Old Chair Becomes New Chair Love
About a year ago I was given this kind of ugly old chair by a friend who knew I had a thing for chairs and also a thing for redoing ugly vintage pieces. The chair sat in my garage just waiting for me to be inspired. And finally… I have a new dining chair!
Here is the funky chair before:
This baby was probably gorgeous is its day, but the orange had to go. And the finish on the wood had also seen better days. So, I got to work. I first unscrewed the cushion from the chair from underneath. Then I had to pry off about a million staples. But, this step proved to be quite inspiring. You see, I am a beginner reupholster-er. This chair gave me a bit of creative insight. Once I started prying off the staples I realized that not only was the fabric cover itself tacked down, but also the piping around the bottom of the cushion was a separate piece. This was a strip of fabric folded in half and stapled around the edge. Easy!
Here is a look at the cushion and staples. You can also see the strip of piping.
And here is my new dining chair, including my take on this simple piping idea!
I love how the piping contrasts with the leather fabric. The color ties in with the dining room so well. And here’s the new beauty in its place at the dining table:
The fabric on the table is another project to be coming soon! I am working on a fun table runner to brighten the place up for summer!
My 50 Cent Table
Last weekend I found the sweetest little antique table and a garage sale. For 50 cents. Yes, 50 cents. Here she is:
I saw the potential. It was a bit wobbly, but with the tap of a hammer, the leg was put back into its slot, and viola! No more wobble. Next, I lightly sanded the entire table. Then I applied about 4 coats of a turquoise pant with a sponge brush to the entire table. Once the final coat was completely dry, I used a fine sandpaper and roughed up the edges of the table and legs for an antiqued look. Here she is now:
I love it! And I really like the way it fits in the living room, but I think this could be one of those pieces that travels easily from room to room. I’m completely satisfied, and all for a total of 50 cents!
Black Kitchen Inspiration
The kitchen needs some help. I can’t change the fact that it’s super small and always will be. But, I can give it a bit of a facelift. This is in the works. I already have all the plans in my head. Yes, I want to paint the cabinets black. Black. It doesn’t matter how many people doubt me now, because I already have my mind set. But, just to put other people at ease, I thought I would share Nate Berkus” gorgeous black cabinet kitchen!
Gorgeous, no? I totally believe I can pull this off too. Stay tuned!
See it posted originally here: www.housetweaking.com
My Own Chair Love
Here’s a chair that I inherited and eventually redid. I love these basic old wood chairs, but the white chipping paint and scratches on this one were in need of some help.
First I sanded the chair down until it was nice and smooth using a palm sander. I then made sure to clean and dry the chair very well. I first painted the bottom portion of the legs black. Once that was very dry I taped off each leg at the same place and proceeded to paint the rest of the chair with a fun silver spray paint. The final step was an idea I wanted to try, which proved to be the most work of all. I used black nail head trim nails to form a pattern around the seat. I measure where I wanted the nails to go and made small marks with a pencil. Eventually, this step proved to be useless and I was off of my marks anyways. Ah well, trial and error with a new project. I also learned that tapping these nails in with a hammer scratched and smashed the nails, as they have a black finish on them. I found that covering the nail with a small piece of cardboard from the packaging after it was in place, and giving it one good tap with the hammer was the most effect and precise way to apply these. My pattern still ended up a little bit off, but overall I like the idea and would love to try it on one of my chairs for the shop now that I have my technique down. I lastly tied on a pink and purple vintage scarf to tie the chair into the bedroom (which you will all see eventually!) So, here she is…
What do you think?
Virtual Tour-Starting in the Dining Room
I think I will give you a little before and after tour of each room as I update them in the new house. Besides the bathroom, the dining room was one of the first rooms I refinished. I decided not to mess with the beaded board walls or drop ceiling at this time, and the carpet may someday come out to reveal the… hardwood floors! But for now… the before:
Yeah, not much for a dining room, right? And After…
I really wanted initially to get rid of the blue ceiling fan. However, family and friends convinced me to work around it. The fan was new and it had a remote and a dimmer. They swore it would be handy. Turns out, they are right! So, I covered a large lamp shade in silky black ribbon and attached it to the fan over the light bulbs. I also hung a crystal from the pull. I think the set-up helps a lot!
