Wednesday, November 3, 2010

ONE BIG AND ONE SMALL PROJECT!

First, the big project-- We bought this chair at an auction for $2.00. The gross gold upholstery was so bad we didn't even take a picture of it in its true before condition. Bob started right in stripping the chair down to its bones.

Here it is with the wood refinished and the new upholstery.

It has nice wood details.

The more we upholster, the better our skills improve. We still stumble along learning as we go, however.

Now for the small project:
I've always enjoyed using Irene Berry's paper-pieced 3-inch blocks for small tuck-in gifts. She is a former editor of Quilter's Newsletter Magazine, and the patterns can be found in lots of old issues. I've made scads of potholders using these images, but decided to applique these onto kitchen towels for a small birthday gift for a friend.

My friend is from Iowa, so I had to use an ear of corn.

And then, a carrot!

Lots of linky parties going on -- I'm joining the following this week. Be sure to stop by these blogs for scads of inspiration, and thank them for being such great hostesses.

Courtney at French Country Cottage
for the Feathered Nest party.

Marian at Miss Mustard Seed
for Furniture Feature Friday.

Kim at Savvy Southern Style
for the Wednesday Before and After party.

Gina at The Shabby Chic Cottage
for Transformation Thursday.

24 comments:

Kim @ Savvy Southern Style said...

What a great looking chair. Y'all did a great job upholstering it. The towels are very cute with the appliques added. Thank you so much for joining my Party!

Unknown said...

Great job on the upholstering. I know what you mean about learning a little more with each project. I'm getting ready to tackle a couple of couches and I have some chairs, too. We'll see how it goes!

Megan Gunyan said...

This looks awesome! I love the lines of the chair. So wonderful. Great job on the re-do!

Lacey said...

$2!? That's amazing! And great job on the reupholstering!!

Marilyn said...

You make a great pair redoing chairs. And the towels are so neat. That is something I've wanted to try and actually have some patterns somewhere down in the cave of my basement. Great work!! ♥♫

bj said...

Gosh, what a great job on the chair.
Love your little towels..
xo bj

Anonymous said...

Great job on the chair and I think those towels turned out great. I'd never heard about those squares before. How fun!

Thanks for stopping by today and for the kind words. Your compliments mean so much coming from such an accomplished sewist!!

Ellen

Bargain Decorating with Laurie said...

Oh My Goodness! That chair turned out soooo pretty! I love the detail on the wood, and your fabric choice is perfect. Y'all could do this for a living! The towels are cute. laurie

Erin said...

That chair looks great! Love the fabric and glad you kept the original wood color!

Anonymous said...

Great chair makeover Sally! Beautiful!

Love the towels too.

Marty@A Stroll Thru Life said...

Love your chair. It turned out fabulous. Great fabric too. Hugs, Marty

Confessions of a Plate Addict said...

Hi Sally! I am so impressed by your chair! You have turned it into a work of art! That fabric is gorgeous1 And I love the little veggie blocks you added...what a great idea! Hope you are having a great week!...hugs...Debbie

Pam Kessler said...

You did an amazing job on the chair. I just did a post the other day about my rocking chair that I am paranoid to do because of the upholstery involved. I started the project 30 (yes as in three decades) ago and I am forcing myself to tackle it in the next few weeks. Thanks for the incentive.

Anonymous said...

The chair looks amazing. I'd say you're a pro :) I see that you're a fellow Coloradan. We love it, too! Great job on the reupholstry!

Take care!
Michelle

saltbox
treasures
said...

Your chair turned out great!
~ Julie

Janet said...

I have a similar chair the I had "done" about 25 years ago. It is definitely time to do again. I keep putting it off, thinking I will attempt it myself...who knows??

Laurie at Turner Farm said...

What a gorgeous chair. Loving the towels too!

Courtney ~ French Country Cottage said...

Great job on that chair!! It came out just beautiful!! Well done!! Thank you so much for sharing this at Feathered Nest Friday! :)

Sue said...

hey Sally....the chair came fabulous...You and Bob are becoming professionals!!....I love the fabric you picked, it goes very well with the wood finish...and the dish towels are just too darn cute...Have a great warm weekend....would you believe we actually had sleet here today...I came home to find white on my roof mixed in with the leaves....How random is that for the South....

Elaine said...

Wow, you did a great job on that chair and I love the fabric you used.
So classy and elegant.

bj said...

Just stopping in to say hello...:)

Bargain Decorating with Laurie said...

Sally, I hope all is well with you and yours. I wanted to come over to thank you for telling me to leave my new table as is. That's really what I wanted to do. I also love to see the grain of the wood. I'm just such a follower-thought I should do what others are doing!! Hope you are having a good weekend. laurie

Sherry @ No Minimalist Here said...

Sally, The chair turned out wonderful! No one would ever guess this was a $2.00 chair. I love the fabric you chose and what a great job you did. Beautiful!
xo, Sherry

Chari at Happy To Design said...

HI Sally...

Ohhh my...what a gorgeous chair!!! You guys did a fabulous job reupholstering it!!! Love all the beautiful wood carvings and the fabric is sooo pretty! It's one that I would have picked! Hehe! I'm sure that your friend is going to really enjoy her beautiful towels! You are such a talented lady, my friend! Thank you for sharing your beautiful chair and pretty towels with us!!!

Warmest wishes,
Chari @Happy To Design