Something Old Will Be New Again

Something has been bugging me lately. Actually, a lot of things have been bugging me, but I can only de-bug one thing at a time. I am in a de-bugging mood, so expect more projects soon.


Our dining chairs are family heirlooms over 100 years old. I love them for their soul and their profile... they're comfortable and not too big and clunky. However, (here comes the bugging part) the fabric seats are filthy. That's the worst one, but none of the eight are great. I tried a couple of home upholstery cleaners that barely made a difference. When we had our carpets cleaned a few months ago, I had them try to clean one, but the suction pulled up the candlewicking. Monday, I decided to remove the fabric from one and try washing it in the washing machine. I could see from the tack holes in the wood frame, that the fabric had been replaced a few times. While I'm fixing them, I'm going to tighten the support straps and check the padding, too. Some of the seats feel a bit saggy.

After washing, it got cleaner, but not as clean as I'd hoped. It was a lot of work removing all those tacks, so I decided it was time to find replacement fabric. I picked up some samples at Joann Fabrics yesterday, and held a secret ballot family vote. Each of us got to pick two favorites. And the winner was....

Both Sweetie and Pipsqueak had chosen it. I did not, but since I picked all the choices, I guess I can be happy with any of them. They chose it because it was the most similar to what we have. I, on the other hand, am trying to conquer my fear of color in decorating, but there are plenty of other areas where I can use color, like that ugly yellow kitchen floor that I can't wait to replace.

I'll post a photo of the finished product in the future.