Chair

Inspired, I think, by pinterest, my new online addiction, I'm in a little frenzy of home design projects. I'm about to freehand paint vines all over my laundry room walls--I think. And last week I sewed a slipcover for a chair that I found on the side of the road and then let sit in my garage for...possibly years.

Before: chair as barricade to keep Betsy from squirming through the middle of Levi and Haley's game of Sorry! It doesn't look that bad from a distance, but upon closer inspection... 

I decided that even though my work wouldn't be perfect it would be good enough and I'd enjoy the pretty chair even if it had crooked seams or whatever. I totally scored on fabric in just the right colors and a sort of vintage throwback design for only $12/yard--a steal for good-quality decorator fabric.

With Betsy's help, I started draping and pinning the fabric into place, too lazy and/or unskilled to think through the whole pattern from start to finish.

Then I used a technique I learned on pinterest--to baste the pieces right sides together using black thread. Then I could remove the slipcover and machine sew along the basting.

A couple naptimes, an evening, lots of trips up and down the stairs, some emergency inserts from where I misjudged the curves and cut my pieces too small, and voila.

Levi volunteered to model the new chair.

 

It's not at all perfect, but the whole thing cost $15 and I like to see it each time I walk by.