Repair Services

1. A DAMAGED PIANO
We recommend: Chiu Piano. Besides fixing broken strings, they can also clean sticky keys and remove mouldy stains caused by humidity.Senior project manager Adeline Tan, 35, says that Chiu Piano is reputable and dependable; her piano “is as good as new now.” 

Chiu Piano is located at #02-06 Thomson Plaza, tel: 6454-7679. Repair costs include the assessment charge of $35; it will cost $10 to $90 to replace a copper string; rates for cleaning sticky keys start from $500.

2. BROKEN JEWELLERY
We recommend:  Poh Seng Jewellers. Fix broken jewellery hooks and settings, resize rings, and even polish and smooth chipped jade. Pat Lee, 41, a teacher, said that Poh Seng “is a reputable shop” that she trusts. The hook of her diamond bracelet was replaced by a replica of the old one.
Poh Seng Jewellers is located at 227 New Bridge Road, Tel: 6223 8605. Rates range from $10 to repair a hook to a few hundred dollars to change diamond settings.

3. A TORN SOFA
We recommend: Fabrio Furnishings. Re-upholster worn sofas, in fabric, PVC or leather. It takes from seven days to re-upholster a sofa, excluding the time taken for the requested fabric to arrive. Senior graphic designer Kathleen Chan, 36, raves about the excellent workmanship and the fabric quality; she adds that the fabric “looks gorgeous!”


Fabrio Furnishings is located at #B1-19A Park Mall, Tel: 6337 0079. Rates for re-upholstering a two-seater sofa range from $800 for fabric; from $2,500 for leather.

4. A FADED FAMILY PORTRAIT OR AN OLD PHOTO
We recommend: Magicfoto. The company can touch up digitally scanned images of old photos and reprint them on photo paper or canvas. However, they are not able to restore an original photo. “The few professionals trained in this area work in the museums,” says co-owner Ken. Teacher Sharon Foo, 30, says that Magicfoto did “deliver excellent results” even for urgent prints.

Magicfoto’s photo restoration rates range from $80 to $250. For more information, call 9008 4983 (Lim Shiang Han)/ 9783- 1236 or visit their website at www.magicfoto.sg.


5. A STAINED CARPET
We recommend: Hassan’s Carpets. Clean up carpet stains caused by common problems like wine spills or pet urine. Ink stains can be hard to remove, so the area would need to be unplucked and replaced with new wool. Cleaning time is 14 days or more, depending on the size of the carpet. The store provides pick-up and delivery service and a free quotation is also available upon request.

Hassan’s Carpets is located at #01-12/13 Tanglin Shopping Centre, Tel: 6737 5626. Carpet cleaning rates start from $100.

6. OLD CHAIRS AND TABLES
We recommend: Uncle Bob furniture repair. Restore colours, mend kinks and fix the broken legs of wooden furniture, plus re-varnishing. But he can’t salvage wet furniture made from woodchips; the wood would have swelled irreversibly.

Varnishing and painting jobs cost $80 to $100, while cleaning the mother-of-pearl inlay on rosewood furniture costs a few thousand dollars. Call Bob Lim at 9750-1036 for further enquiries.

7. A DESIGNER BAG WITH PEELING LEATHER
We recommend: Chan Yew Leather Bags Manufacturer. Repair worn, seasoned or cracked leather handles and bags. They can stitch torn inner linings, and frayed bag edges. Tattered leather edges on straps can be completely replaced.

Chan Yew Leather Bags Manufacturer is located at #07-07 Yi Xiu Factory Building, 65 Sims Avenue, Tel: 6748 9679. Rates range from $12 to $30 to stitch bag edges; from $100 to replace worn handles.

8. A VINTAGE WATCH
We recommend: Bonfield. Restore vintage watches. Bonfield owner Eric Ong says: “If you’ve been told your watch can’t be fixed, come see me. I’ll get it done!”

Bonfield is located at #01- 329, 48 Tanglin Halt Road, Tel: 6473 5505. Bonfield’s rates do vary with the request and timepiece, and can range into the thousands of dollars.

Source : Her World