I’ve been using this chair since 2009, and had this fabric in my stash since 2010. In 2013 I decided to put the two together, but I only got around to it in January 2014. It took about 90 minutes.
The fabric is organic cotton canvas, and I used almost all of it for this project. The remaining pieces went to my mom, so this was a very successful stash-busting project.
Here is the chair before:
It was so much easier to just do this project than to procrastinate it any longer.
This project is actually from last summer! I came across Squint furniture, and who could help but be inspired? My mom bought me this cute slipper chair and I knew exactly what I was going to do.
I bought a million small pieces of some gorgeous upholstery fabrics. Even at lengths 1/4 yd and less, and with a 40% sale, it still cost around $50.
It’s technically a slipcover, although the zipper is tacked closed. Still, it is possible to remove the fabric for cleaning if absolutely necessary. I made the base of the slipcover out of an old sheet. Then I pinned and topstitched the “patches.” I used 1,500 yds of thread for the satin stitching! It was a very time consuming project, but not too difficult. I’m thinking about using the same process on my sewing chair.
I love all the covered buttons! I got these fabrics as swatches for free, and the fleurs de lis and bees are my favorite.
I gave the chair to my mom when I started traveling, but here’s how it used to look in my living room. I also upholstered the violet sateen sofa, made the pillows, painted the two tables, and made the wax screen behind!
This chair was selected as a Craftster featured project in January 2010!
These two chairs were both rescued from certainly unglamorous lives. The recycling process including reinforcing joints with glue and screws. The paint was covered in many layers of sealant, so they are reasonably durable. I love working on chairs because they are beautiful and functional, and allow me to use paint and fabric on one piece.
The motifs for this chair were inspired by Egyptian and Syrian art, as well as the designs of Gustav Klimt. In addition to the warm colors I used a metallic gold paint. Before I could get started painting, a new seat needed to be cut in addition to the regular repairs. The seat and back are upholstered in matching scrap fabrics.
This second chair is more my own style; I really loved the round dowels on the back. I wound up giving this to a friend in Abita Springs.
