Toorak Road, Camberwell, at your convenience, to discuss your requirements.

At Wills Bisgrove Furniture, we offer excellence in Design, Luxury and Comfort.

Wills Bisgrove Furniture – it’s simply the best.

Wills Bisgrove – Handcrafted and Hand Finished, Superb Design.

At Wills Bisgrove Furniture each individual piece of furniture has been crafted to exacting standards. For over 80 years the Wills Bisgrove team has operated using the same tried and true methodologies. Master Craftsmen, skilled Artisans create simply stunning upholstered furniture. Timeless beauty – the mark of Wills Bisgrove.

In recent times a number of large furniture retailers have made claims to offering for sale ‘handcrafted’ furniture. It would be interesting to investigate the veracity of such claims. A glance, even with an untrained eye will immediately notice that this simply isn’t true. Manufacturers, both local and offshore are known to ‘cut corners’. The phrase originated where tailors and upholsterers gave ‘short’ measure of cloth/fabric to save money. At Wills Bisgrove Furniture you can be entirely confident that our skilled artisans and tradesmen genuinely hand craft all  furniture in the traditional manner to produce the very best in superb Traditional and Contemporary Furniture – sofas, armchairs, tub chairs, dining chairs and ottomans.

Where others now use robotics and mechanisation, we used skilled artisans plying the time honoured trade they have been passed down through generations. Each component follows rigid quality specifications and manufacturing processes.

Cushions

Cushions are offered with a range of fillings as standard offerings – feather and foam, premium foam and dacron (seating cushions) and holifil/dacron for firmer back cushions.

Optional choices include ‘Luxury Foam’, Enduro Foam, Spring Cells and Feather combinations.

Coil Springs and Contemporary Springing

All Wills Bisgrove Furniture designs include fully hand tied coil spring construction for extra comfort and durability. This includes the ‘front edge’ of a sofa or chair importantly. However if required the option of contemporary springing remains a selection option.

Frames and Finishing

All Wills Bisgrove Furniture Frames are made from high quality, kiln dried hardwood, corner blocked for rigidity and strength.

Wills Bisgrove offers a range of polishes and finishes. select a colour, provide a sample and our experienced Polishers will match it. Painted finishing and antique style polishing is also available on quotation.

Wills Bisgrove offers a range of studding. For Designers and Decorators this choice provides a great selection.

Close up of upholsterer applying studding to traditional furniture

And the same wealth of choice applies to castors available in 4 finishes – Chrome, Brass, Antique Brass and Antique Bronze.

See our website for complete details on the options and choices available.

Nearly all furniture in our Wills Bisgrove Collection is able to be modified to meet specific design requirements of Interior Designers and Decorators.

Wills Bisgrove Furniture carries a lifetime guarantee on all items manufactured. Quality is always delivered at the very highest of standards.

Call now on 03 9815 0111 and arrange a viewing of the Wills Collection at our Showrooms located at 1346 Toorak Road, Camberwell or email us at  willsfurniture@bigpond.com and one of our staff will contact you to arrange a visit or quotation. 

Wills Bisgrove Furniture – Simply The Very Best!  

Select From The World’s Leading Fabric Houses and Leather Suppliers With Wills Bisgrove For The Perfect Finish

For Interior Designers and Decorators, the ability to make the absolute best decision in terms of colour schemes, layouts and texture is dependent on access to a comprehensive range of first class fabric and leathers. It is the imperative when having selected an exclusive Wills Bisgrove design in either Classic or Contemporary Upholstered Furniture, a Designer then has the choice available of the very best in both current and traditional fabrics to dress selected furniture as desired. At Wills Bisgrove Furniture  we offer an extensive range of exquisite fabrics and leathers from the world’s leading suppliers.

