Lovely Linen for Lynda

September 11, 2018September 10, 2018 Butterfly Bits

Lynda is in the process of redecorating her house and wanted to reuse a couple of comfortable chairs she had acquired from Calico Corner.

She was looking for a fabric that would blend in with other upholstered pieces she had and provide a classic fresh look. After much consideration she landed on a beautiful Italian Viscose/Linen blend.

I have to admit I didn’t know what Viscose was, so I did a little research. Viscose, part of the rayon fabric family, is a semi-synthetic material manufactured from a plant-based material called cellulose. It is typically made from woody plants, such as trees and bamboo. Though it has many wonderful qualities such as being drapable, breathable, strong, inexpensive, silky and comfortable, it also has a few pitfalls such as being prone to shrinkage, wrinkling, and fibers that may weaken when wet or exposed to excessive light. However, this fiber is best when blended with other fibers and is usually what you find in home decorating fabrics. Linen, a natural fiber, is strong and resists dirt and stains, lint and pilling, abrasion, and moths. This combination of linen gives you the best of both fibers.

Some viscose materials can be machine washed on a delicate cycle, others hand washed, while some require dry cleaning. I tested a yard of this blend and found that it shrunk almost four inches on a yard of fabric. If you decide to take this chance it needs to be done before the slipcover is constructed or it will not fit! It’s a tough call to make and one that only the client can make. Since the supplier recommended “Dry Clean Only” for this fabric, my client decided to go with that.

Lovely Linen for Linda

Lynda also had a classic sea-foam green suede loveseat that she wanted to repurpose to a beach house. She decided to use the same fabric. This piece worked up beautifully.

Because of the single long nature of the cushion and no back cushions, and to work with the grain of the linen, I needed to seam the back, cushion and deck, just like the original upholstery. It actually added a nice design feature. The back seams were a perfect place to “hide” Velcro strips for an easy removal. Velcro sewn onto the piped bottom attaches to the underside of the chair, resulting in a very tailored and upholstered look.

White after Labor Day

August 28, 2017August 28, 2017 Butterfly Bits

At some point in your life you probably have acquired a piece or two of furniture from your parents. A piece that was well used, familiar, and probably a little shabby looking (and not in a “shabby chic” sort of way). However, chances are the furniture was not the right color or look for your décor. As long as the furniture is comfortable and fits well into your space, there is no reason not to update it to fit your design style. Enter slipcovers.

Louisa had acquired two pieces from her parents, a solid, tight-back dark rose-colored loveseat full of worn spots, snagged and fraying fabric, but oh so comfortable. She also had acquired a Lazyboy swivel rocker that was in great condition except for the fact that it was blue and looked a little dated.

Secretly it’s everyone’s dream to have a space of their own to retreat to. Whether you call it a man-cave or she-shed., it’s a brilliant concept. Louisa has a loft in her apartment that she was converting to her she-shed. She was envisioning a clean crisp look and modern sophistication with a little frill and fun.

Since her floor plan was a two-story loft style, it was important she chose a fabric that would blend well with the rest of the apartments modern clean lines. It also needed to be heavy enough to cover the darker textured loveseat fabric. She decided on a 12 oz. white preshrunk 100% cotton bull denim.

The loveseat would be pretty straightforward taking into consideration the big rolled tight back and scrolled arms. Before, the loveseat seemed heavy, big and oversized. After, with the custom-fitted slipcover, it looks light, fresh and not so overwhelming.

The swivel rocker had an attached pillow back that needed to be addressed. I decided to create a underslip to redesign the lines of the chair that would be easier to create a slipcover but still keep the look of a pillow back. It worked well and will stay in place when you sit and rock on the chair.

Louisa had two requests for the rocker, a box pleated skirt and button back. I nailed the current skirt onto the bottom on the chair so it would not interfere with the new flirty skirt that gave the rocker a bit of a flare. Large white buttons for the back closure of the chair is not only functional but gave it the rocker an interesting focal point so when she swivels around, the chair will look great from any direction.

White or off white is a popular and smart option for slipcovers. It is basically a blank canvas that you can update with throws and pillows with the change in color trends, seasons or your mood. If choosing white makes you nervous, think of it like your favorite pair of white jeans. Care of the slipcover is pretty much the same. If you follow the washing instructions and treat stains or spills accordingly you will have white slipcovers for years to come that will only soften with each washing but gain character…just like your favorite pair of white jeans…even after Labor Day.

Labor Day is around the corner, but it is not too early to think about the holidays (some store’s already have Halloween and some Christmas decor out)! If you are looking to update an old piece and want to have it ready for the holidays, now is the time to start the process to allow plenty of time to find the right fabric and work out the design details. I am currently taking orders for October.

Crafty Things · Decorating · Sewing · Slipcovers

Room Transformation

December 15, 2016December 15, 2016 Butterfly Bits

(Follow-up from “Inspiration” blog post)

Boy have I been a sewing maniac. Once I decided on the colors, fabric and layout of my repurposed dining room, I was off to the races. Initially, I was planning of using the plaid fabric to slipcover the chair, but for $25 a yard and needing at least nine yards for the directional plaid matching, I decided it would be better suited for throw pillows. I could hardly wait to start the transformation. In the essence of time, I worked on the structured part of the chair and loveseat at the lake house and brought the cushions back to NOVA to work on during the week.

Both furniture pieces were different from what I have slipcovered in the past as far as shape and structure. I took this as a challenge, one that I thought might kick my butt. But with a little perseverance and a lot of personal encouragement (my internal pep talk) I was able to tackle it. It went something like, “It’s only a chair…you can do this, you are smarter than this chair, you have the skills, just take your time”.

These are the “before” pictures…

These are the “after” pictures…

I made the two plaid accent pillows with blue denim piping, transformed a place mat into a pillow with a little paint and filling, made new blue denim liners for my baskets to put under the bench table and added my last year project of a crocheted Christmas tree pillow. It was starting to come together.

But of course the main inspiration for my room was the quilt. I finally finished it. I can actually cross something off my list from last January!

What do you think? I love it. It’s exactly the warm, cozy, comfortable, quiet space that I was looking for. You would never even know it was a dining room.