diy: how to fold corners when re-upholstering a chair

When I was looking through re-upholstery guides before working on my dining chairs, I didn't find many helpful bits on folding corners. When it came time to do them, after stapling the sides of my fabric down, I was at a loss. Luckily, I had two chances to get it right, since I hated my first chosen fabric and stapled a new fabric over it.

A few bits of info before getting started. I used 2-inch foam on my plywood slipseat, with 1-inch dacron batting on top. This made for a pretty thick, cushy seat, and corners that were exceptionally difficult to fold. Here is what I did (the second time around).

1) Staple the side of the fabric down. Start in the center of one side, then staple the opposite center, then the remaining centers, then staple out from those (smoothing and tugging the fabric along the edges as you go). Stop a few inches from each corner.

2) Make a small pleat and fold one corner over so it's parallel to the opposite edge. I made my fold with the pleat facing the side of the seat, not the corner. Staple it down once you have a satisfactory pleat, making sure to tuck excess fabric inside the fold to ensure a smooth edge. This is really difficult to explain, so hopefully the picture will be be helpful:

3) Your next fold will be from the other side of the corner, tucking the fabric in the same way you did the first fold. That is, both folds will go the same direction. The second fold will be stapled perpendicular to the first one. See how in the first picture I'm able to pull the fabric taut from the right side? That's how you get a clean corner and clean, tight edge.

4) Staple like a madwoman (madperson?) to ensure the fabric stays nice and tight and neatly folded away. You can always trim the excess fabric, and no one will ever see the mass of staples. You should end up with something like this:

Not too bad! Not perfect, but considering how much padding I was dealing with, it was the best I could do. Just tuck and pleat until you're happy with the fold, and then staple! Worse comes to worse, you can always pry the staple out and try again. Happy cornering!

diy: reupholstered dining chairs

There is something really fulfilling and comforting about having old furniture around. Take our 'new' dining chairs, which my family used for years before my parents upgraded their dining set and relegated these to the basement. They were the first dining chairs that my parents bought together in this country. Over 40 years later, Husband and I needed a proper set of chairs for our newly refinished street table, and we happily snagged these just before my parents were going to toss them.

Now, wicker/rattan isn't necessarily my favorite material, but it does add an interesting detail to the chair (and I feel like it's making a comeback...I've been seeing wicker furniture pop up in places like Restoration Hardware and ABC Home). Yes the vinyl (vinyl!!!) was all tore up. Yes the foam was nasty and flattened. But a dark espresso paint job, fresh foam and batting for the seats, and a modern, graphic fabric brought them out of the 70s and gave them new life! This project was a comedy of errors, but actually pretty simple if you learn from my mistakes.

MATERIALS:

* Spray primer (I used a brown primer from Rustoleum)

* Spray paint (Rustoleum Painter's Touch Ultra Cover in Satin Espresso)

* Minwax wipe-on poly in Semi-Gloss

* Comfort spray grip for paint cans (an absolute MUST...best $7 spent)

* 2'' foam for seats

* Dacron batting for seats

* Fabric (both fabrics were ordered from Etsy)

* Staple gun & lots of staples

* Spray adhesive

SPRAY PAINTING:

The painting itself was really simple. The coverage was superb...I did get a few drips here and there from spraying too much paint in one area, but it's hardly noticeable because of the dark paint color. I primed each chair with 1 coat of a brown primer. Next, I did 3-4 thin coats of paint on each chair (I flipped the chairs upside-down at first, and then sprayed the rest standing up). The trick is to start spraying just outside of the piece, use long even strokes, and hold the can about 6'' away. Several thin coats are better then less thick coats.

