Chair Makeover

Question:

What do you get when you send Dad out to buy furniture?

Answer:

A big, ugly “unique,” black hole of a chair.

Not exactly the look I was going for in Ty’s room.

Now the question is, “How do I make it work?”

Here’s my solution: hide the chair’s “uniqueness” with a slipcover made from a drop cloth. Just an average, ordinary canvas drop cloth I picked up at Home Depot. It’s plenty big enough for the job, it’s inexpensive, and it lends just the right vintage-y character I’m looking for.

Here’s a few pictures from the process. I won’t go into a lot of detail here, but it’s mostly a bunch of pinning and cutting.

This strip of fabric I cut to wrap around the edge of the chair. This is also the piece that inserted the drawstring into so the slipcover would fit nice and tight on the chair.

Here’s what I used for the drawstring. I just cut off the hem of the drop cloth. No sewing involved!

I love the final result!

I really was amazed at how easy this project turned out to be. Best of all, if when this slipcover’s in need of a washing, it is super simple to remove and toss into the wash. And because I washed, bleached, and dried the drop cloth before I started sewing, I won’t have to worry about the slipcover shrinking.

Drop cloths are my new friends. Like I mentioned earlier, their color and texture suit my country style perfectly. I’ve already covered a couple more chairs, and I’m thinking about making some pillows with the scraps I’ve got left over.

I’m linking this post to the Block Party @ My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia – Drop Cloth Projects. Pop on over Tuesday and check out all the inspiring ideas! Also linked to Miss Mustard Seed.