The purging of unwanted furniture has begun. This past weekend I sold a set of bookshelves and a sideboard on Craigslist. I tried to sell this red chair, too, but it didn't sell as quickly and that gave me just enough time to rethink listing it. Since the color was the only problem with it, I decided to dress it up in something more neutral. I went searching online for slipcovers and I found Bemz, a company that makes custom slipcovers for all types of IKEA furniture. Super cool and super cute and unfortunately, out of my budget. Then I started to rethink my rethinking of listing it.
I thought about making my own cover and I found tips online for removing the existing chair cover and using it as a pattern but that seemed like an awful lot of work for this punk of a chair. And then I thought, Why can't I just wrap it with wide strips of fabric and staple it to the bottom of the chair? That would work, right? It probably wouldn't look as tight as the covers I see online but hey, it would be a lot easier (and cheaper). Of course I was advised against doing this by my hubby who has witnessed the wrath of many a project-gone-wrong and didn't want to spend his Saturday listening to me scream at the chair. But did I listen? No I did not.
But this time it was a good thing! Armed with my 40%-off coupon from Jo-Ann's and a nice, neutral, solid linen, I got everything I needed for $22. I didn't know how much fabric I'd need so I guessed at 3-1/4 yards (that was all that was left on the bolt, actually) and it was just enough. Of course I had no idea what I was doing but it turns out, you don't really need to.
I didn't take pictures of my process because 1) I didn't think it would work, 2) I did it at night and it was dark, and 3) I was too busy manhandling the chair and using all of my might to get the staple gun to shoot a staple. Michael asked me once if I was sweating.
Truthfully, there was very little swearing (and no machine sewing!) and I finished it in the same time it took the rest of my family to watch The Incredibles. And I actually love it a lot. It's comfy and casual and loose and linen-y. And it's also un-Scotchguarded so if anyone tries to sit in it while drinking grape juice or eating chocolate ice cream, I will immediately put them in a full nelson.
Oh, and I've tried to write out my process for anyone who might be interested in how I did it but it seriously makes no sense. Maybe I'll try again later…>
