Four steps.

Two or three photographs tell us more than a long description. From them we can see the construction, how the fabric sits, where the load has fallen and how large the job is. That lets us price the work before arriving, rather than standing in your living room naming a figure.

If anything is unclear we ask for a photograph of the care label. It tells us what treatment the material will take, and it is usually tucked under a cushion or along the lower edge of the cover.

Before anything is applied we check the label, feel the fibre and test colourfastness somewhere out of sight. It takes a few minutes and governs everything that follows: which products may be used, at what strength, and how much moisture the piece will take.

If the condition turns out to differ from what the photographs showed, we say so straight away and before work begins — not afterwards.

Loose soil is removed dry first. This is not a formality: grit and sand left in place turn to mud the moment liquid reaches them, and cut the fibres on the way.

Then cleaning solution is sprayed into the fibres and immediately drawn back out with the soil. Moisture is kept measured — two passes rather than one that is too wet. Finally we make additional passes without solution to pull out as much moisture as possible.

We tell you how long we think the piece will take to dry and how to speed it up with ventilation. We also point out anything that did not come out, so you hear it from us rather than discovering it yourself later.