Wingback Chair Slipcover

Don’t faint! 

I’m back with the slipcover reveal already.  If you missed the sneak peek post yesterday, click here to see. 

You know how out of character this is for me, don’t you?

I’m known for showing a peek and then leaving you hanging for weeks,

even months

while I do everything but get back to finishing it.

Sorry about that, I guess that’s just my M. O.

For the record, this is NOT actually finished.

It’s pretty darn close though and since I’m going away on Friday for vacation I figured close is good enough this time.

Are ya ready?

First the before,

Now the after.

Ta-da!

 

Notice there’s no piping anywhere?  Remember, my Sandy loves to nibble on piping. I opted not to even go there.

I was thinking of painting the legs of the chairs, but now I think maybe I don’t need to.

They barely show now. 

What do you think?

My methods for making this were somewhat unconventional. 

You see, I don’t know how to make or follow a pattern.

So I pinned pieces of drop cloth to the chair, cut them to the approximate size, pinned all the pieces to each other, and carefully lifted the whole thing off in one piece.

Then I followed the pins with the machine, sewing it together from pin to pin. 

When I do the second one I’ll place the pins a lot closer together.

It was really confusing because I couldn’t tell which part was which most of the time, but I just kept sewing along the pin lines.

Miraculously when I finished and put it over the chair, it actually worked!

Not one seam needed to be ripped out and redone.

After that I trimmed all the excess fabric from the seams.

I still need to go back and fold over the seams so they don’t fray.

I’m thinking of getting some bias tape(?? I think that’s what it is…. the flat folded over thin strips of fabric) and sewing that over the raw inside edges,

Do you think that would work?

The back isn’t done, it’s still pinned together.  I plan to add ties to keep it closed.

Sandy dog thought I was a nut this morning;

first vacuuming at 5 am,

then pulling my shop lights up from the basement so I could take these pictures.

Sandy’s no fool, she stayed safely out of the way.

Update on Katy;

 

she’s doing really well! 

(If you missed the post about fostering Katy, please click here to see it.)

She has learned to go up and down the stairs, albeit reluctantly.

We moved her crate down to the living room and she likes to hang out in there as long as we don’t shut the door. 

We do shut the door to the crate when we leave for work (just in case) and she whines like crazy.

We’ve found that Katy likes to “collect” things and take them to her crate.

She is super inquisitive, her long nose is into everything!

All 3 dogs are getting along together fine. 

Thank you to everyone who’s been asking!

I’m linking up to Gail’s Catch as Catch Can party

And Jami’s Air your laundry Friday party

Imagine my delight to find that Funky Junk Donna's themed link for SNS is Slipcovers this week! How perfect is that timing?

Ottoman Slipcover and a Sneak Peek

I’ve had the sewing machine out again.  That monstrosity has been getting quite a workout these last few months.

This ottoman was a curb find that had good bones, and I reupholstered it with burlap last year.

 

It didn’t come out so great. 

I think it's the ribbon around the bottom edge that just didn't work  for me.  Or it could be that Mike is just not thrilled with any of my burlap projects in general.  He just doesn't get it.

  It was done long before I started blogging and I never blogged about it.
(this ottoman has a "sister" too, someday I'll get around to showing her)

I’ve lived with it a while now, and was ready for a change.

I decided to put a drop cloth slipcover on it to hide my bad job.

I like it better this way! 

So now that I’m on a roll with little slipcovers, I decided to go for it with something much bigger.

Remember my poor chewed up wing back chairs?

I have a matching set.

Sandy has had her way with them.

She especially likes piping.

And corners.

Mike has been wanting me to get rid of them (the chairs, not the dogs) and buy new ones for a while now.

I personally think that’s a bad idea, if the new ones got chewed it would be hard to take, know what I mean?

So I’ve been studying everyone’s slipcovers in blogland for a while now. 

And finally decided to try my hand at it.

 

I’ve cut and pinned all the pieces together on the chair.

 

   

Yes, I actually bought myself some real straight pins!

Big splurge, $3.99!

So far all the pieces are sewn together and I added the pleated ruffle at the bottom last night. 

I still need to attach ties to close the back, iron, and take pictures.

Hopefully that will all happen soon!

Linking up to Funky Junk Interiors Saturday Night Special Slipcover Themed party.

My Newest Project

Just thought I’d show you what I’ve been working on this weekend. 

It took up a lot of my project time.

Meet Katy.

She’s a retired racing greyhound.

Isn’t she pretty?

We’re fostering her until she finds her forever home.

She is such a sweetheart.

Katy is 8.5 yrs old and was a top racer for a long time.  She ran in 169 races!

