Pew Refurbishing at St. Barbara’s Catholic Church – Powell, WY
Project Overview
Church Name: St. Barbara’s Catholic Church
Location: Powell, Wyoming
Services Provided: Pew Refurbishing, Kneeler Restoration
Project Focus: Restoring traditional wood pews damaged by COVID-era social distancing practices
The Challenge
During the COVID-19 pandemic, many churches implemented creative solutions to accommodate social distancing guidelines. At St. Barbara’s Catholic Church in Powell, WY, like many others, this meant using tape to “X off” pews that were not to be used during services. While practical at the time, certain types of tape left permanent impressions and adhesive marks on the wood — damaging the finish and creating visible “X” shapes across many of the pews.
As a traditional Catholic parish with historic wooden pews, St. Barbara’s wanted to preserve their original seating rather than replace it or add upholstery. They needed a solution that would remove the damage while maintaining the church’s timeless aesthetic.
Our Pew Restoration Solution
Sharpe’s Church Interiors provided a custom wood pew refurbishing service that allowed the church to preserve its traditional appearance while eliminating the visual damage caused by the tape.
Pew Surface Refurbishing
We carefully cleaned, sanded, and refinished the affected areas of the pews, removing the leftover adhesive residue and permanent marks without compromising the wood itself. The result was a restored finish that blended seamlessly with the rest of the sanctuary, maintaining the original look of the pews while giving them a fresh, well-cared-for appearance.
Kneeler Restoration
In addition to the pews, we also refurbished the kneelers, ensuring they were clean, functional, and cohesive with the renewed pews — an important touch for a church that upholds Catholic liturgical tradition.
The Results
This project is a prime example of how church pew refurbishing can solve unexpected problems without compromising tradition. We were able to remove years-old tape damage, eliminate visible “X” patterns from the pews, and restore the warm, reverent look of St. Barbara’s sanctuary — all without upholstery or replacement.
📸 View other restoration projects in our Our Work gallery or see how churches across the country are preserving their seating with our help.
Why This Project Matters
Churches like St. Barbara’s show how powerful it can be to preserve original craftsmanship. Even years after COVID changed how sanctuaries were used, lingering effects like damage from tape and adhesives can still be addressed through proper church pew restoration.
If your pews have been impacted by past practices or simply need a refresh, our team offers specialized solutions that respect both form and function. Visit our FAQ page or explore our Church Interior Design Services to learn more.
📞 Need to Restore, Not Replace?
We specialize in preserving traditional church interiors with expert pew refurbishing, kneeler restoration, and sanctuary updates.
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Pew Refurbishing and Repair
Our recently completed project in Vidalia Georgia was a nice one! We refurbished the pews and repaired many broken pew parts throughout the sanctuary. The pews were made in the 1960s and were solid oak. Not a bad set of pews to hold on to, and definitely worth the money to repair and refurbish them. Our pew refurbishing and repair service was just what these pews needed. We removed several splitting legs and supports from underneath the pews. Sanded the surface smooth, refinished and reglued the splitting supports. This guarantees the support legs will not cause problems in days to come. This process took us a few days as we had to let the glue cure. The end result was fantastic and the church members loved the work!!
Refurbishing Process
Our pew refurbishing process is unique. It provides a cost effective alternative to pew refinishing. Our on site service is a 3 step process : It goes as follows
- We clean the exposed wood and lightly sand the any rough areas.
- We apply a unique, penetrating formula that restores the original color and luster to the finish while blending blemishes and minor scratches.
- Lastly, an application of wax product to restore shine and seal the wood seals the deal.
Bench Upholstery Project for Vidalia Georgia Church
These particular benches were solid oak and required no fabric or foam removal. We started off the pew refurbishing process by measuring the pews and calculating how long to cut our pew fabric. You always leave an additional amount of length for each pew. In this case, we added about 1 foot for the pew seat fabric, and 6 inches for the back fabric. This gives you the room to wrap enough fabric around the foam to create a uniform factory upholstered pew look. Needless to say, if you don’t have experience in upholstering church pews be sure to contact us for assistance. These benches turned out great and the members of the church couldn’t be happier with them. We use high quality tacking strips to blend the fabric into a seamless look and feel. The benches are now much more comfortable with our quality fabric and foams applied.