Aloha!
Here’s a little story about a persistent 3-year-old who likes to ride with me in the car when I check out “curb alerts” I see on Craigslist.
One evening I saw a post on Craigslist for free lumber, and it was near my house. As I jumped in the car, my daughter begged to go with me, so I happily strapped her in her carseat, and we were off on our adventure. When we got there, the promised lumber was waiting, and there was also this little hideous well-loved rocking chair. We’ll call the chair “Pat”.
As soon as my sweet 3-year-old laid eyes on Pat, she had to have it. I told her it was garbage and that mommy couldn’t fix those slats on the seat. It was just too old and beat up. ((seriously…LOOK at that damage))
But she cried and begged, and flattered me by saying, “You fix everything, mommy.” And the challenge was on. So I threw it in my car, and we were on our way.
At first, I had visions of gluing the slats and sanding them down really well. FAIL.
Then I thought I might cut new slats. FAIL. (the curves in them made it way too awkward)
But I had removed all the other slats and sanded it down as much as my poor arms could handle.
And then inspiration struck, and I decided to just make one single seat and then upholster it!
I measured out the seat and cut out my piece with a jig saw.
Then I cut out some left-over foam padding from the doll bed mattresses I had made.
Then used an old blanket as the batting that I used in THIS project.
And the final step was to let my daughter shop in my fabric closet. Also, somewhere along the lines I painted it white. 😉
Quick recap: Free chair + left-over wood, padding, batting, paint, and fabric + 1 hour of mom’s life = the most delighted 3-year-old ever and one proud mama.
Not bad at all.
Aloha,
Charlie
That is so awesome!! Your daughter was right…you CAN fix everything!!!
End product = Beautiful!! 🙂
~ Darlene
http://www.MyHoneyBunch.CO
Ha! I'm sad to report that my attempts to repair my treadmill have been unsuccessful, though. 😉
Thanks for visiting!
Precious! Found you through Gail's MRL!
Thanks!
This is beautiful! You are very talented and your daughter is very lucky. I caught this on Catch as Catch Can – very nice work!
Awww. Thank you.
I love this. It looks way more comfortable than the slats. Glad your 3 year old is so happy.
Dawn
Ha! Yep, it beats splinters in the bottom. 😉
Very cute!!
Thank you, Jeni.
That came out so great!
Thank you! Not bad for using left-overs, right?!
Awww, that is so stinkin' cute! What a sweet story! I think the finished chair is absolutely adorable. Great work!
Thanks, Heidi. 🙂
You did such a nice job of restoring this cute little chair. I'll bet that the original owner would be quite surprised if they saw it now!
Ha! Funny thing–they came home while I was loading stuff in my car, and they parked in their driveway and got out…awkward! lol
That is quite the transformation! Great job.
Thank you, Johnnie!
So cute! Great idea to make a padded seat. We have a chair like that for our little one, she loves it.
We've loved the padding! My only problem now is my older two daughters want one, too. lol
What an amazing re-do. Great job!
Thanks, Carissa!
So so sweet and a great makeover! I have my husband's rocking chair from when he was really young. It's in great shape but I've been wanting to re-do it. This is just the push I need. Great job!
Fun! I'd love to see when you finish, Eva!
Beautiful update! I love the fabric you chose for the seat. Great story! I'm sure your little one is pleased as punch with the end result!
Thanks, Jill. 🙂 My kids love polka dots. And, of course, anything pink. Ha!
I think you need to rename pat, she deserves a really sweet name, at least Patricia!!! sooo pretty Charlie…I'm glad you took on this challenge!
gail
Not really a Gail-worthy transformation, but it'll do. 😉 Don't look too close at my paint job. lol
So beautiful! You daughter must feel so special that her mom did this for her.
Thanks, Tracey! My kids are so used to my projects that mostly they just think it's what moms are supposed to do. Maybe I'm spoiling them? But it's fun for me, so I don't think I'll quit anytime soon. 😉
I pinned it because I have one of these chairs to makeover (it's not is horrible condition) and I would never have thought to give it a cushion. Genious. Jo @ Let's Face the Music
Honestly, the only reason I even thought to do the cushion was because the slats weren't salvageable…necessity is the mother of invention, right? ((not that a cushioned chair is all that novel. Ha!))