Dining Set Reupholstery

My husband and I are a young and, as of yet, childless couple. We're still playing house and amassing the kind of furniture expected of adults. Truly, until a few weeks ago our dining furniture was comprised of black folding chairs and a Kmart table my husband's friend gave us after his wife deemed it too ugly to warrant continued residence in their garage.

This prolonged lack of improvement has been due partially to a small budget and partially to pickiness on the part of the writer. We have upgraded and filled in various pieces around the house, all the while leaving the kitchen as it stood. Meanwhile, I have been searching for the right replacement at big box-type furniture stores, online, and at antique stores. We stumbled on it at Calypso, a unique store in Valley West Mall of Des Moines. It was a set with prominent detailing neither frilly nor fussy, seating for six, and was originally manufactured in town. It also had a roughly-used finish, some loose joints, and horrid upholstery. For the fantastic price, we were willing to purchase a DIY project.

A cursory search online unearthed some information about our new furniture. It was produced in the 1920's as part of a Colonial Revival movement. One author, in a brief overview of American decorative arts movements, concluded that this mode is actually the only true American furniture style our country has ever produced. Essentially, we had to copy our own decorative style (which was itself a mimicry of English Georgian), before we thought up anything new.

Another online search produced a useful This Old House clip instructing viewers on the best way to reupholster dining chairs such as ours. During another trip to the Des Moines area, we purchased all the necessary supplies. This past weekend, we set about starting and finishing this project.

Our terrier, Ulysses, observes our strange activities, fearful that we may have lost our marbles afterall.

I hope you noticed the horrendous fabric with which our chairs came equipped.

All in all, this project probably claimed a combined 8 hours of work from my husband and me. We are enjoying the results!

Until next time...