In With The Old - In With The New

I have spent most of the day working on the design of my blog and while it's not exactly how I want it yet, it IS getting there (I have to keep telling myself that). Thank you for your patience while I lumber along in the lost world of html, etc.

Anyway, I wanted to share with you a couple of pictures of an old relic that I have recently given new life to. This beauifully styled chair (a shield windsor perhaps?) was cast off to the curbside, just because part of one of her arms was broken off. Upon inspection, I realized that the rest of the chair was in great shape, and, as was said about the Charlie Brown Christmas tree, it just needed a little love. So, into the car it went and down here to my office/studio. 

Before

After much pondering, I decided to go a little bold this time; try something a tad different. Usually, I recover chair seats with florals or stripes, in a shabby vein, but this time, it was :::drumroll please::: CHEETAH FLEECE! Ok, now don't go all ack! ack! ack! on me yet. Here's my thinking (boy are we in trouble now): animal prints are very popular right now and, I think at least, can be fun in moderation. This fabric was purrfect . It's just subtle enough so as not to say "I'm an ANIMAL PRINT!" in your face and is so soft and cushy on the tushy. I added lots of batting to build up the seat's tushy comfort level, then covered the seat with the fabric. Meanwhile, the chair had the remainder of its arms removed, the holes plugged and sanded and the entire body was given a nice coat of pale taupe paint. After drying, I went over it with a dark gel stain glaze, allowing it to penetrate the grain and carvings, but then wiping it off before it dried too thickly. (Here's a hint: if you DO leave it on too long and it becomes real sticky and difficult to wipe off, just add more to the top and then wipe. It will pull itself off!) This gave the piece a beautiful patina and real depth. I must admit, when seat was rejoined to body, I squeeled and promptly decided that I needed to make an entire set for my dining room - off to the hunt! I'm not sure if the pictures will do her justice, but if you're in the Leesburg, VA area and would like to meet her in person, along with other items I've worked on, then stop by Sawdust Specialties & More on Ft. Evans Road (check them out on Face Book). I know, shameless plug. Thanks for reading and have a great night!! {{{hugs}}} Leena

After

After (You can see some of the patina the glaze added)