May 2013 – Page 2

I Chickened Out

Published on May 17, 2013May 16, 2013 by Our Humble Abode9 Comments

This is about those five dollar chairs I snagged at ReStore got a little overhaul. Great lines and deceptively comfortable, but not in the best condition or colors.

Before I started anything, I took pictures of the upholstery detail. Because this is my first time upholstering something like this, the pictures could jog my memory if I ran into a problem.

With the pictures on my card, I started pulling each staple out. One at a time, prying with a flat screwdriver then pulling with a pliers.

Roughly one trillion times. I counted. Okay, I didn’t count, but there were a lot. of. staples.

At that point, I wondered what the h–e double hockey sticks I was thinking. Too late now, I had to keep going.

So I did. After pulling off the vinyl, I sanded the wood frame down using an orbital hand sander with 220 grit paper. And loved the lightness against the dark fireplace and the subtle grain. Two coats of Minwax Polycrylic in a satin finish brings out the grain and protects the wood. Conveniently, it’s water-based which makes it a breeze to clean up.

Then my indecisiveness kicked in. Upholstery time, but which direction to go. I stopped in a leather shop, gathered samples and prices, and thought it over.

Leather is super durable and easy to clean, but far more expensive than fabric. Not to mention I could only buy the leather as a full hide, roughly twice as much material as I needed. Perhaps if I had another use for the leather I could justify buying it. Instead, I hit up two fabric stores where I found a beige subtle herringbone pattern upholstery fabric for 9 bucks per yard.

I bought it, then stopped in the second store where I found a greige subtle herringbone upholstery remnant for six dollars per yard. And bought three yards. Now that I could justify. Yes, I chickened out on a bold color. Pillows can fix that. Right?!

To get started on the upholstery, I used the vinyl pieces I pulled off as templates, tracing it to the front of my fabric to keep the pattern straight. Don’t do that! Add at least 1/2 inch around the sides for a little wiggle room. I don’t have four hands, so I used a clip to keep my pieces straight while I worked.

First tacking the arms, folding the fabric under, wrapping around the back.

From the front, it looks like this:

With the arms secured, I stapled along the top and bottom, pulling tightly. Then the sides and finally the slightly rounded corners.

That covers the front of the back rest, so now for the back. Like the vinyl predecessor, I folded the fabric under, creasing it with my fingers. Using that crease as a guide for the outer edge, I stapled just inside the crease and worked around the top.

The corners are tricky to staple under, so then I tacked the bottom of the fabric to the underside.

Satin nickel nail heads, placed using a needle nose pliers, hold the sides of the fabric in place.

I’ve upholstered chair seats before, so I thought the back would be more tedious than the seat. As usual, I under estimated.

Turns out, the slight curves of the seat were a pain in the arse. No matter how hard I tried, the fabric puckerd at the turns. Finally I gave up and let the slight puckers stay. So, if anyone has pointers, please share! I’ll leave you with that, because I have to clean up the family room to take pictures of the finished chairs. Let’s pretend it’s because there are already 17 pictures in this post, okay?

Bubbling Up

Published on May 15, 2013May 15, 2013 by Our Humble Abode15 Comments

Here’s another quickie project to help you get organized. Or at least more organized, can’t fix every problem with a few hooks now can ya? It started when I saw these cute metal cloud hooks.

Then I looked at the pile of Everett’s costumes and set out to make cute hooks. A stop to Michael’s and Home Depot gave me everything I needed:

1 inch wood dowel

Pre-cut wooden shapes (I chose conversation bubbles, but there are so many fun shapes, including clouds)

Dowel screws

Sharpie paint pen

Not pictured, you’ll need craft paint, clear coat, wood glue (or your favorite strong glue), a drill, saw, and pliers. Cut the dowel to length, mine are 2 inches and sand any rough ends. Then glue the wooden shapes the front, pressing firmly. Once dry, paint all sides of the hooks. Drill a pilot hole the size of your screw shaft in the end of the dowel. Screw the in, making it tight.

I chose to write on the bubbles, to look like a comic books. Gotta love a little onomatopoeia, right? Seemed fitting since the hooks hold super hero costumes. So I wrote words like Boom, Kapow, Zap, and Thud with the Sharpie pen and gave the hooks two coats of clear finish. I screwed them to the wall (find a stud or use anchors, just to be safe) and showed Everett.

