Off-Beat Market: Colin Schaelli

Its Friday and time for another Off-beat market. Check out the furniture of Colin Schaelli. Honestly, these images say it all and don't need me to add much more. Wow!

I posted this photo on my Tumblr site and it sort of stuck in my mind. I had to research where it came from and was glad to find this fantastically minimal series of furnishings. 

Occasionally, I'm asked why something as stark as this furniture; appeals to me. What about some color or decorative details? Here's the thing, when there is a beautiful form without too much decoration, my  imagination has the freedom to fill in the details. An overly decorated piece can become static in a way, it is what it is. Is this making sense or am I rambling? Maybe, I just don't like being told what to think:) I would love to know how some of you feel about this.

Slipcover Progress + tips

Last night my husband was on call, so I took the opportunity to watch a girl movie and destroy the living room with my slipcover project. I thought I was going to hate this project. I was 90% sure it would involve tears (not to count my chickens, still could). But so far so good. I finished one of the arms/wing.

One tip I have learned so far is to go by the seams and pleats that the chair already has. I had plans to delete the little pleats on the wing to give it a more modern look, but once I pinned everything on there I realized it was not happening.

I plan on attempting to add Velcro to the underside of the slipcover and face of the chair to get the underside of the arm to cling tightly to the chair. In this photo I have it loosely pinned. I think I am going to re-do the front face of the arm and add piping. See the original piping showing through? I didn't really hit right on the old seam line and that is bugging me.

Here was the key to getting the pieces to fit correctly before I sewed them.

There were about 3 or 4 versions of each of these before I got the right shape. I used some left over drapery liner, but I think most people use muslin for a template. I have seen a few tutorials where they use their finish fabric right from the get go. I would have had some major issues if I would have gone that route (tears).

And lastly, this is how I figured out how much fabric to order and how to cut it once it got here.

I measured each panel of the chair, according to how the existing pieces were broken up, and rounded everything off into a rectangle. Most of the Internet sites say that wing chairs take 7 yards to cover. I am doing it in 5. I am using white cotton duck. I got 5 yards for $34 after using one of these coupons, which is way cheaper than a store bought slipcover. I reasearched what was best to use for slipcovers and everything was pretty much cotton duck or denim. I opted for the duck, but I am not loving the wrinkle factor. Hopefully I can give them a good iron and starch when I'm finished to clean them up a bit.

This is the most planning I have ever done for a sewing. I am determined to not let this one go into my long list of failed project.

Hope you had a nice weekend!

My Latest Challenge

For months now I have been trying to get into an upholstery class at the Eliot School here in Boston. Why is every school, including pre-school, hard to get into in Boston? A couple of weeks ago I had Mr. Sabbe drive me to some town in Rhode Island to purchase two wing back chairs off of Craig's List. $70 for both, pretty good deal. I had intentions of re-upholstering them.

When people come over they never want to sit in the little wooden chairs I currently have around the table, they are not cozy and squeak like they might break. So I would like our little tiny dining area to have a table, two wing chairs, and eventually an awesome high chair that I also scored for an amazingly good deal on the ole' CL. It's hard to explain, so here is a progress shot from December, don't judge.

So I bought the chairs and could not get into the class. Luckily the BCAE will always have me, so I signed up for an advanced sewing class. You can bring your own project. I decided I am going to give tailored, white slipcovers my best attempt. I've only been to two classes, and being very obviously pregnant, the instructor thinks I'm crazy for making white slipcovers. But I'm pretty pumped about it. So far, I'm just a few steps away from finishing the seat cushions.

I have covered cushions before, but never with on hand, expert guidance. I'm really enjoying the process. Do you see the little blocks I added to the bottom of the legs. Creative? I could probably think of another word. I needed to raise the chairs a bit to make them comfortable dining height. I plan for the cover to go all the way to the ground.

So step one is almost complete. Step two is the actual body, which terrifies me. I like tight, fitted slipcovers. But I have no idea, other than a stack of books and the Internet, on how to do so. And I unfortunately cannot drag my chair to class.

Have you seen this one?

Amazing right? It looks upholstered.

And this lady seems to be the queen. I plan on spending a lot of time on her blog over the next couple of weeks.

 

Have you seen any helpful tips or tutorials floating around? Hold me to it, this project will be finished before this baby comes.

Found Things....fast

I love creating spaces with found things. I believe good interiors are curated, like a museum. One day in a big box store or even a high end retailer just won't do it. To make something unique, or one of a kind, takes time. But sometimes in the real world, time is not on your side. Sometimes clients come to you with a party scheduled at the end of the month and "it just needs to get done." One of my favorite found things stores in Boston is Mohr and McPherson. They do a great job of curating their pieces. No two things are alike.

I love this x-base table.

 This sofa was on sale last week and if we had just a couple more square feet, it would have come to live with us. Mr. Sabbe loves some chesterfield sofas, as does his wife.

They work with the trade, but also sell directly to the public. If you are in the South End you should check them out.

Campaign Furniture

No breaking news here. Painted campaign furniture is h.o.t right now.

lonny

lonny

Even the Sabbe household has jumped on board

Thanks to my sweet husband for painting this so that his unborn child does not get high.

AND, drum roll...you can join the club too. I want this, I really do, but I have no room.

$145! I bet you can get it for $125, paint it and love it.

you. are. welcome.

