One of my best friends recently convinced me to start blogging about all the DIY projects I do (because they're so cool, I'm sure!). But my secret (which isn't a secret at all) is Pinterest. I'm a pin-crazed maniac! I've always been told that the first step to overcoming an addiction is to admit you have a problem. So...my name is Amanda, and I am a Pinterest whore.
I get so excited about the crafts and projects I see that I do them as soon as possible. Before I unexpectedly moved out of my tiny apartment, I had redecorated almost every room during the summer. Thanks, Pinterest! (Refer to joke here). I'm so obsessed with Pinterest and doing more projects that I created a secret "Weekend Projects" board. That's right, a *secret* board!
My latest projects have been in the area of home improvement. I had changed the color scheme in our living room to brighten the place up (the colors used to be black, brown, and burgundy). By changing the colors of the living room, I also had to change the colors in the dining room because that apartment was just too small and it would look weird. Of course, that isn't a problem now that I'm in a large house, but long story short, I decided to go with turquoise, light gray, and yellow for the living room. Then flowing into the dining room would be aqua, blue, and green.
So, the goal was to redo two rooms without breaking the bank. I started with recovering my ugly folding chairs that served as a poor college student's dining room chairs for 3 years.
What you'll need:
- Chairs
- Screwdriver
- Fabric
- Staple gun & staples
- Spray paint
Luckily, these cushions were screwed in rather than glued. If you've seen any other folding chair tutorials, most of them have to glue the re-covered cushions onto the chair frame and use monster clamps to keep the pressure on while the glue dries and seals. These ugly ducklings are the easy ones! I just unscrewed the cushion and *pop.*
You want to pick a fabric that you won't hate by next week. Here's the one I chose:
I have four chairs with a small cushion on top and a larger cushion on the seat. I got 2 and 1/2 yards of fabric and that was more than enough! I have about 1/2 yard or so left over.
Next, you lay the fabric down with the print facing the ground. Once your fabric is laid out, place the small cushion face down and cut enough to fit the cushion. Leave about an extra inch and a half of fabric all the way around the edge.
Once you've cut a piece slightly larger than you need, pull the fabric tightly to the back and staple. Do this, pulling tightly, until the whole cushion is covered. Repeat on all the cushions.
Your newly livened butt pillows should look like this:
The next thing to do is paint the frames! I grabbed this light aqua blue from Wal-Mart that matched the blue in the fabric. Make sure you spray all over - front, back, underneath, and sides. Make sure to let the paint dry long enough before moving the chairs. When you think you're all done spraying them, fold the chairs to make sure you've covered it all. After everything is dry, put the cushions back on.
Here are pictures of the final product!
How much better does that look?! I'm loving these revamped chairs! And now that I'm no longer in a tiny apartment, I have these brightly painted chairs on the back patio in our HUGE backyard! :)
Happy crafting!