He thought they were “so nice.” Mission accomplished.

I’ve got two more that I might add, but we’ll see.

Something similar could be fun and functional in an entry, too. Maybe with names on them? Maybe not, to look like little floating art…

Rock On, Dude

Published on May 13, 2013May 13, 2013 by Our Humble Abode4 Comments

For a while, the landscape of our house has been neglected. First by the previous owner and then us. Some attempts at landscaping were made, but not maintained. So when we bought this house, the front yard looked like a mess of dead, overgrown grass and weeds.

Because it was dead, overgrown grass and weeds.

All over.

Then we took a weed whacker to it and tamed the beast.

Crazy to actually see the plants tucked behind that.

But it grows back, looking a little, nay, a lot like Donald Trump’s hair; long, thin, side swept, and unmanageable. Because the hills are so steep and many large rocks punctuate the hillside, it would be impossible to maintain nice grass. Factor in minimal rainfall and it’s hard to keep anything alive without an outrageously expensive water bill. So we’re going with more rock. Doesn’t need water or maintenance, and cuts down on the dust storms.

The past few weekends we’ve cut out the weeds, laid weed mat, and schlepped rocks. Even yesterday when temps reached the mid 90’s. Yes, crazy for this time of year. Lots of water and lemonade.

Ahh, clean, blank canvas. Maybe this fall we’ll be able to plant drought resistant plants, to green things up.

If I’m lucky, some flowers for color.

Most of the front side has been rocked, but we’ve got the other side to deal with.

Which included cutting back part of the railing-less, unsafe deck to the front door to get the Bobcat across. Once the rock has been distributed, we’ll make a new walking path and steps up.

All that to say this: digging out weeds and hauling rocks is not fun, but we’re eager to get it finished and start on some fun projects. Like a deck in the backyard. Ben found a great deal on reclaimed wood, so we’ve nixed the concrete patio. Instead we’ll have a low deck. And we’re crazy excited about it.

Leather Cord Cuff

Published on May 10, 2013May 10, 2013 by Our Humble Abode6 Comments

Cords. We’ve got a mess of chargers for various electronics: phones, computers, cameras, even table lamps. Here’s a super quick, no sew, and cute way to keep those cords controlled. Start with a scrap of leather and good scissors.

Cut the leather into strips. For bigger cords, go wider, but mine is about an inch wide by six inches long. Trim the ends in a cute pattern (at an angle, fringe, whatever tickles your pickle). Then fold one end over and cut a slit running lengthwise with the strip.

At the other end, cut two small notches perpendicular to the slit, not quite to the center.

Wrap your cord up and insert the end through the hole.

Done, an easy way to corral those cords at home or on the go.

Of course you could change this up by adding a snap or button. Or make several to use as napkin rings. Happy Friday, too! Whatcha doing this weekend? And special plans for Mother’s day?

Because Call My Maybe came on while writing this, here’s a video to give you a laugh this Friday.

Thank You, Spring Cleaning

Published on May 8, 2013May 8, 2013 by Our Humble Abode13 Comments

I swear I can thank spring cleaning for my most recent thrifty finds. First a Drexel dresser for the boys’ room and now two chairs and a foot stool.

I found the chairs at Habitat for Humanity ReStore for five bucks each. Sold! They’re solid wood and should be easy to refinish and upholster. Because one has a giant tear in the seat.

Oh, and the orange vinyl isn’t my fav.

For now, the chairs will live in the family room, replacing the Target slipper chairs, which are in the living room now. I’ve been looking for arm chairs with a smallish frame. Ideally I’d stumble upon something like this for a fraction of the price. But I’m not holding my breath.

Until that magical day happens, these are okay. You know, with a little lovin’.

Surprisingly comfortable, the small footprint of the chairs fits nicely in the walk path perimeter room. A little more depth would be great to feel more lounge-y. Eventually (when our kids stop wiping grimy hands on everything) we’ll man up and buy adult furniture.

How ’bout that footstool/ottoman/side table for $8? After a quick search, I saw many similar stools for sale, some as high as $300.

The cane top has damage, but the wood is in good shape. I’m considering cutting a larger piece of plywood to set on top, making this footstool a round coffee table.

What would you do to these pieces? Sand and stain? What type and color fabric for the chairs? We’ve got cream leather in the basement that I think could look nice. Thoughts?