Blunder #1 - We were on a bit of a time crunch with these because my in-laws were visiting and we had a limited number on non-rainy, non-windy days. We attempted to do one of the chairs indoors. BIG mistake. Do. Not. Attempt. Despite covering as much as possible with dropcloths, the paint just traveled and settled everywhere. The apartment smelled like paint for days and days...even after airing things out with the windows open. Lesson learned, do this outdoors. Best type of day is between 60-70 degrees, sunny, and with little wind. Cover your workspace with a dropcloth and cardboard (because the area just underneath the chair will get coated in paint).

Blunder #2 - I bought several cans of Rustoleum clear coat, to use as a top coat on the chairs. I did 3 thin coats on top of the paint. Not more then a week later, and the paint was chipping off! It could be because I only did one coat of primer (the original chair had some sort of light finish). I went back and touched up the chips, then did 3 medium coats of my trusty Minwax Wipe-On Poly (previously discussed here). So far, so good, and the semi-gloss finish looks much better then the original Matte Clear coat.

RE-UPHOLSTERING:

The previous foam was glued onto the wood slip seat, so we first had to pry it off. I ordered new custom-cut foam from DIY Upholstery (great customer service and they have a bunch of really helpful videos on youtube). I used spray adhesive to glue the foam to the wood, then covered each seat with dacron (see this video for a helpful demonstration), leaving the dacron unstapled about 2'' from each corner. Next, I stapled the fabric to each seat. You'll see with the first fabric, I chose to center part of the design down each seat, so I had to do a little measuring. With the second fabric, I just had to make sure it was somewhat straight before stapling. The corners were super tricky for me (see this video for helpful tips, and also a separate post on the issue). Finally, we screwed each newly upholstered seat back onto the chair.

Blunder #3 - I searched high and low for a fabric that I liked. I had originally ordered fabric from West Elm, but they have a 3-4 week ship time after you order (no clue why...they don't tell you that on the order page). I also came to my senses and decided that $30 per yard for fabric was a wee bit high. So I cancelled that order and found the second fabric (Valori Wells Del Hi Tapestry fabric in Earth) on Etsy, liking the graphic floral print and muted colors. On my chairs, however, it just looked drab and kind of old-fashioned. Oops! I then found a simple gray lattice print (Premier Prints Gotcha fabric in Storm), for a fresh goes-with-everything modern look. It was also thicker then The Valori Wells (which is really more of a lightweight, crafting fabric, imo). Yes, I am an idiot for not just choosing it in the first place, and spending almost $20/yd in total. Live and learn, my friends.

Final #1

Final #2

COST BREAKDOWN (including mistakes):

* Chairs = Free!

* Primer = $3.97 (2 cans) = $7.94

* Spray paint = $3.97 (4 cans) = $15.88

* Clear coat (x cans) = $3.97 (3 cans) = $11.91

* Minwax clear poly = $7

* Comfort spray grip = $6.77

* Custom-cut 2'' foam (2.4 super density foam) = $23.00

* Dacron = $2.75/yd (4 yards) = $11.00

* Spray adhesive = Free (leftover from past projects)

* Fabric #1 = $8.00/yd (4 yards) = $32.00

* Fabric #2 = ($10.99/yd) (4 yards plus shipping) = $47.00

Total cost (with mistakes) = $162.50, Cost per chair = $40.63

Total cost (assuming no mistakes) = $118.59, Cost per chair = $29.65

I'm sure I could have done this all cheaper...used coupons for the spray paint, ordered the right fabric from the beginning, only purchased the wipe-on poly...but the cost/chair is still very very reasonable! And I think the final (final #2) results are fab!

spicing things up

One of my favorite organizational tools that we incorporated into our kitchen is the Ikea Grundtal system. Our galley kitchen is fairly common as far as NY apartments go, and I wanted to free up as much counter space as possible (kitchen real estate that was sorely lacking in our last apartment). We installed two rods spanning one entire wall, and use it to hold two dish racks, a basket for dish soap and sponge, paper towel holder, a spice rack, and an 'odds and ends' basket. We also purchased a few extra sets of S hooks for anything that might need to be hung in a pinch.

