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Spring Mini-Makeover #1

Inspired by my upcoming article on my top five spring (cheap) mini-makeovers in Your Hometowne, our local happenings guide, I decided to do a quick makeover on a chair that has been screaming for it for years. I have to admit, I really thought this chair was something special when I bought it. I was certain it was 18th or early 19th century and was someday going to pay for my retirement (a HUGE return on investment for my $15!). I’ve schlepped this chair all over the United States, praying Antiques Roadshow would turn up in my town.

Over the years of moving and two kids (and a husband) later, it became apparent that my little gold mine was really just a dumpy chair that either needed to be thrown out or recovered. So today, I dragged it downstairs and started to remove its centuries-old leather and hand hammered nailheads. Turns out the nailheads are some cheap aluminum painted to look like aged bronze, but the chair was stuffed with horse hair so that was kind of exciting. And it is made from nice, heavy oak so it’s a pretty sturdy little thing. The leather was so brittle it literally fell apart in my hands and it ended up being a huge, messy job.

I stopped into Joann Fabrics today (because we don’t have any other reasonable fabric stores in our area), and picked up some burlap for a whopping $3.99. I’m now trying to decide if I should just staple it on and trim the edges or maybe I’ll make a cute little ruffley skirt around the edge. I do like the legs on the front so I kind of want to show them off. I’m also toying with the idea of painting the frame but can’t make the commitment to spend my birthday weekend covered in paint.

Stay tuned to see what becomes of my little chair and if you have a chair story, please head over to my Facebook page and share!

About Dawn

I'm a decorating junkie. I have stacks of decorating magazines on my coffee table, I wrestle my husband for the latest issue of Fine Home Building, and only keep cable so I can watch marathon Sundays of HGTV.

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