Hello dear friends & readers . . . & "Happy Tuesday" to you all
When I emerged from the Stratford Salvation Army Op Shop carrying this old wooden chair out to my car, I am certain my Mother sank down in her seat.
In fact I am sure that . . . if she had been able to manage - she would've hidden under the dashboard of my car !!!
 |
| I can't for the life of me imagine WHY ???!!! |
I remember her comment well ... "Oh please tell me you have NOT just bought that hideous piece of junk??!!"
"Yes I have actually" I replied "for only $2"
On the half hour journey back to her house she did inquire if perhaps we were going via the Dump??
I ignored her ... my Mum has never been able to see the potential in anything & calls me "a junk collector"
(oh shock horror!!!!)
 |
| Oh lovely old chair . . . . . full of potential, potential, potential :-) |
The chair travelled all the way home with me & sat in a corner of our deck with my recycling bin on it for a good 18 months at least.
It was only last week when The Mr (who had dug a big hole at the farm to burn some rubbish in), inquired if I wanted to toss "the old dilapidated chair" in??
I decided it was time it got a long overdue make-over.
(I must add too, that the chair was really solid & not rickety or wobbly in any way)
First up was a scrub, then a spray with kerosene (to kill any borer & yes, there were several holes), a light sand & then I began my painting with my trusty old household wall paint.
The chair needed 3 coats all up, to cover the old brown paint that was on it. It also needed some filling of gaps & holes, but I chose to give it 2 thick coats before doing this as often the paint itself will fill alot of the holes.
I attempted to fill the large missing section in the chair back but I wasn't being too fussy as I had other ideas in mind for this particular area.
A light sand after the filling, then I added my third coat. When dry I lightly sanded the edges to give it the shabby chic look that appeals to me. You could still see faint outlines in the chair back where the wood had been missing
. . . so my next plan of action was . . .
. . . Yes, you guessed right !!!
I mod-podged on the 3 cute little crochet doilies that I had been saving for this very project.
Then I decided to make a thin squab for the seat of the chair & found the lovely piece of tea-dyed looking fabric that I had also earmarked for this project
I was happy with the finish but - as with lots of my projects - I like to walk past them for a day or two
(or 3 sometimes) ... & yes, I felt it needed "something else" to complete it
Yes, that was it . . . a small plump cushion to finish it off.
I used some of my wool blanket scraps & another crochet doiley, then I appliqued a small heart from the squab fabric.
A bit of a transformation don't you think dear readers??
Now tell me .... would you have agreed with my Mum & dumped this chair ??
Another small revamp in the Threadbear house this past week was this little wooden box/container purchased for 50c from Hospice
(it had been $1 but was in the half marked price basket)
While I was busy painting my chair, it was no effort to slap some paint on this wee cutie, though a little tricky doing in between the narrow slats ...
I added a padded base lined with some pretty Cath Kidston fabric.
A lovely customer to my Cottage, Sheila, was finding it difficult to get any accessories in orange to compliment her new kitchen.
She asked if I would make her an oven mitt set with gollies appliqued on it.
As I had the two orange tea towels in my stash, I appliqued on the same gollies while doing Sheilas order.
Her lovely daughter-in-law Vicky, collected the order, saw the teatowels & bought them as a gift for Sheila.
My dear friend Carolyn was up from the South Island on a visit so I decided to make the Raspberry & White Chocolate shortcake recipe that I had been obsessing over for several weeks now, but never actually attempted
A neighbour had given me some fresh raspberries which inspired me to give it a try
You can find the recipe I used HERE
After dusting with icing sugar & serving with freshly whipped cream I have to say . . . it was divine !!!!
And Carolyn bought me a gift .... a piece of her beautiful mosaic work
I had been wondering about how to mark little Jinxy's final resting place & this was just simply perfect
She is laid to rest under the old Plum tree that she so loved to climb
Every few days Blackie & I pick fresh flowers for her grave . . .
Let me rephrase that a little - I pick fresh flowers for her grave - Blackie would rather observe me from the garden ...
. . . sniff the dried seed pods . . . Or . . .
. . . lounge about & watch me from the deck with one leg in the air !!!!