The key to ensuring a simply stunning, beautiful interior design is to enjoy the freedom of selecting the fabrics, colours, fine leathers and accessories required. When choosing your upholstered furniture, take the time to browse the Wills Bisgrove Collection and select the style, the design that you desire from our extensive catalogue of both classic and contemporary upholstered furniture. Your Interior Designer can then spend time with our team of Artisans to ensure your Bespoke designs are faithfully crafted by the Wills Bisgrove team, meeting and exceeding your expectations. 

When choosing premium handcrafted, hand-built furniture, you and your designer can select from the fabrics and leathers available through Wills Bisgrove from Australia’s and the world’s leading suppliers.

So let’s discuss fabrics. Interior Designers consider a number of factors when determining the right fabric to suit your selection from our exclusive Wills Bisgrove Collection.

Houzz image

Houzz image

Houzz image

For a designer its often somewhat imperious to select a delicate silk or a pure white linen. However good designers realise their clients must live with the fabric selected and it may be the fabric is determined by the potential use of the furniture, its location and the degree of traffic a room may experience. Often choosing an easy to maintain fabric can be a better long term choice.

Warwick Fabrics

Warwick Fabrics

Warwick Fabrics

Here is a list of fabrics, both Natural and Synthetic reprinted from the Houzz.com.au website. It is a useful guide and at Wills Bisgrove Furniture we consider it reasonably accurate and useful.

• Cotton is durable and resistant to wear and fading, but not as resistant to dirt and wrinkling. Cotton can go from casual to formal depending on the weave.
• Cotton blends are slightly more durable than cotton due to the mix of additional fibres.
• Leather is durable and functional. It wears well and gets better with age.
• Linen is resistant to pilling and fading. It provides a crisp and casual look to furniture. However, it wrinkles and shows dirt easily.
• Silk is elegant and adds a sophisticated and formal touch to furniture. Due to its delicacy, it’s best for light use and requires professional cleaning.
• Wool blends with synthetic fibre for easier maintenance. It’s durable while also being resistant to pilling, fading, wrinkling and soil.
• Acetate is developed as imitation silk, and is resistant to pilling and shrinking; however, it doesn’t hold up well for everyday use due to its tendency to wear, wrinkle and fade in the sun.
• Acrylic is developed as imitation wool and may pill easily if not of high quality. However, it’s softer than natural wool, and is resistant to wear, wrinkling, dirt and fading.
• Microfibre fabric is made from polyester fibres, is similar to suede, and easy to maintain.
• Nylon is often blended with other fibres, creating a durable fabric that won’t wrinkle or soil but may fade and pill.
• Polyester is usually found in a blend with other fibres, and is resistant to wrinkling and fading.
• Rayon, though prone to wrinkling, is durable and affordable.
• Vinyl is durable and a more affordable option compared to leather.

Source: Houzz

Houzz image

Houzz image

Functionality and Reality

A clever designer will select fabric that not only looks superb but also wears well, is easy to maintain yet synchronises well with the style of the furniture and the decor and feel of the room you have selected.

Houzz advises:

Neutral tones and floral prints work well in a traditional space, while bright colours and bold patterns give off a more contemporary vibe. Your lifestyle also dictates your design. Here are four quick questions to ask while browsing upholstery fabric online:

• How long is this upholstery meant to last?
• How often will you clean and iron it?
• Where do you plan to use it – indoors or outdoors?
• Which style of furniture pieces is this upholstery meant for?

At Wills Bisgrove Furniture we always advise our designers on fabrics and their properties, recommending the best in looks, appearance, quality and maintenance, ensuring the longevity and durability matches the appearances of the fabrics selected.

The choice is yours. Let it reflect your personality, your home and your vision.

Don’t hesitate to call Wills Bisgrove Furniture on 03 9815 0111 to arrange an appointment to discuss your needs. Manager John Sharkey is highly experienced and can offer accurate and informative advice on whatever your furniture requirements are. Alternatively, send an email to willsfurniture@bigpond.com and the Wills Bisgrove team will send you a prompt reply.

Design, Luxury, Comfort.

Wills Bisgrove – It’s simply the best