Project Restyle #3, Facelift for 2 Chairs

Since I recently found my old camera, I was able to find this picture.

This is what those chairs looked like when they were red.   They weren't bad; they were just a little dingy and needed a facelift.
 Now, after a fresh coat of paint and new fabric on the cushions, they look like completely new chairs.  

I still love the way these chairs look flanking my piano.  Added bonus, the one of the left is a new time-out spot for Anakin.   I didn't really plan of using the chairs for actually sitting in very often.  However, my piano is large and when a little person is sitting down, the piano blocks the view of the rest of the room.  Its a perfect spot for a little boy to sit and think without distractions.

Friday Fashions #14, Jean Shorts

I don't know about you, but I have a ton of jeans that look just like this.  Playing with the boys, I always wear holes in the knees. Then, I'm stuck with a bunch of worn out jeans.   Usually they become painting pants, but a girl only needs so many junky pains of pants to wear while working on projects.

 So, while I don't need any more project pants, I do need shorts for this summer. Therefore, I cut off the jeans right at the knees where I had the holes. 

 I serged the edges. 

 Then I ironed up the edges to form a cuff. 

 This was a super quick solution to my summer wardrobe deficiency. 

And just for fun, in case you didn't think my jean shorts were cute,  you can't argue that this isn't just adorable.

I love my boys, they fill my heart with so much joy.  I love it even more when they are getting along.  Anakin is always trying to protect and help Mr. Bean.  He is such a good big brother.  

Facelift for Two Chairs

 I snagged these two chairs from my SIL when she was getting rid of them a while ago.  They've been sitting in my shed for months waiting for me to decide to work on them.  They were painted a bright red and the seats were covered in a red check fabric.  The fabric was old and needed to be replaced but the red was perfectly fine.  However, I don't have any red in my house at all, so I decided to paint and reupholster the chairs.   My before pics are sadly lost on my old camera, but here are the after photos.  I spray painted the chairs cream then sanded the edges for a distressed look.  I redid the seat cushions in a green and taupe fabric.

I'm quite pleased with the way these chairs look next to my piano.  For the most part, with the chairs against the wall, they won't get a lot of use.  But they will provide extra seating that's easy to pull into the area when we need it.

Project Restyle #2: Ugly Orange Chair Becomes Vanilla Oasis

Yeah!  I am finished with my Ugly Orange Chair redo.   Now, instead of the ugly orange chair, I am calling her The Vanilla Oasis.  Isn't she beautiful?  So simple and elegant.  

 Remember what she used to look like?

This is her new look.  Very light and very neutral.  I don't usually go with such a neutral color scheme, but since this project was so time intensive for me, I wanted a neutral chair that I could move from room to room  easily without having to take her apart and repaint every time.  So, when I move her around, I plan on just changing out the pillows. 

So, how did I refinish her?  

A. First I unscrewed the seat. 

B. Then I ripped off the black backing. 

 Once I was down to the wood, I lightly sanded the surface and then spraypainted it with Rust-oleum Heirloom White.  This is a very warm white.  I didn't want pure white because I thought that it would make it too stark. 

Next, I started on the upholstery.  I had two pieces to recover, the seat and the cushion that goes on top.  I started with the seat. 

 I had to pull out all the staples holding the old orange velvet. I used needle-nosed pliers along with a flathead screwdriver. 

Once I had the old fabric unfastened, 

 I took the velvet over to my camel-colored fabric and used it as a pattern.  I cut out the square I would need. 

Then, I began stapling it to the seat frame. Pull the fabric till it is taut.  Then put in a couple staples to the north, then the south, then the west, then the east, gradually working your way around the edge.  This way, the fabric will be pulled evenly and straightly on your seat.   Trim away the excess fabric once you are finished. 

 Next, I needed to make the piping to go around the edge.  

 I cut a thin strip of the camel fabric. 

 I inserted the cord into the middle of the strip and sewed it shut using my zipper foot. 

I now had a long piece that looked like this. 

 Now using my staple gun, I stapled it to the edge of the seat, going all the way around. 

 Flipped the seat right-side up and set in onto the chair.  Screwed it into place. 

Now I was finished with the seat and it was time to tackle the cushion!

 The first thing I did was undo the zipper and take out the cushion. 

Then I turned the cover inside out to study the construction.  From here on out, I just tried to made the cushion cover look exactly like the orange cover.  I took it apart and used the orange pieces as my pattern.   I knew the first thing I would have to make was the side piece with the piping, and the zipper.

 I sewed my zipper onto a strip 

 After the zipper was on a strip, I sewed another strip (A) to the zipper piece (B).  After that, I sewed the cord onto the sides (C).

Here is a view from the right side. 

After this, I cut out the top and bottom of the cushion cover, using the old pieces as the pattern.  I sewed them on to the side panel I just made.  

(I got a little frustrated at this stage and stopped taking pics in my frustration.  Sorry.  I didn't measure the length of the side panel correctly and I ended up having to pick things apart and add fabric to the panel and then re-sew it).  Finally I was finished.

Now, I will enjoy the look of my new chair. 

Project Restyle #1: Baby Romper

Last week while craft blog surfing, I stumbled across this super fun embellished tank made by a woman named Anne over at Wobisobi.  She completed it as part of her weekly "Restyle" challenge.  She is recreating something from her closet every Monday this entire year, for a total of 52 projects.   The Project Restyle Challenge has been issued by bloggers Elise and Rachel over at A Beautiful Mess.  You have to take some you have, or something you've thrifted that you aren't currently using and re-purpose it so that you can again enjoy this item.  It can be anything from clothes to household items to furniture.  This is right up my alley, so I think I'm going to join the challenge.  Its a little late, so for I while I am just going to post as I complete a project.  Hopefully I will catch up soon, and then I will post weekly for the rest of this year.  

Today as I was sorting through newborn baby clothes to loan to my SIL, I came across this corduroy romper.   I made this romper 4 years ago for Buzz Lightyear when he was just a little guy from a dress of mine that no longer fit. I loved it, but after having children, I am just not willowy thin anymore, (more like pleasantly plump!)  

Since I was never going to be able to get into that dress again, I cut it up to make this cute spring romper.This was long before I was blogging or documenting my craftiness, so I don't have a before picture of the dress, or any pics for a tutorial.    

Its all one piece, just gives the illusion of overalls, which is so much easier for a baby.   I didn't have to worry about anything coming untucked.  I just love the little collar.  The white "shirt" was made from white muslin fabric scraps.

It has a zipper in the back.  This is one of the first zippers I inserted as grown-up, away from home and with out my mom nearby to help me step-by-step.   I managed, barely :)

 It was really fun and nostalgic for me to come across this little romper.  I can hardly believe how quickly the time has flown by.  In many ways it seems like yesterday that Buzz looked like this:

 Now he looks like this.  He is so grown up!

I also realized that I really haven't sewn that much for my boys.  My excuse has been that since they are boys, I can't sew for them since I won't be making little dresses.  While its true that I shouldn't be sewing dresses for my boys, I could still be sewing for them.  That romper was adorable.  Why didn't I make more little clothing articles for them while they were toddlers?  I just need to be a little more creative and find things to sew for them.  So, expect to see a few more kid posts in the future, kay?