Jenny Ellis, artist
Jenny Ellis started her upholstery business The Artful Chair in 2013. She has a background in couture and clothing design, and studied upholstery at Asheville-Buncombe Technical Community College after moving to Asheville in 2004. “I make use of my thrift store chairs as ‘blank canvases’ to fashion unique furniture creations that are functional, beautiful and typically somewhat whimsical,” she says. “I like the thought of, ‘why have ordinary, when you can make extraordinary?’”
Jenny Ellis, artist
In 2023, Ellis launched a series of online classes that reflect her passion for sustainability, helping others to revitalize forgotten chairs. “Upholstery has become somewhat of a lost art, and now I can give back to this industry by helping others learn what I have come to love,” Ellis says. “It is a great skill to have, just for fun or for a great business.”
Ellis’s pre-recorded upholstery classes cover beginner basics, repair and the various stages of a reupholstering project. “Each class you take is yours to watch over and over, so you can digest as little or as much as you want,” she says. “I aim to help you find success in the easier chairs before you progress to the complex chairs.”
For more advanced upholsterers, Ellis also offers a Designer Secrets Masterclass and even a class on how to sell your upholstered chairs. As a bonus for purchasing a bundle of classes, Ellis offers a gift of seven of her favorite hand tools rolled into a leather carrying case. “Reupholstery is not as hard as you think when using the right tools,” she says. “Everyone has a chair that has a special meaning to them. Let’s create together.”
For more information or to register for classes, visit TheArtfulChairClasses.com or email jenny@theartfulchair.com.
