Slipcover Finale

So here's the big reveal.  The slipcovers are done!  And to be honest I feel like putting my sewing machine away for at least another ten years.  This was a huge project and I'm really glad it's done.  I'm tired to the bone.  But as you can see..... they are beautiful.  Of course they are not perfect.  And I think they probably look better in this picture than in real life.  Almost magical.  Hmmm, must be the lighting, but hey they are good enough, imperfections and all.  Like me.  He he.

I'm really glad that I did this project.  I learned so much.  About sewing, improvising and about myself as well.

What are you working on?

 Keep moving forward,

Elizabeth

Working From the Inside Out

This is the current project I've been working on.  I've been hesitant to post about it because it seems like I'm in over my head.  I've wanted to back out countless times.  My fingers are sore from the pin pricks.  But then I said  to myself, "You might as well post about it, since you know you're doing it." So here goes...

Remember the fabric store that was closing where I bought the fabric for my dining room chairs and later made slips and the backs of some pillows with?  Well in a moment of temporary insanity (at least I hope it was temporary- we'll see) I bought enough fabric to make slipcovers for my sofa, loveseat and ottoman.  Never mind that I don't know how to make slip covers, nor the fact that I don't even know how to sew all that well.  I just knew I wanted white slip-covered furniture instead of the dark tapestry that I've been starring at in my living room for over 11 years.  I also knew that I didn't want to pay $1,500 to have them custom made (yes I researched how much they would cost) nor could I afford to buy new furniture, heck I had a hard time parting with the $140 it cost to buy 38 yard of fabric (which was a steal).  So I bought the fabric in my momentary lapse and put the two rolls in my garage and worked on the other stuff I had going.  Basically I tried to forget about the endeavor I was about to embark upon.  It just seemed too scary, too hard and might just turn out to be a waste of time, money and effort.  And I hate waste.

So I put it off for a while but every once in a I found myself biting my nails as I thought about the fact that sooner or later I'd have to at least "try" to make the slipcovers.  I consoled myself with the fact that if I failed the fabric would make excellent drop cloth for painting projects.

As you can see I went ahead and bit the bullet.  I took another risk.

So as I've been working on the slipcovers I've learned that in making slipcovers you are primarily working from the inside out. Hmmm... "working from the inside out".  That phrase kept repeating itself to me and it got me thinking.....

I kept thinking about how when I was a young girl of maybe 11 or 12  how my mother had bought me some beginner cross stitch kits.  In teaching me how to cross stitch she would check my progress by immediately flipping the project over to look at the inside.  She'd hardly give the outside a glance.  I hated when she did this.  It almost seemed as if she wasn't concerned about how the project looked on the outside.  She would just flip it over and look at the inside.  That didn't make any sense to me.  I couldn't have cared less what the inside looked like.  She'd explain to me that if the inside looked good you could bet that the outside would be just fine. But if the inside showed a sloppy mess the outside wouldn't be all that great.  She'd tell me to focus on doing a good job on the inside and not worry so much about the outside.

My mother did this with any project that she worked on herself.  She even did it with clothing purchased at the store.  When shopping she'd always check the item's quality by looking at the inside.

So as I've been working on the slipcovers I've learned that you have to do most of the work from the inside out.  And I've been thinking about how that's how it is with us too.  The better we look on the inside the better we'll be on the outside.   

That's pretty important.

I've also been noticing that making slipcovers for sofas is a big job to do all by yourself.  The fabric weighs a ton, the little pieces are pretty easy to handle but as they get put together the project gets bigger and bigger and I keep wishing I had an extra pair of hands to help me hold onto the fabric and to straighten things out every once in a while.

Yes the slipcovers would definitley come out better if I had a partner.

 

And once again I realized that's how it is with us too. 

See- when we invite the Creator to work on us and with us as our partner- we look fabulous both inside and out.  The job it too big for us to do alone.  He knows this and is just waiting for an invitation.

That doesn't mean the job will be easy.  No I'm sure we'll have to rip out a few mistakes along the way and start over here and there.  And if He's anything like my mother He's way more concerned with how were coming along on the inside.

So come on we've got work to do.

Let's get to work on the inside and keep moving forward.

With loving thoughts,

Elizabeth

Pillow Talk

Pillow Talk

Pillows are one of the best accessories.  They can make a big impact in the look of a room and are a simple way to change things up a bit.  I love to change pillows with the seasons, and although pillows are relatively inexpensive, I don't love spending money buying new pillows several times a year, especially this year when I've worked so hard to get my finances under control.  So I said to myself- Hmmm, Self- it's time to get creative.  How can I get bright new springy colored pillows for little or no $$???

So I looked around to see what I had in mind with regards to colors and I've really been liking the look of a soft aqua- but I didn't have a thing with any blue green tones in it.  Hmm what to do?

