More Home Dec

I confess that while this has always been meant to be a quilting blog, I have shared a fair amount of other types of work here lately. This summer alone I have made porch curtains and a bedspread. I am here today to share the making of a slipcover for an ancient upholstered chair.

Above is the chair, minus its cushion. I didn't think to get a before picture with it in place. Perhaps a bit of history is necessary at this point.

I bought this chair back in the summer of 1975 for the grand sum of $1. Yes, that's right - one dollar. Mom and I went to a nearby town to attend an estate auction, and at the very end of the day's proceedings this chair came up and since almost everyone had gone home (all the good stuff had been sold, I suppose) I got a steal.

At the time of purchase, the chair was covered in an antiquated fabric that was scratchy and worn. Nonetheless, the chair was sturdy and comfortable. Why I thought I needed to take a big overstuffed chair like this to a small college dorm room, I have no idea. But that was my purpose, and I did just that. All four years at school, I had this chair in my room/apartment.

After graduation, I married and the chair made its way into our home. Some time in the next couple years, I took the chair to an upholsterer who put on the plaid it still wears. And it is showing the filth of 35+ years of wear and grime. Blehhh!

When our daughter Erin moved to her own apartment about 10 years ago, this chair went with her. With plans to slipcover it, she bought a bolt of blue suede microfibre home decor fabric and gave it a start. She tells me that she was dissatisfied with how slippery it was to work with, and then her cat loved sleeping on it making it gross, and well, then she quit, barely midway through the project.

So, it came back to my house, along with the bolt of fabric. Below is a picture of the cushion covered with the new fabric. The chair is still sturdy and comfortable! It's worthwhile to make the effort to update it.

I removed all the pieces Erin had fitted onto the chair - most were far too dirty and cat-hairy to try to salvage - especially when I still had most of a bolt of fabric from which to cut new pieces. Below is the fabric to be discarded.

At about the same time I was planning to tackle this project, my niece Abby (just a couple years younger than Erin) asked me if I had any knowledge or skill with upholstering, as she is interested in recovering her sofa. When I told her I had a chair that I was going to slipcover, she was interested in watching, helping and learning. And that is what the remainder of this post is about - last Wednesday, Abby and her mom, my sister Sandy, came over for a day of upholstering work.

Abby catches on fast, let me tell you. There was nothing that she didn't grasp really quickly. To say she can take the bull by the horns (sorry for the trite phrasing) would be an accurate comparison of how she operates. We made a good team, as she pushed through any moments when I otherwise would have thrown in the towel (ah, there's another one!).

In the midst of my crazy-messy sewing room, Abby got straight to work on the sewing machine. I worked on my other machine making the work go rather quickly.

Let's just take a look at some of the photos of the progress.

Finally, all the major work was done. I am left with the task of hemming it all around the bottom and fastening the ties for the back of the chair. I need to buy some upholstery pins to use in some strategic places to make this chair look tidier.

Abby, I am happy to report, is gung-ho on the idea of tackling her sofa. I will be heading over to return the help that she gave me. I am glad she feels confident in our ability to do a whole sofa; I am a bit intimidated at the thought of it, frankly!

My chair will never be awarded any prizes for outstanding workmanship, but it will serve as an easy chair in that same bedroom with the new bedspread. After I take care of the finishing touches, I will drape a throw over it, and it will look just grand.

Happy Quilting, Friends!