Christmas 2011

I trust you all have a very Happy Christmas tomorrow. We will be celebrating, just the 5 of us, at home. It is times like this that extended family feels so far away, especially knowing they are all getting together for a time of fun and laughter, but we are thankful to have each other and the presence of God in our home :-)

Angex

Chair Makeover

I got this project from a client and after beginning to pull it apart realised that one of the coil springs was broken. As I have no experience with things of that nature I got some advice from an upholsterer friend who recommended pulling all the springs out and replacing them with elasticated webbing, which I did. It was quite the challenge, but have to say, it has come up a treat. Sandy painted the woodwork. She always doea a great job!!
The fabric is a lovely navy and white stripe. (Was fun getting the stripes all lining up!)

                                                              Ange x

Mirror - Before and After

Mirror in the raw (above)





I drilled a pilot hole and then pushed in the upholstery studs.

A coat of primer/sealer/undercoat and a dry-brushing of top coat.

The finished product.

I picked up a couple of MDF mirrors last week at the Tender Centre. I paid $16 each and was pretty happy with that. This mirror is the larger of the two and a really good size with a 160am diameter.
I am really happy with the end result and will be listing this one on ebay soon. My user name is Grootsww if anyone local (Gold Coast) is interested.

Angex

Cane chairs - Before and After

Before (above)

After (below)

I picked up this set of 2 cane chairs and small table recently and after a quick spray paint and replacing the upholstery on the chairs, am so happy with the result. Yet another project that I am supposed to be selling but it looks so at home in my living room..... for now anyway.

I am still having blogger issues so thanks for bearing with me!

For anyone interested, I sell my stuff on ebay (username: grootsww) and I have a couple of things at Sandy's store at the Woollongabba Antique Centre at the moment.

Angex

Dining Chair Project

Okay, it's been a while since I last posted and I see blogger hasn't got itself sorted yet so my text will follow my photos as I can't get it to appear at the top of the post *sigh*.

I picked up an old set of dining chairs a few months back. I think I paid around $30 for the set. New black paint and fabric has made such a difference. The new owner was very happy with them.

I did a pamphlet drop a while back letting people in my neighbourhood know I was available to reupholster their chairs and I have to date had one job which was a set of dining chair slip-covers. The "customer" was more than satisfied and I think it may mean some repeat business which is what you want!!

My camera is out of action so I'm not sure when I'll be back but I shall return.

Thanks for all the supportive and encouraging comments that continue to arrive in my in box. They give me as much a thrill now as they did when I first began blogging :o)

Angex

A Few Bits of Blue

Below is a gorgeous cushion cover from Thea of http://www.theaandsami.blogspot.com/

Below - ceramic stool from the Tender Centre

Below - a collection of blue china from the Tender Centre

The pictures below are the work of artist extraordinaire Kerri Shipp of Driftwood Interiors. http://www.driftwood-interiors.blogspot.com/

Well, it has certainly been a long time between drinks for my blog here. I've been a bit swamped helping out with my church's presentation of the musical Godspell. I will share a post on this as soon as I get some decent photos of the artwork that I produced for it. My camera has bitten the dust :(

For today I just have a few white and blue goodies to show you that I have managed to amass over the last few months via markets, thrift stores, Tender Centre and also from a couple of fellow bloggers.

And sorry this post is such a shambles. I had heard people were having trouble with blogger but this is ridiculous!

Angex

Armchair Project

Oh my poor neglected wee blog!!!!

But enough of that..... here is the latest project I have been working on, along with Queen of Furniture Painting herself, Sandy of Paint Me White

This most gorgeous armchair has had a wonderful transformation as a result of blood, sweat and tears (speaking for myself, it really did literally involve all three!). What an awesome result and our client was very happy I do believe.

In the process of upholstering this chair I somehow mastered the art of double piping and I'm so happy about that I could scream!!!! I was at the point of giving up when 'hey presto', it worked :)

The fabric is an exquisite import from USA. How delicious is it?!?!?!

Trust you all have had a great week and are looking forward to the weekend.

Angex

Coffee Table Before/After

I am so convinced that it just isn't necessary to spend a fortune to furnish your home with eye catching, timeless, stunning furniture and accessories. Take for example, this coffee table. It is solid, has great storage and is a great shape. I will tell you later what I paid for it but trust me, it was a bargain! Yes, those are Kerri Shipp originals in the backgound. Check out more of her incredible art on her blog Driftwood Interiors .

BEFORE (below)

AFTER (Below)

Some nice distressing after a first coat of primer and then dry brushing with a grey/brown water based enamel.

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I love how it fits into my decor so I guess it's just giong to have to stay :o)

.

So how much you ask? Fourteen whole dollars and that includes four dollars of fees so I actually tendered $10 for it!!! Someone must have been really desperate to see the back of it.

Angex

Sofa Before/After

So here is the culprit, this is what caused me to have a melt-down! I have upholstered my share of sofas over the years and from time to time they have left me, mid-project, sitting on the floor in a pathetic pool of tears! I picked this one up from the Tender Centre for a mere $30, a nice solid Freedom 2.5 seater. Always one for a bargain I decided on a gorgeous brown fabric that was on special at Spotlight reduced from $24/m to $8/m. Brown is quite a departure for me from the usual grey and white but just at the time I was trying to make up my mind I saw a post on Karen's blog Strictly Simple Style which confirmed my decision. Check out her March 23rd, 2011 post Craving Chocolate - thanks Karen!

So here is the beast before....

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and looking pretty armless (looks can be deceiving!)

When I first saw this next photo I thought to myself "Hey! Who parked the back of their bus in our garage?!?!" Butt wait, didn't I see something remarkably similar in the Target fitting room just the other day? (gotta love those 360 view mirrors!)

So yea, here I am, hard at it.

WARNING: Do not enlarge this photo. You have been warned!

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In case you were wondering how they attach those panels to the front of the arms, there are a few ways I've seen it done but the way I use is to bang in a thin nail through the fabric.....

...and then take the most used tool in my sewing kit (the unpicker) and pop the fabric over the small nailhead. Then hammer the nail all the way in. I put scrap fabric over top before hammering so as not to damage the good fabric. Clear as mud?

This tool (below) is almost my best friend :o)

Next re attach the arms... (my drill needed chargin and I'm impatient so I used this 'thing' (not getting too technical for you am I?)

Another interesting trick with upholstery is the use of what I call hide-a-tack. This is used to give those neat seams down the back and sides of upholstered furniture. I love this stuff. It can look a bit intimidating with all of those very sharp teeth but it really does it's job so well! You just tuck the fabric in between the teeth, fold them over and hammer down.

and you get this lovely neat join.

So here she is in situ. My decor is going to need a few changes but I am so happy as this sofa is uber comfortable and the brown is soooo practical for a family of 5.

BEFORE (below)

AFTER (below)

I almost forgot to mention that I ran out of fabric before I got the seat cushion done (didn't account for the pattern matching, doh!) so I've just wrapped the cushion in what was left over and I'm off to get some more fabric today, (please don't be sold out!!!).

Below is what I want to do for legs. I will be getting these made soon and plan to paint them a glossy black, unless you all have a better idea? Let me know :o)

Angex