Shop Talk Interior Helping customers choose upholstery materials by Kyle Van Damme, MFC M Making a choice can be hard when there are endless options. aking a choice can be hard when there are endless options, and that's exactly how it can feel for customers trying to select fabrics and materials for an upholstery project, including proper colors, textures and materials. It's best for a marine shop to have an established plan for helping guide customers through this process. I'll begin with the basics and run through the process we use at Marine Tops Unlimited to get from the starting line to the finish line of materials selections, so we can progress to the starting line of working on the project. A picture of the finished product. Establish the project scope Let's set the scene: John and Jane Doe walk into our shop. They have a 1998 Baja .38 Special performance boat. The Doe family is looking for all-new upholstery in the cockpit of the boat and want to change the colors and design of the cockpit upholstery. One of the first things we do is talk about the scope of the project and their rough ideas. This helps us create a quote as a starting point to ensure this is something they want to move forward with and will fit their budget. We don't want to waste hours discussing all the options only to have 36 Marine Fabricator | Sept/Oct 2024