The page you are looking for might have been removed, had its name changed, or is temporarily unavailable. Today I’m excited to be able to show you a project that has been brewing in my mind for about 2 years, until this month’s themed makeover assignment was “chairs”. It’s safe to say that to get something done for myself is never at the forefront of my agenda, but this time I FINALLY got a piece of furniture done for me!! This is my first makeover for myself since my free TV armoire 3 years ago, which brings me to a total of 2 pieces for us. Enter in this vintage beauty. I picked up this sweet channel back chair at a garage sale for $3…eeep!! It wasn’t something I had planned to tackle at first because I loved that original fabric. I even tried to clean it – mistake. It made the color bleed and it looked even worse. After that, I stuck it in the corner of our bedroom and used it quite frequently. That gorgeous chenille fabric was so utterly dirty and had been worn with love all over.
See those holes in the seat up above? The seat was originally tufted and missing several buttons, and my kids and cat also had a hayday with this chair. The back panel was the only part in decent shape. My kids loved to crawl behind it and rub the raised surface of the fabric because it was so soft. I told my husband that this winter when the snow was flying outside, my little ol’ self was staying inside to work and planning to tackle two chairs. One of them was this one. Mind you, I have no formal instruction on upholstery, but somehow it just makes sense to me. I’ve told the story before of my great-uncle, a renowned upholsterer, who was requested at times to be flown to different cities to do custom work. My grandfather would help him, and I wish I could have picked their brains on tips & tricks, or better yet, watch them work. That’s where I claim I got my passion for it. I mean, who else would make their hands look like they got in a cat fight for a piece of furniture?
My inspiration for this chair came from my love of deconstructed chairs, particularly the ones I found on Pinterest. Hmmm…what do I mean by deconstructed? Well, just that…a chair that’s pretty much down to bare bones, looking well-loved, rustic, and oh so full of character. My pinterest board has oodles of examples for you. Take a look so you see what I was after. When I purchased my yardage, I had every intention of selling this chair in my shop, and doing a white linen front with beige back to create a light, airy feel. However, I just couldn’t get myself to do the white on front because nobody who owned children or pets would purchase something like that. I switched it up and went with beige on front. Off goes the old and on with the new! This is reality…big mess. Toys everywhere, tools and batting strew here and there. That’s all part of the fun! It wasn’t until halfway through that I reasoned with myself that I just couldn’t sell this chair I had come to love.
It’s so comfortable and the lines just draw me in. That’s when I got a little more relaxed and started to enjoy myself. By the way, did I tell you I had to have this project done in two days in order to meet this month’s themed makeover deadline…whew!! I can’t tell you the number of times I was making mistakes that were easily reversed, but I was living up to my mantra, “Haste makes waste”. However, I’m so stinkin’ excited that I can keep this chair and it was done by me. It’s original place was in the corner of our bedroom, so that’s where I put it, but my intention is to have it in our family room once it’s done. I’ve already told the cat I will wipe out 8 of her 9 lives if she touches it. The legs and arms got sanded, but I’ve left them with all their quirky marks and a hint of stain. I like the aged look and it adds character, as well as tells a story. The white back really adds dimension and gives that eclectic feel as well.
The upholstery tack trim was a must in my book because I didn’t want too clean of chair. Most deconstructed styles leave ragged edges and as much as I would have liked to do that, I wouldn’t want to tempt my kids (or my cat) with unraveling. Can you believe the difference?? Just look at the seat height. If you sat into this chair, you would have a near heart-attack because it sunk. I would warn my guests to be careful when sitting in it for fear they would freak out. With new padding, batting, and the complete works, it is now the most comfortable chair in my house. I adore my chair and can now say I’ve reupholstered something for myself and my family. For those of you that loved that original fabric as much as I did, never fear! I’ve saved the salvageable remnants for another project for me – I couldn’t throw it away! I’ll give you a hint…I love to sew. For those of you interested in tackling a project like this, I have yet to fully read the book (who has time to read a book with 6 kids these days?), but there are great tips and photos to get you started.
This was a fun themed makeover, and if you’d like to see the past month’s posts, just click below. Before you head out, I would love for you to enjoy more chair eye-candy from my friends also participating in the themed makeover.Thonet's bentwood chairs were staples in cafes, and his rockers graced millions of hearths. Michael Thonet, an Austrian cabinetmaker who lived from 1796 to 1871, was obsessed with innovative design. In 1830,Thonet experimented with ways to steam and bend beechwood from the local forests into curved and sturdy, graceful chairs. By 1853, he had opened his own shop, Gebruder Thonet, and by 1860 was producing bentwood rocking chairs with woven cane seats and backs. Thonet's innovations included the first, affordable, factory-produced, assembly-line chairs that could be shipped in pieces and easily assembled. The Prototype The Schaukel-Fauteuil No. 1 is the first bent beechwood, solid cane-woven rocker, created by Michael Thonet in 1860 in Koritschan, Moravia.
The early rockers were stained dark -- either black, hazelnut or mahogany, in contrast to the lighter woven cane seats and backs. The rockers curve around the side of the seat, round over the front and sweep into an open, slightly upturned end, finished with a small scroll. The sinuous arms and spiraling front legs and seat supports taper at the tips into nearly closed curved hooks. Sales of the first bentwood rockers were slow, but, as the style gradually caught on, Thonet added tufted upholstered seats and backs and changed the configuration of the curving wood. Evolving Styles The basic design remains unchanged, but slight variations in style over the years point to various dates of manufacture. The Thonet museum displays an 1880 rocker with simple, unembellished curved arms, a side support under the seat that starts as a front spiral and ends in the back as a deep U with a slight curved tail. The rockers are an unbroken curve of wood in font, ending in a slightly up-curved, plain tip in back.
An 1883 reclining rocker was all closed curves with a continuous cane lounge seat. The back rockers curve completely around and the shorter arms are low and have a wide bentwood overlay. A 1904 rocker, with an upright seat, featured elaborate scrolls on both sides, plain curved rockers, and higher two-piece arms. The changing styles help to identify the period in which a Thonet rocker was produced. Markings and Authentication The rockers were "signed" in several ways. Some chairs were stamped on the seat frame or somewhere on the underside of the chair. Others had a glued label in one of those unobtrusive spots. The labels are obviously fragile and may not have survived, so the absence of either the stamp or label is not conclusive proof that your Thonet rocker isn't genuine. The Thonet company will try to identify a real Thonet for you from photographs of your chair, and you can contact them through their website to arrange for an evaluation. Limited-Edition Rockers In 2009, Gebruder Thonet issued a limited edition of the original Thonet bentwood rocker.