We especially love the dish rack and spice shelf. No longer will we need to deal with a grimy dish tray...our racks can simply be unhooked and cleaned in the dishwasher. The spice shelf finally lets me keep my spices in plain view. However, I soon ran into a problem. Spice jars were stuffed end-to-end on the shelves, and looked sloppy! I would constantly knock the basil over while trying to reach for the cinnamon. Plus my type A side hated that the jars weren't uniform in size and shape.

After reading the tips from SmittenKitchen and DomesticDaddy, I decided to order 24 Libby spice jars. Thanks to my new Amazon Prime status (students get a year free....once my year is up I will probably renew), they were in my hands 2 days later.

Getting 24 labels off the bottoms was easy...I placed the jars in a rimmed cookie sheet and poured in a shallow layer of water. 30 minutes later, I could quickly swipe off the label (and glue), leaving clean glass behind. I printed labels using clear Avery mailing labels, and cut them down to size with my second most prized possession from the wedding behind Husband paper cutter.

These jars aren't a perfect fit, but they are a marked improvement. Not all spice jar contents will exactly fit in the Libbys. Meaning I have a few tablespoons of this and that shoved in my back cabinets. Also, only 4 Libbys will fit on the Grundtal shelves. I displayed my most used spices, and carefully stacked the remainder in the pantry/kitchen storage/Griffin supply storage closet.

PS - Transferring the spices is messy business. Do it on some paper towels.

PPS - It's almost impossible to apply the labels straight and uniform unless you have the steady hands of a surgeon (I do not).

PPPS - I am seriously considering ordering bigger versions of these jars for misc. kitchen food stuff. We spotted these at the bar of a local restaurant, housing mint leaves ready to be muddled for mojitos!

BEFORE (this was halfway through dividing and discarding, oops)

AFTER (that top row is pretty steady, despite how precarious it looks)

how not to refinish a wood table, part 2

So, you did your research and decided refinishing your furniture is what you want to do. Yay! Here is my step-by-step experience for chemically stripping and staining wood furniture:

MATERIALS (most purchased at Home Depot):

*Chemical stripper (I used a fast-acting stripper that turned the paint and varnish to goo in about 15 minutes. There are environmentally-friendly and less noxious strippers available, but those take way longer to work.)

*Plastic stripping tool

*Steel wool

*Chemical stripper wash

*Wood conditioner

*Wood stain (I used a classic oil stain by Minwax, but I read that gel stains are a bit easier to work with, especially for non-horizontal surfaces.)

*Polyurethane finish (I used a Minwax Wipe-On Poly that I was really happy with.)

*Several cheap brushes

*Plenty of lint-free rags (I used old, cut-up tee-shirts.)

*Metal trays

*Metal container (or an empty and dried-out paint container)

*Sandpaper (medium-coarse in a 180-grit and fine in a 220-grit)

1) PREPPING YOURSELF AND THE WORK AREA

Make sure you are in a well-ventilated and open area (I worked on the patio and away from the door and windows). Spread a dropcloth down with cardboard on top. Wear fitted clothing and tuck your sleeves into protective gloves.

2) STRIPPING THE OLD FINISH

Pour the chemical stripper into a metal tray. The stripper will be viscous and gooey. Liberally spread it with a brush over a portion of the furniture to be stripped. I worked with small areas at a time. You'll know the stripper is working because the surface will begin to ripple and bubble. After the recommended application time, remove the stripper and paint (it will be a goo that comes off in sheets) with the stripping tool, disposing of the waste in the metal container. Don't worry about getting every little piece of paint off...it will come off when you apply the after-wash. If a considerable amount of paint is left, or you did not get down to the wood surface, apply another liberal coat of stripper and repeat the process.

