Chair update

I didn't quite finish the chair this weekend.  We had too much fun at the pool, BBQs and catching up with good friends.  Nevertheless, I got carried away on Sunday night, and stayed up until 1:30 a.m. getting most of the way there.

On Thursday, I started with this:

And, by 12 or 1 a.m., had made it to this:

Sunday night, I got to work on draping and stapling...

In lieu of the synthetic webbed material, I used blackout drapery fabric as additional support for the back fabric. 

Stapled my way around the perimeter and then cut away most of the excess...

Looking pretty decent from the back...

Next, I laid down the back cushion and front fabric and got busy stapling...

Once I finished the front of the back cushion, I hit a little snag... I turned the chair around to have another look at the back, and saw dozens of sharp points poking out the back!  Eek... many staples had missed the chair frame or went in at bad angles.  I did my best to pry out all the errant staples, but left some damage to the wood frame and had a tough time in some spots)).  Oh well, I'm ok with 'good enough' for my first real upholstery job!
 

Next was the seat cushion...

It was a little tricky maneuvering around the wood frame, and I didn't do a perfect job of it, but again - good enough.

And, by 1:30 a.m. (shame on me) early Monday morning - I had gotten to this point:



I still need to add trim to hide all the staples and raw fabric edges.  I love the look of a double-welt, so, I'm going to try that... but, first need to acquire the double-welt cording - and figure out how to sew it. 

Despite the imperfections, I'm really excited about how the chair is turning out - it's going to be a great addition to our master bedroom.

Biting the bullet!

Last night, I finally decided to tackle a project that I've been too scared and indecisive to take on for the past couple of years...



 I picked up this lovely chair on Craigslist for about $50 with big plans to paint the wood a bright color and reupholster the cushions.  After living with the chair for the past two years, I've come to love the natural wood color, and am going to keep that as is.  But, it's time to bid this pink upholstery farewell.

This fabric (that I blogged about here) has been sitting in my room for the past week - waiting to find its perfect home.  I might kick myself for going white - but, since this chair barely gets used, I am going to cross my fingers and hope for the best.

Step 1:  Stripping

That's Brothers & Sisters in the background... I'm about 5 episodes behind - sad the show was cancelled :(

Oops - maybe I shouldn't have cut this synthetic webbed material...

Getting the staples out is one tough job... I probably removed about 20% of them and I think I'm going to leave it at that.  As long as I can trim enough of the leftover fabric away, I should be able to staple right over the old ones (I hope)!



At this point, I had to call it a night.  Let's see if I can bang this project out over the weekend.  Wish me luck!

Great looking lamp at a great price!

At the Lucketts Design House, I spied this elegant wooden table lamp (sorry for the grainy phone pic):

I don't remember the exact price on it, but it was probably close to $200...

                                   

so, I was delighted to find a similar style wooden-based lamp online for only $59.99!

JC Penney can be a great resource for affordable design!

Antiquing at Lucketts

On Sunday Morning, I ventured out to the Old Lucketts Store Annual Spring Market.

One of my first stops was at a charming booth filled with bold and cheerful chairs and decor...

Love the bold print on the traditional wing chair!

Silhouettes are very popular these days - but this was the first time I saw a silhouette on a lamp - cute idea.

Another booth with brightly painted vintage furniture...

I promise - there were some regular old vintage and antique items to be found...

These foo elephants caught my eye, but were very pricey!

I saw a few lovely large farmhouse tables like this one.

These paintings (of Florence, I believe) were very pretty - and I especially liked the frames - but, I wasn't sure where I'd put them.

Before heading home, I checked out the Design House.  I was a little underwhelmed, to be honest - but, a few things stood out, like this dramatic headboard...

these "aged" convex mirrors...

and this chandelier...



I came home empty handed... so unlike me... but, I just wasn't blown away by anything, and didn't think the prices were that enticing. 

There was one more item in the Design House that I loved... and will share tomorrow - along with info on a bargain look-a-like!

A Hint of Summer

Amanda Nisbet



With its bold aquas, warm yellows and pop of coral, this living room exudes a summery feel - much like the gorgeous weekend we just had!

Happy Monday!

"Bringing the outdoors in"

The bed in the image on the left - situated in a 1906 New Orleans home featured in the latest issue of Lonny - gives a whole new meaning to the oft- (perhaps over-) used design term:  "bringing the outdoors in."  It's so incredibly striking!  I love it contrasted with the neutral flowy bedding. 

Designer/Homeowner:  Caroline Robert; photography by Patrick Cline; Lonny May/June 2011

Have a great weekend!

Artist Spotlight: Zu Sheng Yu

The Bethesda Fine Art Festival took place last weekend, drawing 140 amazing artists from around the country to our local downtown area.  I love going every year, wandering from booth to booth, admiring the incredible talent and beauty.  This year, several artists caught my eye - in addition to one of our all-time favorites, David Oleski.  I'll save my post on David for another day (there's a very cute story that goes along with it)... but, today I'm excited to share some of the inspiring oil paintings of Zu Sheng Yu:

So hard to pick a favorite!  As much as I love the hilarious farm scenes (Mona Lisa, Lady Liberty, Elvis, Marilyn or Abe... who could choose?!) and the dramatic draped cloths, I think those falling maple leaves are my top pick.