Then I remembered some napkins that I bought several months ago on clearance.  They were the perfect color for the look I was going for.  I had bought 3 packs (they came four to a pack) I only needed 6 for the table so that left me with 6 extra.  Originally I had thought about making a table runner for the buffet table with the extra.  But then the idea struck!  The napkins are the same size as most sofa pillows- What if I use left over fabric from the dining room chairs for the backs of the pillow slips and the napkins on the front?

Napkins

Napkins on the table.

Dining Room with the prized napkins.

So that's what I did.  I placed the napkin on the fabric I had left over from the chairs.  Cut out the same size squares leaving about 1/2 inch extra all around for the seam allowance.  Sewed three sides together, stuffed my pillow inserts from some red winter sofa pillows inside, then closed 'em up.

There she is!  My Lovely Napkin Pillow.

I made a total of five of these.  Two for the sofa, two for the loveseat and one for the chair.  All for next to nothing since I had everything anyhow.  That's a pretty good deal if you ask me.  

What I learned from this simple project though is invaluable, I've learned to look at cloth napkins a bit differently.  I'll be keeping my mind's eye open to some pretty pillow opportunities.

But folks there a bit of a down side to the end of this story- well you know how one thing can lead to another- guess what- I'm not digging my sofa or loveseat too much anymore- the pillows don't go to well with them-they are a dark tapestry print, and like my dining room chairs they are begging for a redo!  

Hmmm I'm not quite sure what I'm going to do about that since I'm not in the market for new sofas.  I've got a couple ideas beginning to take shape up in the old noggin, but I'll have to let them simmer a bit before I figure this one out.  I'll keep you posted. and I'll keep moving forward.

With loving thoughts,

Elizabeth

Dining Re-do Reveal

The chairs are finished!

This is the old fabric.  

It doesn't look so bad in this photo, but trust me it's been scratched to death, and was full of fuzz balls and had threads sticking up all over the place.

So after I removed the fabric I laid down the seats and went to work.  Safety goggles included, just in case the staple gun went crazy- wouldn't want to "shoot my eye out."

This is the finished seat cover.

Here's photos of me starting the second project (slipcovers).

This is how I laid the chair down to trace the back to make a pattern for the back slipcovers.

Then I cut out the fabric.

And here's how the whole thing turned out.

I'm pretty happy with it.  I only used about three yards for recovering the 6 seats.  So I had a ton of fabric left over.  Well, remember how I told you that I went ahead and bought about 10 yards of fabric cuz it was discounted to $3.00 per yard and that I had an idea swirling around in my head for what to do with the remaining fabric?  I decided to attempt to make slip covers for the back of the chairs.  I was more than a bit hesitant at first because that would mean I'd have to take out my sewing machine, which hasn't seen the light of day for about eight years.

I am not a seamstress, but I do possess some basic sewing skills.  I pretty much taught myself to sew years ago when my girls were little.  I stuck to simple things, like curtains, pillows and eventually I branched out into making simple clothing, like pull on skirts and shorts for the girls.  Needless to say that they weren't perfect, but since the girls were little they didn't seem to care.  I even tried my hand on a few quilts.  After it became too frustrating and time consuming to further my sewing skills on my own and I didn't have time for classes, I put my sewing machines (yes I have two, one is a traditional one and one is a serger) in the bottom of the closet, where they've stayed until now.

Well for those of you that know how to sew and even those who are like me and just have some basic skills you know that it ain't "Sew" easy.  it can be really frustrating, especially if you don't have someone there that you can go to when you have questions.

So after I made the decision to go for it and make the slip covers, I dove right in.

Not so smart.  I didn't plan ahead, I didn't do the necessary prep work such as making sure I had all the things I'd need all together and handy.

For example:
1. You need to have the Ironing board and iron plugged in and set up close by.
2. Get out your scissors, big and small, the more pairs of scissors the better cuz them little buggers like to hide (I think they are related to the Christmas tape and my reading glasses)
3.  Have your glasses (more than one pair is good- they hide they really do)
4.  Fill a couple of bobbins with thread before you start so you don't have to stop mid project
5.  All fabric washed, dried and ironed
6.  Seam Ripper- You need this, yes you do- for ripping out all those mistakes- I know it sucks

So all this stuff needs to be set up before you can even start.  So people who are used to instant gratification will find this tough.  And people who like me can't wait to start a project won't do any of the above and spend nearly all day running around looking for this junk.  Yes, that's what I did.

Anyhow I lived through it (barely) and I was able to sew those babies up!

I didn't have a pattern so I laid the backs of the chairs down on some butcher paper and traced them in order to make the pattern.  Then I cut out all the fabric and sewed my heart out.

