One of my favorite things to do is repurpose furniture. I am always in consignment shops, Good Will or yard sales looking for a bargain that I can play with and tweak. Here in town we have a store called Vintage Values. Vintage Values has two locations where you can donate your household items or clothing that are in good condition. The profits from the shop are then utilized at our local Domestic Violence Shelter. Gotta love that! I am in there at least twice a week scrounging around.

See the cute storage stool above? $6.99. Now that is a TICKLED find 🙂

It did however look like this when I found it. I adore black and white as you know but not on my furniture and not in harlequin print. Also this fabric was old and dingy it had to go. Would you like to see how easy it is to transform this top? Trust me anyone can do this if you haven’t done something similar already.

Remove the fabric that is already on there and see what you are working with. Usually this is just a simple process of removing some staples.

As you can see someone had the same idea as me only they covered over the damaged original basket weave. The problem with covering over the damage is that you can feel the broken section through the fabric when you use the stool for a seat.

If you look closely you can see that the basket weave goes down into a braid wrapping around the edge of the lid. It is for all intents and purposes separate.

This is where I make my cut and remove the damaged top. Cut close to the braid all the way around the lid.

I was going to leave the braid exposed but as you will see once you start playing around with a piece, it will dictate what you can and can not do. The braiding was just barley holding the cushion on. If I had left the braid exposed the cushion would eventually shift over time with use and be a disfigured lumpy mess. No can do my friends.

Choose your fabric, lay it out flat and pin it along the top and bottom edge of the lid first. I went with a Schumacher fabric that I have had lying around for a while. It is also upholstery grade so it will be perfect for all of the wear and tear from my monkeys and my darlin’.

Flip it over and make sure that the fabric pattern is lined up exactly how you want it to be. Okay now we will be getting technical but it is still not that difficult.You will be working one side at a time. Start with a side that is not pinned.

First: Pull the fabric taut and hot glue it along the top edge of the lid from corner to corner leaving approx.  one inch from the corners not glued. If you glued the fabric to the interior it would not be able to fit the bottom any longer.

Second: Staple along the same edge with an industrial staple gun (not a  neumatic one, we aren’t building houses here) for extra reinforcement.

Third: Make a cut in the fabric at the corners.

Fourth: Tuck and fold the fabric evenly around the corner.

Fifth: Staple securely.

Sixth: Move on to the next corner. Repeat. Move on to the next side and repeat all of the above steps.

When you are done trim away the excess fabric around the edge and vacuum up the stray threads lying around.

This guy now holds a multitude of my magazines for me. My surfer is ecstatic to have them hidden and out of the way. I also get to put my heels up at the end of the day in comfort 🙂 Voila! $6.99 worth of storage and comfort.

You can use the same steps with dining room chairs or foot stools.

Let me know what you have repurposed, reused or recycled. I would love to know.

XOXO,

Tickled Red