Once the majority of the paint is removed, you'll need to neutralize the surface. Pour the after-wash into a plastic container, and 'wash' the wood with steel wool (much like you'd use a sponge and soapy water). The steel wool allows you to really get into the surface and also remove those remaining specks of paint and finish. Repeat until the surface is completely bare and clean. Let the furniture dry for 24-48 hours before proceeding. This is what my table looked like after stripping (and adding new legs, see below):

*If you get any stripper on your skin, you'll know immediately (it will begin to burn like crazy). Run to a sink and douse your skin under running water for 5-10 minutes. Water neutralized the type of stripper I was working with, so this prevented my skin from being eaten away. Hey, I wasn't kidding...that stuff was NASTY.

*I began to do the legs of the table and realized it would be nearly impossible to remove the paint from every crevice of the curves. I ended up tossing the legs and bought new unfinished legs from Lowe's. Thanks to Husband for drilling new holes so we could assemble the table.

3) PREPPING FOR STAIN

At this point, you should have a nice and bare piece of wood furniture. Yay! Sand the entire piece with the medium-coarse sandpaper. I'm sure this is MUCH easier if you have a hand-sander, but for my fellow city-folks, be prepared for a workout. You want to make sure the wood is raw and will easily take the stain, so sand liberally.

If your wood is softwood, you'll need to condition it beforehand. I think this is because soft wood won't take stain evenly, so if you don't condition it beforehand to fill the pores a bit, you'll end up with blotchy and uneven color. You can test for soft wood by seeing if you can leave an indentation with your fingernail on the underside. I ended up conditioning every part of the table (top and new legs), even though I think the top was hardwood.

Apply the conditioner liberally with a brush. It'll be watery and yellowish in color. After 5 minutes or so, wipe off the excess with a rag. You should stain within at least 2 hours of conditioning the wood.

4) STAINING

There are many different versions of stain to choose from. I went with a classic oil-based stain. This is what my dad always worked with, and what was available in the widest choice of shades. I generally knew what to expect.

You can apply stain a few ways - with a paintbrush, a foam brush, or a rag. I originally opted for a foam brush, leaving the stain on for 15 minutes before trying to wipe it off. Unfortunately, the brush applied way too much stain, and it was so tacky that I could barely wipe anything off! To make matters worse, the new legs, being a different type of wood (unfinished pine), absorbed the stain like a sponge and turned a deep brown. To remove the excess stain, I ended up applying a liberal amount of stain right on top of the tacky disaster, and wiping away immediately (same premise as removing nail polish with nail polish in a pinch).

The wood tabletop was left darkened, but not nearly as dark as I wanted. So I did about 3 super thin coats, applied with a tee-shirt rag, in circles (almost as if I was lightly buffing the wood). I wiped the excess off within 5-10 minutes with medium pressure. Any light spots can be spot-stained. Each coat should dry for 6-8 hours before re-coating. This is what the table looked like just after 2 coats of stain, but before evening out the light, uneven marks:

5) FINISHING WITH POLY

At this point, you should have a piece of furniture that is relatively uniform in color. You'll need to apply a polyurethane topcoat to seal in the stain and ensure the piece is water-resistant and will stand up to everyday wear. I opted for a satin-finish Wipe-on Poly, which is a mix of regular poly varnish and mineral spirits. It's very thin and designed to be applied in several layers. The great thing about this is that it's totally idiot-proof (ie: the one step that I had NO problems with) and easy to apply on irregular surfaces (curves and vertical planes). It's also great for use in areas that are dusty...the surface dries to the touch fairly quickly, so you can avoid having dust settle into the wet varnish.

I poured some of the poly into a shallow, plastic take-out container. Using a tightly rolled tee-rag, I applied the poly in long, single strokes (going with the grain of the wood). I overlapped previous strokes to ensure that I was getting a uniform look. Because it's applied so thin, and in several coats (I've read people recommend anywhere from 4-10 coats), you won't get application marks and will eventually end up covering the entire piece. Each coat should dry 2-3 hours before re-coating. Before re-coating, lightly sand the surface with very fine-grit sandpaper (I think this is to remove bubbles or imperfections), but I only did this between the 1st and 3rd coats. I did 4 coats total.

