Lovely Linen

My client is in the process of building a new house. So, a furniture refresh was in order, of course :)

We started with her wing chair...

... in great shape, just in need of a new look. My client chose the same linen/cotton blend that I used here. It was a great choice...

We kept the look tailored, with a short straight skirt, piping on the cushion, and top-stitching everywhere else. 

The top-stitching was tricky around the "telephone" arms, but my client was pleased with how they turned out, so that's all that matters ;)

Now it's all ready for it's new home!

Fyi: the cover on the pillow on the chair is the Indigo Engineer's Stripe from the Pillows For Good collection - head over here to see more fabulous farmhouse pillow options :)

Are you planning any spring refreshers for your home?

Sherri

P.S. Linking up here :)

Craigslist For The Win

When my client first contacted me about a slipcover project, she had a particular chair and ottoman in mind. When it came time to discuss fabric options, she had found this chair and ottoman set on Craiglist and wanted it done instead. But this was no ordinary Craigslist find - these were Quatrine pieces, in like-new condition!!

The only issue were the red slipcovers - not my client's style. But, that's an easy fix ;)

She had another Quatrine piece that had a pique-type fabric, so she was looking for something similar. We landed on a beautiful white linen/cotton blend from Gray Line Linen. Once it was washed and dried, it had that great pique texture that she was going for!

She knew she wanted knife pleats all around the bottom. And, to mix things up just a little, we used white denim for the piping.

Here's a close-up of the texture of the fabric...

English roll arms are always a classic feature...

We finished off the project with little slips for a couple of footstools. This time we used the denim for the main slipcover and did the pleats in the linen/cotton blend (this shows the before and after)...

A new look more in keeping with my client's style :)

Sherri

P.S. Linking up here :)

Subtle Alterations Can Change Everything

This project required a simple slipcover, but we made a few other changes that resulted in a dramatically updated couch - makes for a great before-and-after! Before...

August Blues - Couch Before

... a well-loved couch, sturdy, but in need of an update.

As with any renovation project, we started with the structure, before we did the cover. The couch sat quite low to the ground, so, based on the starting seat height, we determined that the width of a 2x4 would be enough to raise the seat height to a standard 18". My client's father built three frames of 2x4s to raise the couch . Unfortunately, I didn't get a picture, but there was one for each end, and one for the middle that the frame of the couch rested on. It made a big difference, both in appearance and function!

Once the new seat height was established, we could construct the new cover. Dropcloth was the fabric of choice, which provided a neutral backdrop for patterned pillows to come. We decided on a simple, traditional slipcover style...

August Blues - Dropcloth slipcover after

A completely new look! The other "structural" change was the addition of new custom inserts for the back cushions. We increased the size slightly over what we started with and filled them with cluster polyfill for resilience. The smaller, rectangular cushions (not pictured here) were also replaced with new down inserts.

August Blues - dropcloth slipcover arm after

Just piping trim and a simple, tailored skirt (with a corner pleat that didn't get pressed quite right :/).

August Blues - Dropcloth slipcover after

Subtle changes for a fresh, new look for more years of comfortable use :)

Sherri

Going Girly

My client wanted a new look for this chair that sits in her home office. She wanted something "girly," incorporating pink in the design...

Cute chair! But, the tassels were showing some wear and the fringe trim around the bottom of the chair was disappearing. So, we talked about options and decided to go with dropcloth, with pink ticking trim...

August Blues - Dropcloth with pink ticking trim

The box-pleated skirt keeps it feminine without being over-the-top.

August Blues - Chair Side

And the tapered shape of the chair made it a natural for a special detail down the back...

August Blues - Back Lacing

I chose to cut the ticking for the piping and lacing on the crosswise grain, instead of on the bias, so it would look less like a candy cane and still take advantage of the stripe.

August Blues - Back Lacing

And a bow at the bottom to finish it off.

August Blues - Droploth and ticking slipcover after

A perfectly girly perch for a home office :)

Sherri

P.S. Linking up here :)

Trying a New Denim

Before

Sometimes our beloved animals are hard on furniture - can anyone relate? My client brought this chair and ottoman that had had some unwanted attention from a cat. And, somehow the tapestry fabric did not handle the attention very well. But, the chair was still very comfortable and had great lines, so slipcovers came to the rescue.

English roll arms and a rolled back? Yes, please!

My client wanted something in a natural color, that was also durable and washable for life with animals. We selected the bull denim recommended by The Slipcover Maker. And here is the After...

August Blues - After, Chair Only

And here is the pair...

August Blues - After, Chair and Ottoman

A simple design, with piping and knife pleats around the bottom.

August Blues - After, Chair and Ottoman2

The rolled back is such a elegant feature, I think...

August Blues - Rolled Chair Back

I really like this fabric - it is sturdy, but soft enough to be able to work it around curves and fashion details like the pleats (and the price is very reasonable). I would definitely consider it for our home, if I thought I could get away with such a light color ;) Note: the shrinkage is about 6"/yd. so make sure you allow enough fabric for pre-washing!

August Blues - After, Chair and Ottoman3

Do you have a favorite slipcover fabric?

