So close, but no cigar yet...

It is the end of the summer term for upholstery and the start of a six week break. The little lady was tantalizingly close to being finished and I couldn't bear to leave her behind.

So home she came.

If you look very closely you'll see flaps sticking out either side. That's the back panel of fabric that still needs to be attached.

To do list:

• hammer home temporary tacks holding back fabric panel
  
• add piping to tops of back feet
  
• trim, tuck and ladder stitch back panel
  
• piping around arms to hide tacks
  
• bottom fabric to hide springs
  
• sit on, drink wine, enjoy handiwork
  

Ps. The cupboard behind the chair that still needs painting a year after if was fitted? Move along now. There's nothing to see here!

The end is almost nigh

And about bloody time too!

Soon you can come home, be free of all that crazy workshop clutter and have space to look fabulous. Two more weeks. The to do list is now just piping, edging, back fabric and bottoming.

You will be admired (mostly by me checking out my handiwork) and... You. Will. Be. Sat. On!

Seriously, some chairs leave that workshop destined to never be curled up in or slouched on. Just looked at. Not this baby. Me, T and the cat will be all over her!

One step forward. Ttwo steps back!

This chair has been happily consuming my time and attention for quite a while now. Now though, it's trying out my patience.

Last Thursday I finally finished attaching the base trim along the front. Given that I've had to unpick and reattach this section at least three times (Virgoan OCD tenancies being expressed!) I felt a quiet sense of achievement.

That. Was. So. Bloody. Short-lived.


The photo above shows the final section of trim being temporary tacked to the base. I was then meant to sew the top edge to the side of the seat. Congratulate myself. Then move on to attaching the final panel of fabric to the back of the chair, do the piping, yadayadayada. That was the plan...

I was too cross to take any more photos when I discovered that my line of stitching attaching the seat panel is too high. So high that the trim doesn't even come close to hiding it, which it should have according to my (blatantly inaccurate) measurements. It needs to be redone. Before I can attach the trim. Shit! Damn! Bugger!

Good job I that I adore this chair and can't wait to get it home!

Unloved and neglected?

Not anymore.

My current chair (update on progress soon!) is almost ready to come home and so I've been casting round for a new project.

This little lady has been languishing in the corner of our upholstery workshop for years. She caught my eye when I first started the class and for £35 she's now become my new beau. Good shape, bones a bit wobbly, but I like a challenge. Can't wait to breath new life into this little chair.

Cutting corners

Thursday night is upholstery night and another milestone has been passed. The front of the back cushion is now complete, so from the front at least the chair looks done. Well if you ignore the huge strip around the bottom where the little lady is still showing off her undies.



Quite a bit of time was spent making sure the top corners were neat. Is it wrong that they needed to be matchy-matchy? I think that may have been some Virgoan traits asserting themselves. Anyway with the corners done and the excess fabric all trimmed it's now onto the next job - to attach hessian to the back so that the back of the chair can be padded underneath the top fabric. Sign of a well dressed chair apparently.

Progress

So I finally feel as though I'm on the home straight. After weeks of OCD-like attention to measuring, rolling, sewing ultra straight lines (not my strong point), and repeating three times to make a fabric sausage-shaped trim for the base of the chair (it looks far better than it sounds), my attention has returned to covering the chair.


Being halfway through tacking the velvet on the back cushion feels really, really good. Just the trim, back of the chair and piping to go.

Chair love

A couple of years ago I drove past this little lady sitting by the side of the road. Needless to say I pulled over and went to check her out. Frankly, she was a bit threadbare and past her best, but with a fab bone structure and a little note explaining that said chair was destined for the tip unless a new home was found... well what more encouragement did I need? I somehow managed to bundle the chair, and the chest of drawers beside her, into the back of my car and home we all went!


I've since found a fab evening class teaching traditional upholstery. So for the past 18 months my chair and I meet up for a couple of hours a week to work on her looks.


It's becoming a real labour of love, but deeply satisfying. Fingers crossed that the chair will be all set to return home by the summer!