Let the piece dry 24-48 hours before use. I wouldn't even handle it for at least 8 hours. I'm so happy with how our table turned out...the slightly imperfect color is awesome and gives it a handmade feel. I completed the whole project over 2 weeks, with 2-3 days of work at a time. For fun, I also stained our new Ikea Tryta bench (which comes as unfinished pine wood). Does it look like a $9.99 bench to you?

how not to refinish a wood table, part 1

I intended to blog about a table that I painted several months ago...a table that had been sadly abandoned on the sidewalk. The table is solid wood, with a double dropleaf, and pretty well-constructed. Unfortunately, some misguided soul (or marker-happy child) had defaced the surface with a heavy Sharpie. I figured the only way to hide the marker was to prime and paint the table in a clean, true white.

Fast-forward to moving day. The table had been moved and rolled around between two apartments - each time leaving a trail of white paint. Yeah, the paint was chipping and peeling off, and marking up any surface it came into contact with. I'm guessing that a lack of any protective topcoat, a heavy hand with the paintbrush, and a cheapo can of trim paint, all contributed to this epic fail. Clearly we could not use this as our everyday dining table.

After a ton of research, I decided to strip the paint off and refinish the piece with wood stain. On paper, it sounded so easy. But as these things usually go, it was one disaster after the next. Thankfully, I'm super happy with the end product, but learned a ton of lessons along the way. Here are a few tips to know in advance of attempting a project of this magnitude.

* As Emily Henderson advises, if the wood is in good condition, or if the piece is vintage, don't paint it. I tend to agree. It's a crime to cover up good wood (guilty as charged here). Staining, when done right, really brings out the beauty of the wood and makes it a unique piece.

* Estimate how much time you'll need for each step, and then multiply that by 3. At the very least, ensure that you'll have 2-3 consecutive non-rainy days for each step. Seriously. This project has taken me way more time than I anticipated. Part of the problem was that I had to do all of the work on the patio, and plan around rainy days and freezing cold weather. A garage would have made things much easier.

* Make sure you have PLENTY of ventilation. Every material, from the paint stripper, to the poly finish, is nasty nasty stuff. The fumes are strong. Even when working outside, I'd sometimes find myself a little nauseous or light-headed. If I had to do it again, I'd use a mask throughout the entire process.

* Similarly, make sure you have plenty of protective gloves. Like heavy-duty, chemical-resistant gloves.

* Don't attempt to chemically-strip unless: 1-it's a piece that has only linear shapes (as in no curved legs or intricate carvings) or 2-you have a lot of space and a hose. Getting the previous finish off is nasty work...you need to scrape it off the piece with a spatula-like tool. You can get into small crevices with steel wool, a toothbrush, pipe cleaner, etc, but it's a huge pain. There are chemical strippers that can be hosed off after the application time, but make sure you're in a well-ventilated, open space and you collect the goo after it's been hosed off (it needs to be disposed of in a certain way or it can spontaneously combust-yikes!)

* Follow the directions on the containers to a t. Don't try to cheat dry times or application tips. Something will definitely go wrong and trying to undo mistakes (like removing an excess of stain that you didn't wipe off correctly) is often very difficult and messy.

* Temperature makes a difference. I had trouble with tacky stain that wouldn't wipe off properly, and chemical stripper that wouldn't peel up, and I think the low outside temperatures contributed to my problems. The containers state that you shouldn't really work in conditions below 65 degrees or excessively hot and humid weather.

* Don't freak out if at first the piece doesn't look exactly how you envisioned it. I was so unhappy with the look of the table until I applied the first coat of poly. Once it had that little shine and smoothness, the color and grain really stood out beautifully.

Up next: the play by play!

Umm, hi?

