Refined – Retrimming the Seats of the 1956 Jensen 541

The Jensen 541 interiors are special. Each one entirely handmade with the best materials, all crafted and fitted by hand as it would have traditionally been done back at the factory. Kath, our in-house trim expert here at Bridge Classic Cars, has been working on retrimming the front seats of the 1956 Jensen 541.

Those who have been following along will have seen the condition the seats originally came out of the car like. The foam and covering had all but rotted away to dust but the shells were in good condition and reusable. Kath and the trim team refurbished the shells and made brand newly fitted foams to sit inside the fibreglass buckets.

Now, it was time to trim them. On one of the original seat base was a tiny piece of the original leather. A dark, crimson red. This was the colour that was decided on, to be put back to original specification. Kath carefully matched the materials closest to the original colour to be sent to the owner for selection. Once that was decided on, Kath then began the process of getting the coverings cut to shape and fitted. Each piece was templated and the appropriate swatch of material was selected and cut for the job. Using adhesive, gentle heat and small stretching techniques Kath managed to get the covers in place.

The results are incredible. A wonderful testament to not only the skill and craftsmanship of our in-house trim team but to the timeless design of the 541.