Thanks so very much for stopping by today folks & listening to my - rather lengthy- "tale of the chair",
I hope this has inspired you to give those old chairs a second (or third) glance now ??
I hope the rest of your week is filled with cheery things,
with much love & friendship to you all
Julie & Blackie x0x0x
(I must add too, that the chair was really solid & not rickety or wobbly in any way)
First up was a scrub, then a spray with kerosene (to kill any borer & yes, there were several holes), a light sand & then I began my painting with my trusty old household wall paint.
The chair needed 3 coats all up, to cover the old brown paint that was on it. It also needed some filling of gaps & holes, but I chose to give it 2 thick coats before doing this as often the paint itself will fill alot of the holes.
I attempted to fill the large missing section in the chair back but I wasn't being too fussy as I had other ideas in mind for this particular area.
A light sand after the filling, then I added my third coat. When dry I lightly sanded the edges to give it the shabby chic look that appeals to me. You could still see faint outlines in the chair back where the wood had been missing
. . . so my next plan of action was . . .
I mod-podged on the 3 cute little crochet doilies that I had been saving for this very project.
Then I decided to make a thin squab for the seat of the chair & found the lovely piece of tea-dyed looking fabric that I had also earmarked for this project
I was happy with the finish but - as with lots of my projects - I like to walk past them for a day or two
(or 3 sometimes) ... & yes, I felt it needed "something else" to complete it
Yes, that was it . . . a small plump cushion to finish it off.
I used some of my wool blanket scraps & another crochet doiley, then I appliqued a small heart from the squab fabric.
A bit of a transformation don't you think dear readers??
Now tell me .... would you have agreed with my Mum & dumped this chair ??
Another small revamp in the Threadbear house this past week was this little wooden box/container purchased for 50c from Hospice
(it had been $1 but was in the half marked price basket)
While I was busy painting my chair, it was no effort to slap some paint on this wee cutie, though a little tricky doing in between the narrow slats ...
I added a padded base lined with some pretty Cath Kidston fabric.
A lovely customer to my Cottage, Sheila, was finding it difficult to get any accessories in orange to compliment her new kitchen.
She asked if I would make her an oven mitt set with gollies appliqued on it.
As I had the two orange tea towels in my stash, I appliqued on the same gollies while doing Sheilas order.
Her lovely daughter-in-law Vicky, collected the order, saw the teatowels & bought them as a gift for Sheila.
My dear friend Carolyn was up from the South Island on a visit so I decided to make the Raspberry & White Chocolate shortcake recipe that I had been obsessing over for several weeks now, but never actually attempted
You can find the recipe I used HERE
And Carolyn bought me a gift .... a piece of her beautiful mosaic work
I had been wondering about how to mark little Jinxy's final resting place & this was just simply perfect
Every few days Blackie & I pick fresh flowers for her grave . . .
Let me rephrase that a little - I pick fresh flowers for her grave - Blackie would rather observe me from the garden ...
Thanks so very much for stopping by today folks & listening to my - rather lengthy- "tale of the chair",
I hope this has inspired you to give those old chairs a second (or third) glance now ??
I hope the rest of your week is filled with cheery things,
with much love & friendship to you all
Julie & Blackie x0x0x
I love your chair Julie. A wonderful transformation. I also love the kitchen golly set, you have such clever ideas.
ReplyDeleteYour transformation of the chair is amazing!!! Well done! It looks beautiful now. What does your Mum say now?? The golly kitchen set is also beautiful...I bet that was happily received!! Love the Blackie photos!
ReplyDeleteGosh, my mother would laugh to see your chair - there's several 'back home' in nearly that condition.... now perhaps that is something Mum can do with her orpahn embroidery blocks :-) The cushion is the perfect touch! I think the gollies make the Orange acceptable!!! Lovely gift from Carolyn and the shortcake sounds and looks delicious.
ReplyDeleteLove the chair - what a transformation! Love the dollies on it and the sweet cushion. That raspberry and white chocolate shortcake looked so yummy - must get Miss H to get on to trying that. She's been down country to Hamilton today for training for her Bronze Duke of Ed. She'll be tramping somewhere down that way on the weekend. Hope its not too hot on the weekend. And how cool does the orange oven gloves set look - bet it looks FAB in her kitchen. Dear old Blackie - what a sweetie he is, and the mosaic is a fitting head stone for Jinx - how lovely! Enjoy the rest of your week.
