I still haven’t decided whether Craigslist is my friend or enemy… Kidding, totally kidding! I scour my local Craigslist frequently in search of reasonably priced, sometimes free, furniture in need of a little love! It’s truly amazing what a little paint and new fabric can do to a piece!
I found two large, end chairs a little more pricey that I was wanting to pay originally, but they were in great shape. I know this style would perfectly suite some people, just not me! I thought they were pretty hideous. And of course, for my love of neutrals and white furniture, I knew they would transform right before my very eyes!
My absolute favorite paint is . I use it for just about everything I paint! It’s a beautiful, rich white. I skipped the primer and got right to painting. I left the original fabric on because I attempted to remove it, but it had a super strong, commercial grade glue on it and it wasn’t budging. I didn’t want to waste a lot of time ripping off fabric, and since it was in good condition I knew I could just fabric right over it. So, it didn’t matter if I got a little bit of paint on it, and this allowed me to get in all the nooks and crannies without worry. I gave it a good two coats of paint, allowing it to fully dry in between coats.
Oh, did I mention that this was my FIRST fabric attempt on any piece of furniture? Yup, it’s true! I got a little scared at times, but I took my time and everything worked out just fine! I opted for a . Quite honestly, it’s such a great alternative to neutral fabric.. it’s super affordable and durable! To begin, I took one end of the and edged it up to the edge of the right side of the chair, and draped it over to the left side. I pulled it taught by hand and began to push it between the edges, kind of outlining where I would be stapling. I grabbed my staple gun and stapled each side into place, front and back, and cut off any excess from the sides. Now, onto the bottom… I simply left enough fabric to completely over the bottom and lip one side over so it would fray, and stapled into place. The bottom cushion was much easier to do just because I simply laid the fabric over it and cut the design out and stapled into place.
For the trim, I attempted to save the original and fabric over the roping, but wasn’t having much luck with it. Again, since I had never done this before I played around with a few different options, but opted with just cutting strips of the drop cloth and rolling each side in and hot gluing into place. I then would measure the each part that needed trim and glued each one into place with my hot glue gun. Since this was a set, I did the exact same thing for the remaining chair. I must admit, the second chair turned out a smidge better than the first just because I felt more comfortable with what I was doing. Neither chair is perfect, but I’m so pleased with how they turned out!
My best advice for anyone attempting a furniture makeover completely for the first time, is to just be patient and take your time. What worked for me, may not work for you. The key is finding a technique that works for you! Good luck and have fun with it!
Sharing this project on these fabulous blogs!
Great job Fotini! They look completely new!!!
Thank you so much!!
Καταπληκτική δουλειά!!! Μπράβο!
Μαρίνα – Όλγα
σας ευχαριστώ– Thank you!!
You did an amazing job. What a transformation. I love the look of the white and the drop cloth together. Enjoy!
Thank you Megan! They are two of my favorite pieces in my house 😉 Thanks so much for stopping by!!
I love this!!! I found you through the link party on Club Narwhal today! (I linked up there, also… I think. lol.) This actually gives me hope that I could one day do something like this… Reupholstering things or making slip covers always sounds like an absolute drudgery to me (DIY isn’t my wheelhouse), but this looks fun. And that chair… girlfriend! I’m totally pinning to my home and/or diy board.
SO, after I commented yesterday, really wanted to share this post. And in my excitement, I included a link to it, plus one of your photos (the pin-able one at the top) in a post about beautiful things I found through other blogs recently in my own blog yesterday. After I included it, I realized I have no idea about blog etiquette, and maybe I should’ve asked permission first?? Lol! So, if you’d rather I take it down, I totally can, or if you’re ok with me sharing it, just let me know! I just found new blogs yesterday and got excited about sharing them. 🙂
Thanks and Happy Wednesday!
I’m completely flattered, thank you! And no worries at all, I appreciate you sharing! There seem to be so many rules to follow about sharing, but as long as you don’t crop the image and link back to the blog, you’re good! That’s super sweet of you to inquire! Thanks so much girl!
Thank you so much for stopping by Haylie <3 And I totally agree, anytime I see a beautiful reupholstered chair or slipcover, I am so ready to conquer it, then fear sets in haha! I just really took my time on this project and it worked out. Now I know what works for next time and what doesn't!
What a great project! I’d love for you to share it on my Found & Foraged Linky Party held every Saturday night at 8PM CST at http://houseofhipsters.com/
Thank you so much Kyla! I will head over right now 😉 Have a great day!
Yeah! You found it! I’m so glad you shared it. It’s such a great makeover!
What a gorgeous transformation!!! <3
Thank you so much Carmen!!
Wow! I can’t believe this is your first time doing this. And a drop cloth!?! That’s just amazing. And that fur pillow is the perfect accent.
Thank you so much for Rena!! I really appreciate you stopping by today and being so sweet!
It looks stunning Fotini!!!!
Thank you Christine!! Pretty much one of my favorite pieces right now!