Seeing Better Days

Seeing Better Days Breathing new life into overlooked and unloved furniture. Hi, I'm Alyson, and I'm a furniture-holic. into something you can be proud to have in your home.

Bring me your scratched tabletops, your mismatched chairs, those crates you've had in the garage for years, or that less than beautiful coffee table you got from Great Auntie Muriel...beneath their surface lurks a beautiful piece of furniture just waiting to be coaxed out. I use a variety of techniques to strip back, embellish, take apart, combine, refashion or upcycle existing pieces of furniture

(or anything, really...) I also sell pieces I've created myself, always from vintage items, often pieces which have been completely neglected. My background is in technical theatre, where I learned carpentry, upholstery and prop making - and I have a tendency to think sideways, often coming up with alternative uses for objects or materials. I believe that recycling something you have is almost always better than buying new - not only because you reduce waste, but because it means you can hang on to something with a bit of history attached to it, which is always more interesting than a shop-bought clone. This is more or less a holding page for now - but rest assured I'll be updating soon...look out for photos, updates from the studio (who am I kidding, it's a shed), and a link to buy online. Feel free to get in touch if you have a piece of furniture you'd like resuscitated and we can have a chat. Thanks for looking!

26/09/2018

Testing, testing...Facebook gremlins are being a bit mischievous today...

Hi gang...I'm back! Have reopened the Etsy shop and listed a few things I have in stock, including this lovely Kraken la...
09/04/2018

Hi gang...I'm back! Have reopened the Etsy shop and listed a few things I have in stock, including this lovely Kraken lamp 🐙 Head on over and check it out:
www.seeingbetterdays.etsy.com

New stuff will appear very slowly and sporadically (in between chasing a one year old) so bear with me. It's good to be back! 🙋

Feel free to like and share the heck out of this, by the way 😉

And on that note...I'm officially on maternity leave!I won't be adding any new stock to the etsy shop or taking any cust...
07/11/2016

And on that note...I'm officially on maternity leave!

I won't be adding any new stock to the etsy shop or taking any custom orders for the forseeable future, but if there's anything in the store that strikes your fancy, feel free to order and I will dispatch ASAP. I'll also be keeping an eye on my messages so do drop me a line if you need any more info at all.

www.seeingbetterdays.etsy.com

See you soon! x

This little beauty is finished, and I love it 😍It was lovely to work closely with the customer and create something that...
07/11/2016

This little beauty is finished, and I love it 😍

It was lovely to work closely with the customer and create something that will fit beautifully with her existing furniture. I hope she loves it as much as I do!

I'm baaaack! But only briefly I'm afraid...those of you who know me personally will already be aware that I'm currently ...
26/10/2016

I'm baaaack! But only briefly I'm afraid...those of you who know me personally will already be aware that I'm currently 8 months pregnant, so getting into the workshop with a bump has been very challenging indeed!

Just one more project before I head off on maternity leave - this stool is going to be a very special commission for one of my etsy customers. It's a random charity shop find that happens to perfectly match the shape of a writing desk she already owns, so I'm beavering away sanding, repainting and reupholstering, so I can get it to her before I pop.

Watch this space for the finished article... 😄

Just a quick message to say hi *waves* and to apologise for being a bit quiet of late. I've been having a little summer...
09/07/2016

Just a quick message to say hi *waves* and to apologise for being a bit quiet of late. I've been having a little summer holiday, and am also redecorating the house, so everything is topsy turvy and I can't really get into the workshop at all! Rest assured that I'll be back soon.

In the meantime, get your summer on and have a listen to this. Mwah!

Don't You Hold Me Down (Live) by Juan Zelada from the album High Ceilings and Collarbones Released 2013-06-28 on Go Entertainment Download on iTunes: https:/...

Little glimpse into what I'm up to on my summer break...ZZ Top on the Pyramid stage at Glastonbury, baby! And the sun is...
24/06/2016

Little glimpse into what I'm up to on my summer break...ZZ Top on the Pyramid stage at Glastonbury, baby! And the sun is shining ☀️☺️

This baby has just been picked up by the courier and is off to its new home :D Sad to see it go, but it's so lovely whe...
07/06/2016

This baby has just been picked up by the courier and is off to its new home :D Sad to see it go, but it's so lovely when someone loves one of my creations so much that they've just gotta have it!

I've spent the day slaving over a hot camera - big batch of bookends coming soon to an etsy shop near you! 📸📚🎶
26/05/2016

I've spent the day slaving over a hot camera - big batch of bookends coming soon to an etsy shop near you! 📸📚🎶

I picked this poor thing up at the side of the road, in a truly shocking state. Here's the before shot, and a sneak prev...
24/05/2016

I picked this poor thing up at the side of the road, in a truly shocking state. Here's the before shot, and a sneak preview of its new look... 🔎🖌🌸

Gang's all here!I've just added a couple of new items to the etsy shop - here's a selection of the currently available s...
11/05/2016

Gang's all here!

I've just added a couple of new items to the etsy shop - here's a selection of the currently available stock. Someone had better get in quick...I love them all and will find homes for them around the house sooner or later! ;)

www.seeingbetterdays.etsy.com

Coming soon to the etsy shop - new bottle lamps! 💡 Would you prefer to buy them with or without shades? Hit "like" for w...
03/05/2016

Coming soon to the etsy shop - new bottle lamps! 💡 Would you prefer to buy them with or without shades? Hit "like" for with, or "share" for without.

I'd love to hear what you think of them. Thanks! ☺️

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Hello!

Hi, I'm Alyson, and I'm a furniture-holic. I use a variety of techniques to strip back, embellish, take apart, combine, refashion or upcycle existing pieces of furniture (or anything, really...) into something you can be proud to have in your home. I use a variety of vintage items, often pieces which have been completely neglected, and combine them with new materials, paint, decoupage or upholstery to make something new and beautiful. My background is in technical theatre, where I learned carpentry, upholstery and prop making - and I have a tendency to think sideways, often coming up with alternative uses for objects or materials. I believe that recycling something you have is almost always better than buying new - not only because you reduce waste, but because it means you can hang on to something with a bit of history attached to it, which is always more interesting than a shop-bought clone.

If you like what you’re hearing, head over to my shop at www.seeingbetterdays.etsy.com to take a look and maybe pick up something lovely for yourself.

I’m currently only working in my spare time (in between caring for my one year old son), so am unable to take commissions at present, but this is something I’m hoping to reinstate in the future, so watch this space :) Thanks for looking!