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Reupholstering a Chair. Our French-Canadian Chair Makeover.

Reupholstering a chair makeover…

My husband’s family hails from the U.P….that’s upper peninsula of Michigan. And much of his family roots are French-Canadian. I, myself am a mutt. I’m kinda from nowhere, and everywhere, but since I married into a family with a very French-sounding name, I claim I am French…because everyone knows French is fancy. And I like fancy.

For instance…

french chair before a makeoverPin

 

 
 
Take this chair. I bought two of them at auction for $16 each. If your first thought is, “she overpaid,” you’re not alone. My husband said the same thing. It was fancy. And French. I have a soft spot, what can I say?
 
Enter the Canadian portion of this story. After all, we are French-CANADIAN.

I have a couple designer crushes. One of whom is Sarah Richardson. She’s Canadian.

And I feel we are destined to be friends, her and I (and of course, Tommy. If you know Sarah, you know you cannot forget Tommy).
 
One day, I was watching re-runs of her show, because that is all that is currently available to us in the US, and I noticed that she has an office chair covered in a fabric by Braemore called “Wonderland Pearl”. I love it. 
 
And it just so happens that I had purchased a TON of this already when I found out that Sarah had used it, so of course, I feel that we have a certain connection. Yes, I do understand the definition of “delusional”. Moving on…
 
I decided to reupholster a chair, our French chairs, with my Canadian-approved fabric. It did not seem to me initially that this would be a huge endeavor. I was trés wrong. I’ve never seen as many upholstery staples on a piece of furniture as these suckers had.
 
It took h.o.u.r.s. just to remove the staples. If you are going to attempt a similar mission impossible, er, endeavor, I HIGHLY recommend this tool. And this one as well.

You can thank me later (much later, because it still will take FOREVER to get out those blasted staples). In the end, I *think* it was worth the effort, eh? Introducing our French-Canadian chairs…

how to reupholster a chair - our french canadian chair makeover from www.heatherednest.comPin
 

 

I decided to use a drop cloth for the seat and box pleat skirt. I had little budget for this project, so a $10 drop cloth seemed right up my alley.
 
how to reupholster a chair - our french canadian chair makeover from www.heatherednest.comPin

 

And I think the results look fairly magnifique.
 
how to reupholster a chair - our french canadian chair makeover from www.heatherednest.comPin

 

I piped the floral fabric and used that to trim the skirt to add another hint of that fabric into the mix.
 
how to reupholster a chair - our french canadian chair makeover from www.heatherednest.comPin
 

 

Flirty, feminine & far from perfect…
 
how to reupholster a chair - our french canadian chair makeover from www.heatherednest.comPin

 

just what I was hoping for.
how to reupholster a chair - our french canadian chair makeover from www.heatherednest.comPin

 

Another project done…

how to reupholster a chair - our french canadian chair makeover Pin
 

 

To celebrate, I’m going to go invite my friend Sarah over to lounge on these chairs while we enjoy perhaps a nice French croissant with a side of, I don’t know…Canadian bacon?
how to reupholster a chair - our french canadian chair makeover from www.heatherednest.comPin
 
 

 

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About Heather Thibodeau

A former doctor of physical therapy, Heather Thibodeau went from rehabilitating people to homes as the primary creative force behind the DIY and home decorating website, The Heathered Nest.

With her work being published both in print and online in places such as Better Homes & Gardens, House Beautiful, Good Housekeeping, Real Simple and more, Heather's goal is to help people create a home they love, one DIY project at a time.

Heather spends her spare time writing about family travel to US national parks at her other website, National Parks Mom. Check it out!

Read Heather's story, and tour her home here.

Comments

  1. Fox and Finch Antiques says

    You did something so interesting with these two chairs. I was looking for some inspiration with what to do with a set I have in my shop right now and I love what you did. These chairs are part of a set of a typical Victorian era parlor set. The original set consists of the settee, a couple of chairs with arms and the smaller chairs such as yours. Typically, they are walnut. The style is Eastlake, circa: 1870-1890. Thank you for the inspiration.
    Ginene
    P. S. My mother is French Canadian and the furniture and furnishing are very different than those in France because, as you know, the French people arrived around 1640 and had plenty of time to build their own style. There were many things French that continued from generation to generation (even nursery rhymes) but let's face it, French Canadians are of very strong pioneer stock. The first women that came were so poor that they had no future in France. I was fascinated to learn that they were paid to come in ribbons and other trivial pieces of finery.

    Reply

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