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Tuesday, October 25, 2011

How to turn trash to a shabby chic treasure! {Re-upholstering my chair}

Hi guys! 

I want to say a special thank you to all of you who were SO supportive and wonderful during this past round of American Crafter.

Stay tuned, the final round starts this Friday and I am a BUSY gal!
It may not be the most exciting project for this week, but it is one that I have been dieing to do FOREVER!

Anddd just in case you were wondering I have officially gone blogging insane because I am also part of BTOB (another competition) that starts this week...
What in the world was I thinking???
I promise NO more competitions after this.
I like the challenge but I hate the feeling of being part of a popularity contest.

Anyways.

I am excited to give you what you have asked for----
the "How to" part of my shabby chic chair up-cycle!!!

My honest opinion and advice for you before I even get into the details is...
it's NOT thattt hard, it is WELL worth the time and it DOESN'T have to be perfect!

Okay, are you ready?
Here is what I did.


Step 1.  Strip the chair down.
DON'T be shy---get rid of all of the fabric, staples, nails and pins that may be stuck in there!


Step 2. Decide if you "stuffing" is worth saving or replacing.
{I saved mine}
Step 2 & 1/2. Take her outside and spray paint away!
{I forgot this step and am feeling lazy so I am not going re-number so this gets to be a half step}


Step 3. Cut your fabric to slightly larger than the area of the chair that you are working on .
{I used 2 pieces since my fabric is on the thin side}
Step 4. Get out your staple gun and go for it!
{There was a time when I was afraid of the staple gun...but I like to think that we are BFFs now}
{Oh and I folded my fabric over to create a smooth edge prior to stapling}


Step 5. Tackle the seat.
Do the same thing, just tuck and staple.
I didn't do any kind of fancy measuring to get the fabric just right around the legs, I just cut slot approximately where there needed to be slots while I was stapling along....
{Not super helpful I realize, but I am not for measuring and details like that....anddd sometimes I suffer the consequences... buttt not this time!}

Step 6.  Get out your glue gun and hide those staples!
{And try not to burn yourself---
I might suggest NOT watching TV
&
talking on the phone
while crafting
with a glue gun
during this step or you might end up with a nasty burn on your arm....
just sayin}


And wham bam trash to treasure!
What do you think?  Would you try it?

Anddd for those of you who were wondering about the framed fabric quote
Here is how I did that!

I just cut the quote out of vinyl and put the words on my fabric.


Then I painted the fabric with Old white chalk paint.
Then I wrapped the fabric around an old board that was cut to size
for this old frame that I up-cycled months ago.


Talk about inexpensive decor right?!

26 comments:

  1. LOVE both projects!!!

    i just might try and tackle a chair i found for $10 at an estate sale now. i don't hate the fabric, but it might be much prettier with something new!

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  2. I am a new follower and I love your blog! I was thinking ohhh I like that picture/frame and scrolled down to see the tutorial..yeah!! Thanks for the inspiration! Great job on the chair.

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  3. This is amazing! I can't believe you were able to transform this! It's so inspiring! Great job, friend!

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  4. great tut! you make it look very easy.

    I so want to try the framed project. thanks for sharing.

    Lorene

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  5. WOW!! Love what you've done with the chair!

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  6. Okay, folding the material before stapling. Brilliant! Why didn't I think of that?!

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  7. Your chair looks great! Did you apply the fabric on the arms the same way as the rest of the chair? I have a chair that I started to do but have been putting it off...I love the picture you made as well..very cute!

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  8. Ok, now I'm confident enough to try my own chair. It's just a seat cover, but I think you got rid of all the scary stuff like measuring (and worrying!) Thank you for sharing.

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  9. Wow, I love that chair! Can you come to VA and do a series of chairs I have? :)
    I'm excited for you and the success you've had in the competition. I can't believe you are doing more than one during an overlapping time period. CRAZY but AWESOME. We need to get you a super woman cape...stat!

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  10. I love that chair! I had some like it sitting around but I never got around to fixing it and finally got rid of it. Now I wish I had kept it!

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  11. Beautiful chair! Looks so great :)

    Jenny
    www.simcoestreet.blogspot.com

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  12. Amazing! I am crazy about this style of chair and your makeover is just gorgeous!

    You really do make it seem not too difficult to do, so I might actually try this one at some point!

    Thanks so much for the inspiration!

    Take care,
    Christina
    designingbynumbers.blogspot.com

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  13. so chic!

    visiting via SCC and would like to invite you over to my blog's shabby chic giveaway (3 will win!):

    http://hellolovelyinc.blogspot.com/2011/10/rachel-ashwell-on-creating-authentic.html

    warmly.

    michele

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  14. I love the chair makeover it is beautiful. It looks so pretty and chic!

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  15. I have tried my hand at slipcovers but not upholstery. Don't you dare tempt me! I'm seriously in love with that chair.

    Thanks~
    Mary

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  16. wow...your chair looks great! love the frame too!

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  17. I love them both! You made reupholstering that chair look so easy! I still am a little gun shy with the staple gun. I close my eyes and squeeze! LOL Give me any other tool though...

    The frame looks cool too. I really need to get a silhouette or something!

    xo,
    Jami

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  18. I totally love everything about this! I can't even pick a favorite item. I'll be featuring this tomorrow at Clean and Scentsible.
    You are definitely one busy girl!! Good luck with your next competition. I have been voting for you!
    Jenn :)
    Happy Halloween!

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  19. Your chair and sign look fabulous!

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  20. Ah Jaime Lyn, you are a genius! I am not as brave as you, and I applaud what you have achieved! God bless x

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  21. love, love, love the chair!!! You did a really good job on it.

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  22. I love your chair. Thank you so much for sharing and for linking up to last weeks show and share. We hope to see you and your newest project on Wednesday.

    A mommy's life...with a touch of YELLOW
    tyandwhitneyulrich.blogspot.com

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  23. Your chair is amazing and it's so simple to do. Great idea!
    I really like your blog :) good job!!

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