Selvedge Edge Upholstery and Interiors

We caught up with resident upholsterer (and all round bad-ass maker) Becka. She has been based at EOW for a number of years, initially as one half of Fine Piece and now getting her teeth into her talent and passion for upholstery. Becka has just launched her new business Selvedge Edge and has been producing beautiful pieces, drawing from a wealth of technical experience and eye for design. When she is not making, Becka can be found adventuring with daughter Alba, weightlifting or with chef partner James, eating and cooking. So, dive into Becka’s journey below.

What inspired you to start your upholstery journey?

My journey into upholstery began in a pretty roundabout way. I started off studying costume design and then got into guitar making while living in London. Neither were my dream calling, but they did teach me some valuable skills.

After my London stint, I ended up in Brighton, where I got into making boat covers and doing a bit of boat upholstery. When I eventually made my way back to Edinburgh, I kept up with sewing and worked as a machinist at The Feather Company. It was during my time there that I decided to apply for the Furniture Restoration course at City of Glasgow College.

What inspired me to go down this path? Well, it all came together because I had the woodworking skills from guitar making, a passion for hands-on work, and by this point was pretty good at using a sewing machine. And I guess that peek into the upholstery world during my time at the boat company was the clincher for me.

How have you developed your upholstery skills ?

I try to continue to keep learning, and right now, I’m in the last year of my Master Upholsterer’s Diploma. I decided to do this course with the intention of focusing more on traditional upholstery in the future.

Who inspires you ?

I’m inspired by this French upholsterer I had the chance to learn from, Armand Verdier. Taking his masterclass got me really excited about where I’m headed in this craft. Just being around him, seeing how he works, and the crazy amount of knowledge he’s got – it blew my mind. I definitely aspire to be like that someday!

Who or what gives you energy to create ?

It’s those moments when I can’t sit still or when there’s a looming deadline! Back when Alba was just tiny, taking multiple naps a day, I found a burst of creative energy. During her nap times, I’d be in a frenzy of sewing, making myself a new wardrobe. Those early months were super productive for me because I had a schedule of tiny deadlines and not much else to do!