On this wall will eventually be a buffet I am refinishing. Stay tuned for that project soon.
And remember the armuoir I turned into a mini bar? So, what do you think so far?
Bright Chair Love
Wow, this bright baby is stunning!
Maybe I’m loving the pop of color because I’m craving SPRING…
An Office Project Finished
As I said before, I have recently started a new job. With that has come a new, but bland, office. So, I got to work. The first project I have completed is a table for the office. I found this ugly guy with a paper top for a couple of dollars at the thrift store:
I started by sanding the wood legs and sides a bit and then painting them black. I then used scrapbook paper on the top. I taped the paper down, starting with a full sheet in the very middle of the table. When the sheets were lined up nicely, I used ModPodge to cover the sheets, using a foam brush. I did several coats of this, drying in between.
Black and white, of course!
One thing I learned from using the ModPodge was that it makes the paper wet, so at first it will bubble up. This smooths out as it dries. But, I did make the mistake of lining the paper sheets up perfectly edge to edge. Lining them up with a bit of overlap would have prevented the sheets from moving as they dried. I do have a few tiny spots where there are gaps between the paper now. I learned! 🙂
Mason Chair
Tony knows me well. The other day he sent me a message and said he had a surprise for me that I was really going to love. Aw. Yup, he was right. He pulled in the driveway with a chair in the back of his truck! Tony is in the Masonic Lodge and they are updating and selling off some of their old chairs. So, he nabbed one. He picked the oldest (see, he does know me well!). It even has straps underneath holding old straw stuffing in!
The leather seat is in bad shape, so we plan to refurbish it. I would love to find some old, worn looking leather for the replacement (if you know where I can accomplish this please let me know!). We would really like to keep the nostalgia of the chair, so are trying to keep it similar to its original look. Currently Tony has set up camp for the new chair at the head of the table 🙂
Now, where to find pre-worn leather pieces!??
Bathroom Facelift
I got the shower curtain in the mail… and I love it! I ran out the next day to get a new curtain rod that is curved (I hate the curtain touching me, and we hated the gold!). I also picked up a couple white and black towels and a new rug. The new toothbrush holder is actually an old jar. What a huge difference these touches made!
Here is the before:
And here is the updated bathroom:
A bit more sophisticated?
Of course there are still changes we would like to make, but it was a great start for such a small budget! With the new curved rod we are thinking about getting a second curtain, as it is a tight fit. We would also like to paint the walls. Next year we are getting a new shower, and would still like to try the corrugated metal idea. Its getting there! What do you think?
Tid Bits and Projects
It seems like I havebeen so busy around here… but where is my progress? I have so my projects currently on my plate, and have been working on them, really! But, none are officially completed yet. So, I thought I would just fill you in on some of the tib bits going on around here and a few of the before shots of some current projects.
Some awesome flowers have sprouted up in the back yard. I forgot that I had planted them there in the spring! I love lillies, any kind, especially orange ones!
We are also still taking care of Gillian, the salamander. He is still in the rubber tote sitting on the table, grossing everyone out. But, we are searching for a small tank to keep him in. In this picture he is right next to the end of the leaf. Those two black dots are his eyes; he is burrowed in the dirt.
The dogs made a nice mess for me to clean up this morning. They decided that the five minutes they were left alone in the yard was just long enough to dig for moles. Here they are trying to look all innocent and quite muddy! Also check out Marley’s new collar. She thinks she’s tough!
Tony was the sweetest last night and had his amazing spaghetti pizza ready for me when I walked in the door! I even have some for lunch today.
And, here are just a few sneak peeks of the projects I am working away on…
Stay tuned…
Make Mine Eclectic 