Holy wow. Is it really November? My sad little blog has been sitting here without an update since the summer. I don't have much of an excuse, except for "life' got busy" and "things came up" and blahblahblah. But seriously, how fast
is the year flying by? I feel like I blinked and summer ended and the holidays are around the corner. Not that I miss the eternal inferno of the past summer...that heatwave was god-awful and I'm happy to not walk around with perpetually sweat-drenched clothing.

I originally wrote this post during some unseasonably warm fall weather, which is long gone by now (today marked the earliest recorded frozen precipitation for the NY Metro area, lovely). I had a collection of fab pictures all set to go, but really, no one wants to see bright sunny days in front of the NY Public Library or giant bloody marys garnished with Slim Jims overlooking the San Diego waterfront. It's just depressing when winter feels like it came too soon.

The bigger and better news is that we welcomed the fall with a new apartment! In Brooklyn! It's a two-bedroom with a patio. A huge patio. Did I mention there was a patio? We couldn't be more thrilled for the space and a fresh start. I have so much to share! From the few purchases we made to freshen up the place with a different look, to paint colors, to a few DIY projects that I (probably stupidly) took on...we've been learning a lot!

DIY: finders keepers

Husband and I noticed a wood, double drop-leaf table sitting on the curb on our way to meet some friends for drinks last weekend. Three hours later, the table was still there. As we eyed it, a young doctor walked by in scrubs and exclaimed..."nice table...I'd take it if I wasn't working." It was a sign! In true New Yorker fashion, we snatched it up and carried it to our place (thankfully we were only 2 blocks away...the thing is solid wood and heavy).

We were able to get a better look in the light, and what a sad sad display. It had packing tape stuck to it, as well as black marker haphazardly drawn over the top. However, the drop leaves were still functional and the hinges in good condition.


Inspired by Holly from Life in the Fun Lane, and (trying) to closely follow the tips of Sherry over at Young House Love, I decided to take a stab at giving the table a second life.

Materials:
* Primer (I used Zinsser brand.)
* Paint (I used the cheapest semi-gloss bright white I could find.)
* Brushes (Don't buy the cheap ones...the bristles will come off as you paint.)
* Sandpaper
* Plastic dropcloth (To protect the floor.)
* Newspaper (Also to protect floor.)
* Puppy playpen (Ok you may not need this, but it was the only way to keep a curious puppy from burying his nose in paint.)

Step 1) Generously wipe the piece down with disinfectant wipes, and then again with some sort of all-purpose cleaner (I used Lysol wipes followed by a Method spray cleaner).

Step 2) Apply a coat or two of primer. I tried to make the coats as thin as possible. Zinsser dries fast, so I did one coat, watched How I Met Your Mother on DVR, and then did the second. [You want to make sure that you primer is not too old...ours is over a year old and was on the thick side.]

Step 3) Lightly use the sandpaper over the entire table. This will remove lumps and bumps and better prep the piece for paint.

Step 4) Paint! Again, you want fairly smooth and thin coats, which a good paintbrush will help achieve. I waited at least 6-8 hours between coats 1 and 2, but got impatient and did the final coat when coat 2 was just dry to the touch. If primed well and properly, I think you should only need 1-2 coats of paint. Unfortunately, I needed 3 to achieve a satisfactory opaque look. So it goes.

Step 5) Wait at least 48 hours before using the piece. This part was crucial. We were ready to use it after just 24 hours, but a small experiment with my fingernail told me it would be better to wait another day. Just like a manicure actually takes a day or so to fully dry, so does paint on furniture, apparently.

This was a relatively uncomplicated weekend project, and we were really happy with the result! True, you can see the brushstrokes if you look close enough, and true, the finish is not super smooth. But, it looks far better than its original state, and our total costs for the project came in at less than $10. We're currently using it as a console table next to the front door, and may find a better use should we move to a bigger place in the future!


I got a bit carried away and painted our mesh garbage can as well. I can't say the results are stellar, but after 7 years, I was tired of silver metal to toss my papers into.