For those who like their curtains and furniture to match, or who've fallen in love with a particular fabric or have a ripped cushion on their favorite cozy chair, the ability to do simple upholstery is a valuable skill.
Women Repair Zone - a new business offering home repair and auto maintenance workshops for women, taught by women - is hosting a class on simple chair upholstery Wednesday, March 13 from 6-8 p.m. and another on footstool upholstery Saturday, March 23 from 1:30-4:30 p.m.
Registration will remain open until two days prior to each class if any of the eight spots remain. Women Repair Zone's hands-on classes are limited to eight students to make sure everyone is safe and has an opportunity to participate, said owner Bea Lurie.
As the former CEO of nonprofit organization Girls Inc. of Chattanooga, which has a mission of "inspiring all girls to be strong, smart and bold," Lurie organized a camp for girls called "Ms. Independent" in which they learned skills such as how to change a tire and wire a lamp. Participants' mothers and grandmothers often expressed a desire to learn those skills themselves, and the idea for Women Repair Zone has remained in Lurie's mind ever since.
She launched the business eight months ago, and has since hosted workshops on topics including plumbing, tiling a backsplash, composting, building a box shelf and more. Lurie said about half of the participants in each class are returning students, with some already having taken as many as six classes.
Classes are only open to women, which creates an atmosphere in which students are free from the fear of making mistakes, she said.
"We're very big on building a warm and supportive environment," said Lurie. "I just love the camaraderie that develops in a class."
Upholstery class participants don't need to have any skills coming into the class. They will learn to use basic tools such as a chopsaw and drill, she said.
"There will be a huge focus on how to measure things and measure them right," Lurie added.
The instructor of both upholstery classes is Belinda Harford, a Chattanooga resident who travels 11 months out of the year for her embroidery business, Belinda's Studio. She has taught other classes for Women Repair Zone, but this will be her first local upholstery class. She taught upholstery in her previous hometown in Australia, however.
Harford acquired her skills through many years of helping her mother decorate the homes built by her contractor father in Australia as well as her native South Africa. Her skills were further developed through her study of fashion design after high school, she said.
"It's really simple; you just have to make a few correct choices," Harford said of upholstering furniture.
Participants will learn how to choose fabric, nails and batting, along with how to work with those materials.
"It's exciting to learn how to decorate your house to your own liking," Harford said.
Women Repair Zone's upholstery classes will be held at 931 McCallie Ave. For more information or to register, visit womenrepairzone.com.
Email Emily Crisman at ecrisman@timesfreepress.com.