By: Chris Stead
Home Projects
Pillows and Chairs
(Project ideas from Rebecca Davis)
This month we have two projects to help you Goth up your living space, one small and one a little larger. Let’s take a look.
Pillow coverings:
Anyone can come up with cheap pillows. But how do you take those cheap pillows and make them into something that you would actually want around your house? There are just a few simple steps to follow to take old, boring pillows and make them much more exciting.
- First choose fabric that compliments the colors you already have in your home.
- Once you have done that, then cut a square that is about three times the size of the pillow you want to cover.
- Lay the fabric out flat and set the pillow diagonally on the fabric.
- Tie two opposing corners together, then the other two.
- Tuck the ends of the tie into the folds of the fabric and you are done!
Re-covering a Chair:
This is not going to be the be-all and end-all of re-upholstering. This will serve you well so long as you choose the correct chairs to start with. Things you will need for this project before you even get started:
- A chair that you can remove the seat from easily
- Needle nose pliers or general use wire cutters. (Don’t use ones that are too sharp or they won’t work for what you want to do)
- A screwdriver
Now let’s get down to business. Be sure that you have an hour per chair to dedicate to this project. If you want to do this right it may end up being an afternoon project.
- Unscrew the seat of the chair. If you can’t do this then you need a different kind of chair.
- remove all the staples from the bottom of the chair. Be sure to save the velum piece that covers the staples holding down the fabric. You will need this later.
- Remove the old fabric from the seat and put new fabric over the old cushion.
- Be sure not to pull the fabric too tight or the job will look strange when you are done.
- Staple the edges of the fabric down and re-cover with the vellum and staple the vellum back on.
- Screw the seat back onto the chair.
- Rinse and repeat for all chairs.
- Enjoy your new chairs!
