Saturday, February 26, 2011

Chair makeover

Late last year hubby went away to his brother's wedding in England for two weeks.
Hubby doesn't like change around the 1:1 house much so I decided to have a little furniture makeover fun while he was gone. I knew he'd be so happy to see us when he got back that he probably wouldn't notice a few new bits of furniture around the house.
My friend Frederica gave me the wine table and I quickly painted it and shabbied it.

I had a list of furntiure I wanted to find at second hand shops while he was away...this chair was not on the list.
But when I saw it I just HAD to have it - the price tag of $5 may have had something to do with that!
It was a very pretty shape...perfectly shabby.
(The power tools are not mine, lol! Hubby had the camera so I had to take the chair to my sister-in-law's house to photograph. I did get a little help while I was there with some other projects!)

What I didn't realise, when I so hastily bought it, was that it had at least 500 industrial strength staples keeping that ugly green fabric attached to it.
I almost gave up on the chair several times because of those staples, it took days to get them out using pliers and a chisel.
I wasn't going to paint the chair because it was really lovely oak but when I put it in the lounge it was just screaming to be painted. I can't say I enjoy painting life size furniture.

The upholstery is less than perfect - I'm hopelss with a staplegun on my own, it nearly shoots me across the room when I try to use it.
A friend gave me the toile fabric which was a furnishing sample. Amazingly there was exactly enough to cover the chair! Even though I added some extra padding I have to say it's not the most comfortable chair in the world.
I was pretty pleased with the result and hubby was very impressed so the chair was allowed to stay!

Only the spool on the left is really vintage. The other three came from the Japan shop and I aged them.
As for the tall blue weathered 'thing'...

it was another Op Shop find, here's what it looked like when I bought it. It's made of brass.
That's something I did enjoy painting!

Meet my sweet little niece Mia.
I look after her five days a week so finding time for mini's and other projects is a bit of a challenge these days! But there's plenty more half finished projects - big and small - around here at the moment...more to show you soon!

Thank you for all your messages regarding the Christchurch earthquake. New Zealand is a very small country and you'll find nearly everyone knows someone in Christchurch. It has been a very harrowing week watching all the news reports on the television. And still so very hard to believe that such a tradgedy could happen here.

Mercedes

30 comments:

  1. wow- the chair turned out gorgeous! What a great reward for a lot of hard work- it looks beautiful in your home ♥

    ReplyDelete
  2. Mercedes! Your chair and table came out so incredible! I love how resourceful you are! The fabric really works out perfectly. I LOVE that photo of your little niece Mia. What a little doll!!

    ReplyDelete
  3. :-D
    I love and admire your strategy :-)
    The little princess on her throne, so sweet :-)
    Mini hugs, Flora

    ReplyDelete
  4. You've made a lovely job of your chair - who cares if it's not that comfortable as long as it looks good!

    ReplyDelete
  5. What a great job you did on the chair, it turned out very very pretty!
    The brass 'thing' looks great after you gave it a make over.
    And your sweet niece Mia is sooooo cute :)

    Warm hugs, Jollie

    ReplyDelete
  6. oohhh , she is so cute , I have to come over soon .
    love the chair !!!
    love from Freddy

    ReplyDelete
  7. Great job Mercedes,the fabric is very lovely.But the cutest of all is little Mia :-))!Jeannette

    ReplyDelete
  8. WOW! That chair has been reborn. It was an ugly duckling and now it's a beautiful swan.

    What an adorable baby!!! I love her.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Keeping NZ in our prayers...love what you did to the chair..fab darling..

    ReplyDelete
  10. Wonderful! The chair is great and the table too.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Lovelovelove that chair!!! You did such a great job with the makeover. I couldn't help giggling when picturing you flying across the room while using the staple gun. So funny! Those staple guns are crazy strong, aren't they??
    Hugs,
    Jill

    ReplyDelete
  12. What a little doll baby! She looks very happy on your beautiful chair!

    ReplyDelete
  13. It's such a pretty chair to look at...who needs comfort!!!!

    ReplyDelete
  14. I love it! The chair turned out so pretty!!!! I can't wait to see your next projects.

    We'll continue to pray for our brothers and sisters in Christchurch.

    Diane

    ReplyDelete
  15. Hi Mercedes,
    The chair is wonderful, such a great job ( and a lot of work)
    And baby Mia is soooo cute, she looks very happy at your place.
    I can't wait to see everything in real!!
    Love Sylvia

    ReplyDelete
  16. You chair looks wonderful!!, and your little niece Mia is so cute!!

    Greetings, Karin

    ReplyDelete
  17. Your chair turned out great! Your little niece is so sweet it must be a joy to look after her. The rest of your 1:1 home looks lovely too.

    ReplyDelete
  18. You did an awesome job with the chair! It looks so nice ... even if it's not comfy! Well, who cares for comfy ;-)

    ReplyDelete
  19. Mercedes, you've done a MAGNIFICENT job with the chair! It takes real VISION to see the gem in the $5 bargain store wreck! I LOVE it when the fabric turns out to be Exactly the right amount! It looks right at home with your Adorable niece sitting on it!

    ReplyDelete
  20. nice to meet you Mercedes!the chair is beautiful, and so is your house!

    ReplyDelete
  21. I really love to see your makeover job with the lifesize furniture, Mercedes. If Z has a Makeover TV show, you should be the host !

    Read your email and I am soooooooooo happy for you :) GOOD LUCK!

    ReplyDelete
  22. Great job Mercedes! and very nice pictures, one of my friends was very surprised by the big work you have done on this chair! She laughed when she saw the last picture, baby Mia is so happy sit on it!!! DOei, Claude

    ReplyDelete
  23. Absolute love it! The chair came out incredible!
    - Michele
    http://www.lovesunshineforever.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
  24. I just wrote on Lindq' blog thqt I never knew in what scale I am supposed to see things! he!he!
    Thank to the photo taken outside and most of all, thanks to this GORGEOUS baby, I understand what I see!

    Lots of love to your home from mine Mercedes.
    I hope sweet Liberty is fine.
    :))))

    ReplyDelete
  25. The chair is fabulous...you have such a eye when it comes to creating :)

    ReplyDelete
  26. Well done - that chair is fab. And what a great pic of sweet princess Mia on the throne.
    A xx
    http://anyaadores.blogspot.com/

    ReplyDelete
  27. love the chair :) and your little niece doesnt seem to mind she looks quite comfy lol

    ReplyDelete
  28. Beautiful! The baby and the chair! Look how popular your getting! So many comments! Hope all is well...guess what's on sale all over the US...Peeps!

    ReplyDelete
  29. Who cares whether the chair is comfy - it looks fabulous! Great job! Gill

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for your comments!