Happy Sunday! Dinner is in the crock pot and I’ve been on my feet all day, so it’s time to sit down and write!If you saw my post from earlier this week about the desk I turned into a vanity, you already know that I had trouble finding a suitable chair to go with it.
Well, I finally found the right one last week! I’d taken our puppy, Pipsqueek, to be ‘fixed.’ Our vet is across town near where we lived when we got our first dog, Rocky, and I didn’t want to drive back and forth across town twice that day, so I made plans to spend the time between drop-off and pick-up going to a few thrift stores and getting my hair trimmed, all within a 2 mile radius of the vet. And I found The Chair at one of my stops.
Most of the chairs I’ve encountered during my 7-month long search were very angular and/or cheaply made – OR they cost $30 or more. I was looking for something made of quality materials with pretty details…for around $15! This chair passed the test because of the curves on its back and the tiny bit of detail on the front legs. PLUS, it’s made of REAL WOOD!
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| The chair BEFORE |
It was marked as $20, but it had a broken peg where the support attaches into one of the legs, so I asked the guy if he could come down a bit. He said, “Sure, how’s $10?” Perfect!
When the day was over, I went back to the vet to pick up this poor little guy, still drugged up after his surgery. He took first priority, so painting the chair had to wait until the next day…
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| Drugged up little pup! |
I got started by fixing the broken peg with some wood glue and letting it dry for a couple of hours.
Then I removed the seat and sanded down the frame with fine sandpaper…
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| Sanded down |
Next, I wiped off the dust with a damp cloth to prepare it for primer.
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| Wiped down |
I did only one coat using a spray primer – mostly because it ran out and I didn’t feel like making a trip out just to buy one bottle of primer!
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| Primed |
I covered the seat with this cranberry-colored fabric that was leftover from some throw pillows I made last year to go with our new bedspread.
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| Measuring the fabric |
I didn’t take any pictures of the process of stapling down the fabric onto the underside of the chair since it took both hands. After reattaching the seat to the frame, the project was complete!
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| All finished! |
Check out the transformation, side by side! See that tag in the Before picture? Yeah, I forgot to remove it before I recovered the seat…and didn’t realize it until the seat was reattached and the chair was upstairs at the vanity! I’m not moving it, though. No one will know but me (and now whoever reads this post…). 🙂
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| Before…and After! |
I was SO excited to take it upstairs and put it at the vanity, FINALLY! Seven months later, the project is complete!
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| Finally finished! Total cost: about $35! |
One of the difficult things about DIY-ing is having the patience to keep looking until I find just what I’m looking for at the right price – and knowing when to settle or splurge for an item that is ALMOST perfect. Stopping by thrift stores routinely, with an ever-growing mental list of items to look for, and walking out either empty-handed or with something (or somethings) entirely different from what I went in looking for, has finally paid off…for this project, anyway. There are always more!
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| Worth the wait |
If you are thinking of transforming and recovering your own chair but don’t know how to start, Pretty Handy Girl has an excellent, detailed tutorial that will take you through all the steps! I did not reference this one, but happened to see it via her Instagram post the other day, and thought it seemed appropriate to share.
Here’s a breakdown of the project:
Here’s a breakdown of the project:
- Time: 2-4 hours (including paint dry time)
- Cost: $10 (chair – $10; fabric, sandpaper, primer, & paint – leftover from other projects)
Thanks for reading my ramblings! Next week’s project will be a sewing project, so get ready to change gears!
Laura