ReplyDeleteWell, here we are....Just 6:30 in the morn'in over here.
ReplyDeleteFirst lemon tea of the day...HeHe! First of many...! :).
And, that chair, amazing...Before and after, just a little
TLC, and walla! And, a lovely cushion to go with it.
And, all for $2.
I hope Blackie has tested it out for comfyness! Bless!
The pink mosaic stone for Jinxy is lovely, and just right.
What more can l say.....But! Bless!x
And, Blackie's looking great....Even with his leg in the air!
He's a star...A superstar!x
The story of the chair was lovely...Just imagine how many
'bums' have sat in it over the years! HeHe!
Must be off....Time for another lemon tea....
Take care....(((HUGS))) For the furry one!x
Julie I loved the chair as it was when you bought it, what was your Mum thinking? She must have meant drop it off at Leeanne's. But wowie...........what a beautiful transformation! Do you have it in your bedroom or is it for sale? Bless your friend Carolyn, what a lovely gift in memory of Miss Jinxy. The orange kitchen accessories are sure to delight the orange lover. Mouth watering going on here looking at that slice!
ReplyDeleteYour ugly duckling of a chair has been transformed into a thing of great beauty. I did smile when I read this post, as my dear mum was the same. She never could quite understand my penchant for dragging home 'interesting' pieces of junk! She never, never stepped into an op shop. Jinxy's memoriam is lovely and isn't Blackie a dear fellow.
ReplyDeleteI enjoy your tales Julie, they always make me smile! The chair looks amazing, and you're right the cushion was the perfect finishing touch!
ReplyDeleteDoes your Mum like it now? What a lovely sign for wee Jinxy, a very thoughtful gift. The raspberry slice looks very yummy... Enjoy the rest of your week
Blessings
Hello dear transformer friend. That's all right....just tell your mum that Rob used to go & hunt for stuff at the Hawera tip years ago!! Amazing what could be found & salvaged when on a dumping mission....drop off, pick up! I think that things like your chair have to be in fairly poor condition to justify the make-over really, otherwise it's quite hard to do. Rob still won't let me paint our old bentwood chair. Some times I prevaricate too. Fine if someone else has already painted it, however. I think it's all the extra clever embellishments that you think of that really do the trick....like the doilies, love! Lovely fabrics. The half price bargain came up so well too, especially with the My Style fabric at the bottom.
ReplyDeleteLovely memorial for Jinxy. Under the plum tree is a perfect place.
Much love Catherine x0x0x
Another good use for doilies...didn't know you could stick them to wood...now you've started something! Thank goodness for shabby chic! xx
ReplyDeleteGreat job on the chair Julie! Xx
ReplyDeleteThat was a lovely idea of your friend to make the name mosaic for little Jinxy. It was quite a challenge that chair! I would be a bit worried about borers coming out of those holes to greet me before the kerosene treatment! are they wood worm? So now it's all borer free and painted up it looks like something very vintage and pretty. I like your oven gloves - they look fun.
ReplyDeleteHello Julie,
ReplyDeleteOh you are a chair lover too. They made them so well back then didn't they. The makeover is amazing, I like the addition of the three doiley's. Jinxy's memorial plaque is so lovely, your dear friend is so kind.
Oh how lovely it would be to lay around with one leg in the air, a real cats life.
Happy days.
Bev.
Awesome work on the chair Julie and yes do have a chair that needs some transformation!! Wont put it in the rubbish now.....love the orange tea towels also. What a special friend to make the plaque ..xxxx
ReplyDeleteLovely make-overs, you definitely have the knack for knowing what to do with old things!! The cushion is the perfect finishing touch. I always love your little tray do-ups too. Hugs Wendy
ReplyDeleteYou are the Queen of pimping old things, and I mean the chair!!! Looks grand Julie. Really think I need to come get some pimping/painting lessons.
ReplyDeleteI am sad because there is an ocean between us and I want to come play at your house, Julie.
ReplyDeleteWould that gorgeous chair fit in an envelope do you think???
I love the chair and the tale! :)
ReplyDelete