Monday, September 12, 2016

New Life for Another Old Chair

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I love giving new life to something old. I just reupholstered this old chair for my mother to use in her bathroom.

pagoda chair

pagoda chair back 2

I love a cute pagoda and I love the fabric that I used on the back of this chair. I chose to use a solid textured blue fabric for the seat. Let’s take a look at what it looked like before.

pagoda chair before (front)

I found this chair in a second hand store for $35. That’s a little more than I usually pay for a single chair but it was in very sturdy condition and I knew it was perfect for my mom’s room.

pagoda chairbefore (back)

upholstery staple remover

There is a reason why upholsterers charge so much money. It is because it takes a long time to remove all of those darn staples!! I used this staple remover to speed things along. It really is a great tool to have. I’m thinking that if you are taking something to be reupholstered if you took the time to remove the staples first it should be much less pricey since taking the old stuff off is the most time consuming part of the project. You can get this one  from Amazon for about $10 and it is worth every dime! It is eligible for Amazon Prime shipping.

bulging chair springs

It was hard to get a good picture of the bottom of the chair but I removed the cover from the bottom to work on the springs that had come untied and were bulging out the bottom.

retied springs

This looks a little better after I retied the springs. I didn’t do anything to the finish of the wood since I like its aged character.

chair frame ready for new fabric

I kept all of the original stuffing including the old springs and horse hair. After a little work and vacuuming up all of the dirt and dust it was ready for the new fabric. I don’t have a picture but I ALWAYS use this pneumatic stapler, also eligible for Amazon Prime and well worth the $30. I have tried many times to use a heavy duty hand stapler and I can never get the staples all the way into the heavy wood frames. I use the stapler with this pancake compressor and I have been very happy with the results I get. All of those tools can be purchased for about $100 total so if you use them one time they are paid for!

pagoda chair front view 2

Once all of the preparation was done, putting the new fabric on was very quick. Gluing the trim around the edges to cover the staples was a little time consuming and tricky.

pagoda chair front

The fabric is Ming Pagoda by P Kaufmann in the Zephyr color. The solid blue fabric was picked up on a remnant table so I don’t have the name of it. I already had the gimp trim left from another project.

pagoda chair back

I love the way it turned out.

pagoda chair back 3

pagoda chair front view

If you are interested in seeing some of my other chair rescues click on any of the photos below to see the post related to that chair.

PicMonkey Collage red chairs 2

oak chair 17

cane back chairs 10

painted dining chair 2

recovered swivel rocker

Occasional chair -rocker candidate

new home for old chair with cane replaced

new red chair 2

Mackenzie Childs table and chairs 1

new chair 1

IMG_2631

 

 

Thanks for reading and a BIG thank you to those who take time to leave a comment!

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I’m linking to Metamorphosis Monday, to Wow Us Wednesday, to Grace at Home, to Thoughts of Home On Thursday, to Before and After Wednesday, and to Anything Blue Friday. Be sure to click the link for lots of inspiration.

18 comments:

Positively Southern said...

That chair is absolutely precious! You did an amazing job with the upholstery!

Katherine said...

Well done! I love the pagoda fabric. Where is it from?

Pat@Life At Lydias House said...

The pagoda fabric is Ming Pagoda by P Kaufmann in the Zephyr color.

Debbie-Dabble Blog and A Debbie-Dabble Christmas said...

Pat, OMG!! You are fantastic at upholstery!! I love all your "new" chairs! I can do basic chair seats. In fact, I will be changing my Dining Room chairs seats soon....
Thanks to much for taking the time to stop by!!
Hugs,
Deb

Jenny H. said...

Wow, you have a real talent for upholstery! I'm always impressed by someone who can do that, as it seems to be so daunting to me.

Such a pretty makeover!

Jenny
Harmony Hills Home and Garden

Debra said...

You did a fabulous job on the chair. The right tools do make it easier. I bet your mom is thrilled with her beautiful new chair.

Shenita @ Embellishments by SLR said...

Wow, Pat, you did a great job on that chair! Love the fabric! I'm sure your mom loves it!

Decor To Adore said...

Oh you have given this sweet chair a new lease on life. I adore the pagoda print.

Unknown said...

Amazing!! I love what you've done. The fabric is perfect! I have a very old rocker that belonged to my husband's grandmother, and the bottom of it looked exactly like this, horse hair and all!! You did a beautiful job, and thanks for the info on the tools! Might have to invest! I'm gonna check out your other chairs. :)

Laura said...

You did a fabulous job. I love the blue and white chinoiserie print.
You are very talented!
Thank you for joining us at TOHOT!

Richella Parham said...

Pat, you really do have a way with chairs. . . I love that you included that little retrospective at the end of the post. I think I've read about every chair you've ever re-done, because your work is fabulous!

This little pagoda chair is just perfect for its new use. I love P. Kaufmann fabrics! Thank you for the insight into every step of your process.

And thanks for joining the Grace at Home party. I'm featuring you this week!

Kathryn Ferguson Griffin said...

Pat, oh my goodness! This is stunning. The fabric choice is perfection. Thank you for sharing. Feel free to share this at my Before & After Wednesday party which is currently live. Here is the link if you want to check it out. http://www.thededicatedhouse.com/2016/09/before-after-wednesday-week-78.html Happy first day of Fall! Toodles, Kathryn @TheDedicatedHouse

Grandmas House DIY said...

I love the fabric you chose! That chair turned out just lovely! We just started the To Grandma's House we go link party and I thought you might be interested in sharing there too, thanks :)

Pamela said...

Yes please! Love the pagoda print. Chinoiserie is totally chic.
Lovely upcycle.
Pamela

Shirley@Housepitality Designs said...

You have done such a beautiful job....love that fabric!....and great chair makeovers...You are so very talented! Have a great weekend! Happy Fall!

Kathryn Ferguson Griffin said...

Pat, thank you for sharing this at the Anything Blue Friday party! You are one of the features at this week's blue soiree. Here is the link to the bash! http://www.thededicatedhouse.com/2016/09/anything-blue-friday-week-116.html Have a happy weekend! Toodles, Kathryn @TheDedicatedHouse

Pam Richardson said...

Pat, I saw your gorgeous chair on Instagram and I wanted to take a closer look! You did an amazing job and I love the pagoda fabric...perfect! Pam @ Everyday Living

Deserae said...

Your chair turned out amazing.....the back is so adorable too!!
~Des