Was it peaceful?  No, not with me looking for my glasses, my sissors, the iron etc and not with a screeching bird (yes we've got a parrot) and remember how it is raining here this weekend- well we're dog sitting so I had a total of four wet dogs in the garage with me (where my sewing station is set up)  The wet dog smell was so strong I nearly passed out.  But I didn't.

So was it worth it?  I'd say so.  I have a new look for my dining room that only cost me $30 dollars in farbic (I still have a lot left over too) and nearly cost me my sanity.  Not bad I say!

I'd do it again- but I'd prepar a bit more first.  I guess that's the lesson I  learned from this project and I think it's a good one.

Here' the annoying bird.

I also learned that I should put all pets outdoors when doing projects or I'll want to pull my hair out!

Keep moving forward,


 Elizabeth

Dining Re-do

RAIN

Bring on the rain.

Rain can be a bummer sometimes, but on the other hand rain can bring opportunities....

It's supposed to rain all weekend.  That means for the most part I'll be indoors working on a project I've been trying to get to.

Since I'm not wanting to spend money, this will be a no-cost redo.

My dining room set is an old hand me down.  When I aquired it about 12 years ago one of the first things I did was to recover the seats.  This is so easy to do.  Just turn the chair over, unscrew the seat, take the seat off and place it face down over your fabric (pre-cut it to size first) and pull it tight as you staple it on.  Put the screws back in and Wa-La! Done.

Anyhow, needless to say the seats are tired and worn now.  Largely in part due to a little kitty cat who used to like to dig her claws into those seats.  (Naughty little kitty!)  Well little Miss Kitty Cat now prefers to spend her days out on our front lawn lazily sunning herself (lucky girl) so I thought it was time to recover the chairs.

So that's what I'm going to do. 

I already have the fabric- I bought it several weeks ago from a store that was closing.  It's not what I initially wanted, but the fabric that I wanted was $16.99 a yard and I didn't want to spend that much (for 6 chairs I'll need 3-4 yards), anyhow the fabric I bought was discounted to $3.00 per yard.  I went ahead and bought 10 yards because at that price they were practically giving it away and I already had an idea swirling around in my head for what I'll do with the rest of the fabric. I'll show you that in a future post.

I'll be posting the chair pics soon as I get 'em done.

What will you be doing?  Moving forward I hope.

Always make the most out of any rain that comes your way.

Warm wishes,

Elizabeth

Patio Furniture Makeover

Makes you want to sit outside and relax, doesn't it?


Looks pretty good huh?  But check out the before- they didn't look this way until I put a little bit of elbow grease into them.

Ok I thought I'd show you a makeover I did a couple of weeks ago, before the paint and money ran out.  See those picnic tables and benches above.  A little weathered huh?  I know you'll agree that this patio furniture has seen better days.  Yes, yes it has.

It has served our family well.  In fact it's over 16 years old.  Lately I've been eyeing all those new outdoor furniture sets.  It seems they are everywhere I go and all for thousands of dollars.  Well I'm not interested in spending thousands of dollars.  So  I took a good look at these guys again.  And you can see what I decided to do.  Paint!  yep.. I sanded them down.  Dusted them off.  And painted them chocolate brown.

Not bad.  Considering I only spent $35 on a can of top quality paint with primer mixed in.  So easy that way.  One can was all it took to paint 2 love seats, 4 chairs, 2 picnic tables, 4 benches and one coffee table.

I think these guys may have a few more good years left.  Just like me:)  He he.

The Paint is Gone!

I painted anything I could over the weekend.  Using up what spray paint I had left.  The numbers above became...

Much better!!


I also spray painted a couple of pots.....

That there is my little friend "Charlie".  He's a miniature horse and is just like a toddler, always trying to get into things when I'm out in the yard doing my projects.  He's very sweet though, so I put up with it.  I'm a sucker for sweet:)  The other guy in the picture above is my hubby and the same goes for him.



Here's a mirror I painted white...

And those plates that I told you about a couple of posts ago.

My youngest, Abbey and I even found time for this...

And finally I took a stroll around the yard to see if any thing was in bloom.  Then I picked what I could and brought them indoors.

Home Sweet Home.

1st Half is a Winner!

So far the first half of this weekend has been productive and peaceful, at home, my favorite place.  What we (my Hubby and I) accomplished was:
  1.  Hung up three pretty plates in the kitchen: Cost $0 since I already had the plates and the hardware.  
 Gorgeous!
  2.  Took down the numbers from our house, painted them OIL RUBBED BRONZE, and rehung them in a new location directly above the door.  Cost $0.  I already had the paint.  Beautiful.
  3.  Painted an old framed picture (black) still waiting for it to dry.  Cost $0- old paint.  Already Love it!
All three projects look fabulous and best of all they were FREE!
Now I know you want some pics, but since I'm still new to this blogging thing, you'll have to wait till I learn how to do that, which will be soon, I hope.

So that's it for today we'll see what tomorrow will bring.

Elizabeth