Sunday, November 30, 2014

Chair repair

I posted this photo of my before and after of this cute chair yesterday on my Facebook,  now it's time to show you how it was spruced up.
First the chair was in bad shape,  it was not stable at all to sit on and it had big gaps where the wood was seperating.
You can see the finish nails sticking out.
The whole thing needed to be re-glued and re-nailed. 
We had to fix,  glue, clamp and nail each piece. 
Here are four clamps holding in the back as it dried and as we filled the tiny holes with wood filler.  
After all of it was dry,  it was time to do the first coat of paint.   It always looks really streaky with the first coat, especially with the dark wood underneath.  
After the second coat the color was much better.  I reupholstered the seat with the same beautiful fabric I had used on the tufted ottoman I made a few days ago.  
I then waxed it and slightly distressed the details to show off the beautiful touches of why I fell in love with the chair to begin with.  
The chair is part of this set of pieces that are making their way home together.  I think they will look fabulous in their new home.  Thanks for following my blog and I hope to be showing you more projects very soon! 







Wednesday, November 26, 2014

Finishing touches part #2 of the ottoman

The ottoman is done!   But I have left out how I finished it up and if you are trying to make your own you need these last few steps.
Last time I posted it looked like this,  the top could still easily slide off and it was far from being finished. 
I flipped the foam over to show the back and I used a high tack spray adhesive.  You want to make sure it is liberally applied to have a good adhesion later. 
Then I tucked the batting under the lip of the foam by the wood edge.  This makes it so much easier and cleaner when you staple the fabric.   The staples on all sides also makes the foam sliding around much more difficult.
Once the edge is completely stapled all the way around you cover the staples in decorative trim ribbon. 
This covers nicely and gives it a professional looking edge.  My goal is to get better and better at each of these steps and to make my projects beautiful at every angle.  
This transformation from where this scratched up old table was when we started, to becoming a beautiful and soft tufted ottoman, makes something new and loved from something that was once unwanted.  This will look gorgeous at the bottom of a bed or in a livingroom for added seating and a pop of color. 




Tuesday, November 25, 2014

Some progress on my ottoman part 1/2 of ottoman

I am making a button tufted ottoman for my friend and client Kristi.  She has seen some of my other ottomans I have made in the past and has commissioned me to making one for her.  First we started with this cute claw foot coffee table. 
She picked this pretty Waverly fabric that was at the local Jo-Anne's fabric store for the colors and pattern that will match her room. 
The top one is for the ottoman and the other fabrics are ones she has to compliment it. 
Then we started by painting the table.  My hubby did most of the painting on this one, except the final coat.  I think he is having fun doing projects with me and he has been working in the office at work too much lately so he is itching to get his hands dirty.  
I used fabric and a button cover kit to apply the fabric.  
I added a bit of glue before pressing the backs on,  I want to make sure it lasts.  I was recently at a furniture store and an ottoman was on clearance because most of the buttons had lost their front covers. I thought how a tiny bit of glue would have solved that headache,  so I make sure to add it to mine. 
My hands are incredibly weak so I used a clamp to squeeze the button covers on.  When you feel a little pop,  they are on perfect.  It takes a lot of pressure so the clamp (which was a recent idea) saved me from tearing up and bruising my hands badly. 

I was wanting to try the tufting another way than I have ever done before so I started by mapping out on a pegboard where I wanted the tufts.  My measurements were a little off to begin with so there are a few different color circles until I could get it right. 
Then I marked using a marker on the back of the foam where I needed to place my buttons. 
Regular needles will not be long enough to get through the 3" foam and batting on top so I used 6"+ upholstry needles and super strong upholstry thread.  Regular thread will break with the pressure you will need to pull.
Here are the needles I got at Hobby Lobby. 
This is the back of that foam after I pulled the thread through and used scraps of material for the backing so the small knots won't rip through.  YouTube has great video's of doing these if you need more detailed examples.  
Then I placed the foam on top to start seeing the overall picture.  It's not attached yet but it's getting closer.  I didn't like how flat it looked (I like the deeper more luxurious padding) so I added extra batting between the buttons.  
I cut it into small squares and used a stir stick to slide it into place under the fabric. 
It might not look like much difference but the top feels much less square and so much softer. 
If it looks a little lumpy right now,  don't worry.  When I smooth it a little and staple the top to the underside of the lip of the table it will even more of the lumps out.  I have more work to do tomorrow,  I need to seal and antique the paint.  I need to glue the foam to the table, staple the fabric and add the trim ribbon and then this piece will be ready. 

 




Monday, November 24, 2014

Question from Sage

New ideas for old furniture.

I got a question from a blog reader named Sage about what to do with this old media cabinet. 
It's a little outdated but the wood and glass are still nice and in good shape.   A lot of people have these left over from the days of deep and heavy tv's but with the new era of flat and lightweight tv's they have been filling the spaces of many thrift stores.  We brainstormed some ideas: 
There has been a lot of mini kitchens made from these and they are fabulous for small kids. 
Some have been turned into great landing pads for hats coats and gloves. 
A laundry room organizer is another way to give it new life.  Just add a small tension rod for hanging clothes. 
Another fun idea for kids is a dress up closet for her very best princess wear. 
Some might like additional kitchen storage. 
Or another idea we found is adult beverage bar.  Really the best use for turning something old into something new is to think of the best plan for YOUR home and lifestyle. 
If indoors if full of furniture,  a good potting table might come in handy!  Just make sure any outdoor furniture is solid wood and not a laminate and that it is sealed with a good waterproof clear coat to withstand the weather.  What do you think?  What would you suggest the transformation to become?  Please comment below and share your ideas!  If you have a question or need to brainstorm an idea please message me with your dilemma. 








Friday, November 21, 2014

You will never look at your shower curtain the same way again!

I was looking at some ideas online for big print fabric to use for furniture and decor. I stumbled across an idea about using fabric shower curtains in multiple ways,  a shower curtain..... genius!  I then looked up some fun styles online and on Pinterest.   I thought about how I could find a way to incorporate my favorite patterns inexpensively around the house.  Here are some ideas: 
First I love maps and hot air balloons so this one jumped out at me.  Some ideas I came across were to frame as art. 
Color and pattern is a fast way to change up the look of a room and this would be easy to change out.  Cut out to frame size and you could staple or hot glue it in place. 
Or make a frame using 1x2's and then stretch the fabric across the wood and tack or glue in place. 
Here they added a color mat to add to the art feel.  
Want to make a huge wall decoration for the kids?  Shower curtain!  Really!  
In this photo they mounted the shower curtain to a plywood board to make a headboard.   An inexpensive way to make a statement when cloth shower curtains can run from $9-$70 when art can be so much more costly.
You can use the whole thing....
Or just part of the pattern to make a statement.  
There are old photo's,  or more modern works of art.
The options are endless and with Etsy,  Bed Bath and Beyond, Amazon and countless online stores you can find practically anything you want.   I have a love of everything vintage travel,  how cute would this be framed next to a globe and some vintage suitcases?