Today we are launching our very first Member Survey and we need your help! We want to know what we can do to better support you. What programs do you like best? What additional benefits should we consider? Where can we improve?
The survey will only take about 5 minutes to complete, but your responses are invaluable. And as a thank you for completing the survey, you’ll have the option to be entered into a giveaway to receive a social media shout out for you or your business on our Instagram and Facebook pages.
Our members are the lifeblood of our organization. All of the programs and benefits we offer are made possible through your membership dues. By completing the survey, you’ll help us focus on the programs that are most important to you.
Match Makers, Change Makers
The NUA was recently invited, through our membership in the Sustainable Furnishings Council, to a meet and greet with the sustainability arm of Williams Sonoma, who is looking to grow their network and increase their understanding of how to reduce their climate and waste footprint at scale, particularly in upholstered furnishings. Do you have ideas about how the NUA can support our industry in conversations like these? Repair training courses? Design feedback? Let us know at info@nationaluphoslteryassociation.org! Thank you for your membership, which makes support of our industry possible at the national level.
Make Community Connections
The Oldest Piece of Furniture I Re-Upholstered
Apr. 27 at 1pm EST
After NUA members learn about the history of furniture at this month's webinar, let's talk about any historical pieces that you've re-upholstered! Share pics of your work. Share the stories of these older pieces. Share what that chair could say if it could talk. Share any steps you needed to take for restoration.
Check out our new newsletter section, Recommended Reading by Kim Newell, which will feature a succinct and personal book review every quarter from avid reader and NUA Board Member, Kim Newell. Thanks Kim!
See details of all available volunteer positions here.
Read more about the Volunteer Coordination Committee on the blog.
Volunteer Recognition
In recognition of our colleagues’ stand-out efforts, one volunteer will be recognized for work that goes above and beyond the call of duty in each quarterly newsletter and at the end of each year. Nominations are welcome any time during the year.
Monica Rhodes
Volunteer of the Quarter, Q2 2021
Monica Rhodes joined the National Upholstery Association as a volunteer in early 2020. As a way to give back to an organization that had given so much to her, she offered us her writing skills and joined that PR committee where she has been invaluable as a contributor--writing, editing, and sharing her ideas.
Monica loves the story. Her first task was writing the member spotlight series for the NUA blog. Her passion for the craft of upholstery combined with her amazing writing skills has produced some beautiful articles. Each story captures the subject and their passion for the industry, giving us all a peek into their journey.
Monica has been in the upholstery business for over 3 years. She created Monday Wash Furniture, located in Chicago, out of a desire to re-imagine and restyle discarded furniture. It soon grew to include custom upholstery work as well.
Please help us congratulate Monica as the NUA Volunteer of the Quarter! She will be receiving a recognition gift for her contribution.
You can find Monica's business, Monday Wash Furniture, on her website, and on facebook,and instagram and be sure to head over to our blog to read some of her fantastic work.
Thought Leadership
The NUA's Webinar Committee collates fresh content every month to highlight the expertise of our community and to enrich our members with tools, skills, and resources.
Webinars
Our next webinar is Tuesday, April 13 at 1pm EST:The History of Upholstered Furniture. During the 2020 Covid-19 lockdowns, Gareth taught a series of successful lectures on furniture history to students across the UK and currently has just started another series of lectures to members of the Guild of Traditional Upholsterers, worldwide.We are pleased he has agreed to present a very condensed version of those lectures to the NUA audience here in the United States. Members, your invitation to register was emailed on March 30. Check your email to register today!
Save the Date
May 11, 1-2pm EDT
To Burn or Not to Burn: New Federal Flammability Law for Upholstered Furniture
and What it Means for Your Company
Join IFAI and product safety attorney and former CPSC official Neal Cohen who will explain the federal requirements of the new law, its origins, and – importantly – best practices and what to expect from CPSC and in the marketplace.
40 years in the making, with the federal government first beginning work on this project in 1968, the Safer Occupancy Furniture Flammability Act (SOFFA) will finally go into effect June 25, 2021. Signed into law in December 2020, this law, sometimes known as the Safer Occupancy Furniture Flammability Act (SOFFA), nationalizes the 2013 version of California’s Technical Bulletin 117.
This event is free to attend for NUA Members, $39 for non-members.
Members, you will need to login to the NUA website to get access to the free registration code. Follow the instructions at the link below.
All Hands on Deck! Kriss Kokoefer is Calling on the Design World to Re-Up and Re-Use
By Monica Rhodes, NUA Volunteer of the Quarter
Kriss Kokoefer seeks a tide change. She wants to see decision-makers making an intentional choice to re-upholster. “The health of our planet is declining and re-upholstery is a tool to make a positive difference.” She is very hopeful. Read more to learn why.
Recommended Reading by Kim Newell
As entertaining and witty as it is educational, "Now I Sit Me Down, From Klismos to Plastic Chair: A Natural History" by Witold Rybczynski is an enjoyable book to curl up with. Not just a history lesson on design, it is a "chronical of human behavior". The history of chairs is a social history, the history of who we are. At 219 pages, it's a quick read. Danish furniture designer Hans Wegner once said, "A chair is only finished when someone sits in it." Ryczynski would have us believe that what we choose to sit on speaks of our values, culture, our tastes and what we love.
Industry News
The Show Will Go On!
Save the date for the much awaited return of the Custom Workroom Conference & Marketplace, in Hampton, VA, October 11-13, 2022
Welcome to our Newest Industry Partners
We're thrilled to partner with the Sew Much More Podcast, Drapery Digital Digest, and The Curtains and Soft Furnishings library to support our shared goals of showcasing the outstanding work of custom home furnishings professionals, spotlight quality products, and share educational resources. Welcome aboard!
The NUA was founded in 2019 to inspire a rebirth of the upholstery profession. Our mission is to work together to support and advance the field of professional upholstery. Membership benefits include Continuing Education, Networking, Member's Only Resources, and more.