Drop Leaf Tables

I am currently working with a client who has inherited a great deal of furniture over the years from her grandmother. I am pretty into the whole "granny chic" look, so I have been really excited about mixing these pieces in with some newer pieces. Amongst the inherited furniture, she has a drop leaf table. If you asked me a couple of months ago my thoughts on drop leaf tables I probably would not have had much to say. But coincidentally, when we moved into our new apartment, Mr. Sabbe and I sold our large rectangular table and purchased this little table.

And what I have learned is, drop leaf tables are fantastic for tiny apartments. We still have 4 folding chairs, from our previous table, that we keep in a closet. But if we have company and need more seating room we can fold down the leafs, push the table against the wall and sit out the chairs. Flexible furniture is great.

The Curious Vignette

(Maxime Clair)

I finally did something I've wanted to do for quite a while. I started my own Flickr group! Its been on my mind for a long time, but I couldn't decide what the theme should be. Finally, this week it hit me, how about photos of unusual vignettes! As is often the case, I thought of this for myself first. I wanted a group for the many photos I take of "curious" moments. So I'm inviting all of you who like to preserve these types of configurations to check out my group and maybe join it! (Here)

(Yataro1)

(Carolina Eclectic)

(Kaylovesvintage)

Wisteria Wish List

We are currently in the process of re-vamping our living room. It's a great space, but very oddly shaped and I am having the hardest time figuring out exactly what pieces of furniture I want and where I want them. By the way, those IKEA chairs went back. There was no amount of IKEA hacking that would have made them look nice.
I was browsing through the Wisteria site yesterday and found a few pieces that I would love to come into our house.

I have zero Moroccan influence in my house, but I'm thinking I may need to add a little.

I Have Loved You...

Well, maybe not forever. But I have loved these chairs since I strolled through Anthro a couple of months ago and test drove them all.

Unfortunately they are all out of my current budget, plus Mr. Sabbe doesn't like any of them (boys). 

But have you seen the newest IKEA armchair?

I know it does not look anything like the chairs above, but we plan to buy 2 this week and I have a seriously good Ikea Hacker job in mind. On a non-chair related note, have you seen this IKEA toddler bed?

cutest. thing. ever.

Mr. Sabbe and I had a hot date to IKEA Saturday night, Swedish meatballs included. I always give "if I were a single man with no money, this is what I would do on a date" scenarios. IKEA would be one of them. Maybe not a first date, maybe second.  

For Like Ever Poster

Visions

I have had visions of buying an old piece of furniture and having it re-upholstered for the past two weeks. We are in the market for a couple of new pieces and we've decided we are too old to make any more "until we have money" purchases. I also walk past a glass front upholstery shop everyday on the way to work. Which for me is like a candy store.

So in my mind we have three options...1. cough up the big bucks for a nice new sofa from a reputable retail store (while begging them to give me the deepest designer discount possible) 2. have something made in Hickory and have it shipped up here (in my opinion, the best quality guarantee) 3. buy something old (and solid) on ole' Craiger's list, strip it down to the frame, and put it back together.

Here are some CG finds that I see potential in, all under $50

And these are not so old, but really good deals if you are looking and are not creeped out by other people's upholstery. I kind of am, but I'm creeped out by a lot of things.

Crate and Barrel half price

Leather I think I might be able to do...seems more cleanable. This guy is only $275

And just to show you the range of my visions. I can imagine a room where this guy would rock...

Boston, did you know you can have your furniture upholstered at the prison?

End Table Makeover

Here is the before shot of my $20 Craig's List find.

And here is the after.

Lots of lessons learned on this one. Biggest lesson...if there are oil paint roses on a piece of furniture, no amount of Kiehls is going to cover it up. Sand those puppies off first, then prime. I would also LOVE to replace the pulls, but the screw are stripped and we cannot get them off. Any ideas?

I painted it three different colors before I went with this celery. I like it with my pillows. I think if I told my sweet husband I had to go back to Home Depot one more time he might ban me from projects forever, again.

Chair Makeover

My friend Heather is a designer in Atlanta. Earlier this week she sent me a photo of this chair she revitalized. How awesome is this chair!? The chevron fabric is by Paula Press and the piping was a JoAnn's find. The fact that she thought to do the piping out of a completely different, highly patterned fabric really makes the chair for me.

Good job Heather! Now start a blog so we can see all your many other creative ideas!

A New Pet For Me

On my most recent trip to Kuhl Linscomb, I fell in love with this guy. I think I could give him a great home:) Go to Moooi's site to see him.

Friday Favorite: Knoll For Kids

Ooh, I'm so excited about this! Modern design for kids from Knoll. I say down with plastic cartoon character furniture! Great design can be very fun and functional for the little ones too. Just don't leave magic markers around...if you know what I mean;-)

A Little Confession

From Domino and Sarahleeab

Those of you who read regularly know how I love to go on and on about simplicity and minimalism. Well, all that is true; but I do have a confession to make. I love, LOVE paisley patterns! Yeah! I mean paisley is about as opposite from minimalism as one can get, right? Just the word brings up images of stuffy British libraries or something. I know, but I still love it. The intricate patterns and color combinations have always intrigued me. They are sort of an optical illusion. Some of you are probably skeptical, so I found a few examples of modern ways to use such a traditional pattern. With large scale and modern colors, these paisleys are anything but stuffy:)

From Becky Barreto

Don't you just love this chair? I mean no one can object to paisley, when its coming from Anthropologie! This is just so yummy!