Poor girl, she worked hard all her life and is just now looking for a retirement home.

She was fostered locally the last 6 months, but not adopted.  Her foster mom couldn’t keep her anymore and very reluctantly let us take over her care.

So far she is fitting in with my two girls just fine. 

She’s pretty nervous and confused.

It’s like having a new baby, she needs lots of attention right now.

Memory Lane Curbshopping #2

This curb shopping expedition down memory lane is a bit challenging for me.

Mostly, because I’m embarrassed to say I haven’t repurposed ANY of it yet!

This was all picked up from the curb after a garage sale.  You can see some of the items are still tagged.

I do use the doggie bowls. 

They get used whenever my grand-dogs are over for a visit. 

My own dogs are too big to use these.

 

These photos are hard to see.  It seems I took a lot of different angles though.

See the clock?  I kinda like that.

The wrestling figure I gave to my grown son who still watches that stuff. (I just don’t get it)

The nails have been added to my hardware collection, but honestly, I use screws for all my fastening. 

But the carriage bolts may come in handy someday.

I thought the metal waste can with the step on lid was the coolest thing ever. 

 

It’s in my garage right now. 

Buried. 

Somewhere.

It used to be under my work counter in the garage.

I loved that space, where the heck did it go?

It has to be out there somewhere…under everything else.  Hmmm, I should probably clean it out and get back to this lovely workspace come spring.

And the cowboy boots!  I so want to make a couple birdhouses out of those.  I’ve seen it done on the Gardenjunk Forum.

Wouldn’t that be neat?

With license plates for the roofs?

This bike is waiting to be spray painted white to replace my old leaning bike.  

I threw the old one away last spring because it was just too rusted out.  (Shhh…Don’t tell Donna I said that, ok?)

This one is waiting behind the shed to step in as a replacement.  All I need to do is strip off the wires and spray paint.

I have a metal basket for the handlebar, and a very old child’s seat to attach to the back.  Won’t that look cool with flowers added?

This a a picture of the first bike long before I threw it away. It leaned against that tree by the driveway for at least 3 years.

 

 

Thanks for taking a walk down memory lane with me this morning!

 

Linking up to Linda’s Junkin Finds Friday party at A La Carte 

Piano Stool

I really haven’t done much in the way of curbshopping or thrifting in the last few months.  I’d like to say I gave it up entirely (actually, Mike would like me to say that) but I’m actually just biding my time, waiting for the weather to change and maybe for my garage to clear out some.

I did, in a very weak moment, stop at the local Salvation Army one afternoon a couple weeks back.  I hadn’t really planned it, I was passing by and suddenly my car turned into the lot! What the heck, while I’m there I may as well go in and look around, right?

As I approached the furniture section I spotted something interesting..

Hmmm, what’s that?

Upon closer inspection it proved to be a swivel stool, probably a piano stool.

It had a most interesting shape to the top, and the cast iron legs instantly won my heart.

A quick look at the price tag;  the date told me it had just been set out, OUCH, it was $24! 

Rather steep for the thrift store, but then again, the prices have been creeping up over there.

I fished through my purse and found a $7 off coupon that hadn’t expired yet.

That clinched it.  I was going to splurge on this piece.

Me, the ultimate cheapskate, the one who wouldn’t even buy new counter stools even though mine were chewed up and didn’t match. 

The one who wouldn’t pay a dime for a new coffee table or new pillows for the couch.

I can’t explain it. 

But I pulled out my wallet, blew out the dust, and bought the piano stool anyway.  It came to just under $19 with tax.

Isn’t it funny, if this were in an antique shop I would have been so happy to pay the price. 

But in a thrift store?  

Oh well, I guess it’s just perception.

I intended to redo the upholstery on it.

But yesterday I had the sewing machine out, along with my drop cloth stash, working on another project (yet to be revealed).

Somehow  looking at the scrap pieces that were leftover I got a vision in my head of that piano stool wearing a pleated slipcover. 

I was supposed to be putting everything away for the night, 

Mike was waiting dinner for me.

Anyway, half an hour later there was a new slipcover on my piano stool!

(And dinner wasn’t too cold to eat)

I just love drop cloths and my quick pleater tools!

     

I’ll have to go back and take pictures in the light of day.    I

was just so pleased with this I couldn’t wait to show you.

Linking up to Linda’s Nifty Thrifty Tuesday party at Coastal Charm!

I’m joining the fun at Jami’s Air your Laundry Friday party, check out all the fabric links!

Donna at Funky Junk Interiors is having a slipcover themed link for Saturday Night Special.......I'm linking up!