Sherri

The Chair with Two Left Feet

...or When a $5 Craigslist Chair is Just a $5 Craigslist Chair :) This is a story about a chair...

August Blues - Before

I thought the corner of our front room (my office/furniture holding room) needed a little something, a chair specifically. I like wing chairs for the height they bring to a seating arrangement, so I went to Craigslist to see what I could find. I didn't want to spend a lot of money on a chair whose primary job was to fill a space and look good (with a slipcover, of course), so when I spotted one nearby for $5, I contacted the seller about details and we went to have a look.

The seat cushion was attached, not my favorite, but the rest of the chair seemed ok - sturdy enough, the fabric was in good shape, and it didn't smell funny. So, we took it... I mean, it was $5! And, I soon realized why it was only $5...

When we were loading the chair, I noticed that one of the back legs had been put on wrong. Well, that would be an easy fix. Once we got it home, I attempted to fix that rogue leg and realized that both back legs were the same, as in they both belonged on the same side of the chair. And the legs were plastic, not wood :/ And then (yes, there is more!) I looked more closely and noticed that both front legs also belonged to the same side of the chair. Who makes a chair like that??? And who pays money for a chair like that? Ahem...

Well, I didn't get around to slipcovering it for awhile and eventually that chair got moved to the bedroom. And then I noticed that my favorite chair (not the one with two left feet, but another one that actually was a great Craigslist find) was being used to hold the Professsor's clothes - what?! So, the Craigslist chair promptly got moved to his side of the room , so I could use my favorite chair for actually sitting in! And then, finally I had time to make a slipcover :)

I used a chunk of dropcloth, and added some leftover white piping. I didn't have enough fabric to make a long skirt to hide the wonky legs, but since the chair's new job was to hold clothes, I figured no one would notice. And here it is...

August Blues - Dropcloth Sliipcover After1

Whew, much better, even if it is actually as off kilter as it looks in the picture! It now blends perfectly with the rest of the bedroom decor and is beautifully serving it's purpose.

August Blues - Dropcloth Slipcover Close-up

Now, the lesson to be learned could be "buyer beware when shopping Craigslist" and that's a great lesson. However...

August Blues - Dropcloth Slipcover After2

...I'm going to go with the Nester, who says "it doesn't have to be perfect to be beautiful."

Can I get an "Amen!" to that?

Sherri

P.S. And can I just ask, can we make clothing-holding chairs a thing?? Because, I'm pretty sure we all have them... ;)

New Life for a Nursery Rocker

We are all back to work/school after Spring Break (if you follow on Instagram, you will have seen some of our adventures), and it is good! This project is a great example of how a little creativity can prolong the useful life of a quality piece of furniture. My client had an adorable rocker that she had used in her kids' nursery. It was custom made locally, and was a great piece that she was hoping to save for her kids to use for their own families. But she didn't want it to just hang out in storage. Here it is...

August Blues - Chair Before

You may have noticed that this chair has legs, not rockers. My client was able to remove the rockers and replace them with pretty legs. Now this chair can go anywhere an extra seat is needed!

My client chose linen for the slipcover (I believe it was Snow Glynn Linen from Covington). She requested a gathered skirt and piping trim. And here it is...

August Blues - linen slipcover after

The gathered skirt was perfect for the curvy form of the chair. It was finished with a blind hem.

August Blues - Arm Front

Reminds me of this chair I did in dropcloth...

Augusst Blues - Inspiration and Inspired

Because of the curves, we opted to do a zipper down the middle of the back, concealed behind a faux button placket...

August Blues - Button Placket

The linen just seemed to need mother-of-pearl buttons :)

August Blues - Button Placket

Now the chair has grown up and is ready for it's new place in the guest room.

August Blues - Before and After

Do you have a chair, or other furniture piece, you can repurpose?

Sherri

P.S. Linking up here :)

It's All About the Velvet

If you follow me on Instagram or Facebook (it's where are the fun is, you know ;)), you will have seen some velvet goodness happening in my workroom. This is the project... My client contacted me, looking for covers for her couch cushions. She has a leather couch and a largish puppy who was leaving his claw marks on the cushions.

August Blues - Leather Couch Before

As you can see, her first line of defense was to flip the cushions so the full leather sides were underneath. But, of course, this was not the look she was going for. So, covers were in order. She has a collection of South American textiles and thought that a rich velvet would complement these best. We found a delicious chocolate cotton velvet that was an almost perfect match to her couch!

After...

August Blues - Velvet Cushion Covers

The fabric was very nice (lots of colors at fabric.com :)) and was a good weight - there was measurable shrinkage, but otherwise, it washed and dried beautifully. We added piping edges to the cushions and made arm covers as well. I made the arm covers extra long, so they would tuck under and be held in place by the back cushions.

August Blues - Velvet Cushions and Arm Covers

Velvet can have a tendency to "creep" against itself when it's being sewn together, but this was minimal with this fabric.

August Blues - Velvet Cushion Covers2

Looks comfy to me!

August Blues - Velvet Cushion Covers

I hadn't had a chance to work with velvet on this scale before; I think I might need to see what other velvet projects I can come up with :)

Do you have velvet in your home?

Sherri