I do not collect antiques, but I love the occasional discarded “find”. Like the other day… Tim and I were driving down the road, and I yelled “Tim, Stop”. Okay, I didn’t YELL stop, but I did say it with enough exuberance to make him think that if he didn’t, something cataclysmically bad might happen.
Looking around for a potential threat, he saw none.
After I instructed him to back up, he finally perceived the danger… a lone chair at the end of a driveway with a sign on it that said, FREE.
Tim: And what are you going to do with that?
Me: I don’t know… give it a funky paint job???
Tim: Like the other chairs you’ve had me stop and pick up?
Okay, so I have a history. A history of seeing some piece of furniture at the end of a driveway, with the almost intoxicating lure of FREE tacked to it. I freely admit, I have delusions of grandeur. I WANT to transform someone’s “junk” into a valuable piece, but I have a harder time following through with my plans. Often, what happens, (btw… not ALWAYS) the reclaimed item sits in our garage for, oh… 1 – 7 years, before Tim convinces me that I will NOT refinish it, and it makes it way to the end of our driveway, with the original FREE sign, awaiting the next person’s vision.
So… here’s what I’m thinking with this chair… if I throw it up on the blog, you guys will hold me accountable. Collectively, as a group, if I don’t have it back up here, finished, on the blog, in say a month, you can start asking me about it. Embarrass me, guilt me, encourage me, to follow through with my plans. Sometimes, I need high levels of PRODDING to finish projects 🙂
So, there you have it. My plan, and the role YOU play in it! BTW… don’t you find it interesting to try to grok some meaning from old pieces of furniture? Like, how was it used, who were the people that used it, and in this case… why were the numbers 1 and 4 carved into the posts? Deliciously perplexing!
Finally… here is a photo I saved years ago, before I had the good sense to save links, of a chair that I thought was “fun”. I think I will use it as a bit of inspiration. Wish me luck!
Hehe. Too funny. Okay, the clock is running. October 9! Can’t wait to see it!
Already making progress… went out today and bought some fabric. It's a start 🙂
OMG! I just picked up chair #4 to add to the collection in my garage. I have “big plans” for this chair I said as my dear husband rolled his eyes. I am going to start with picking out a fabric for the seat, then paint after that…multiple colors, one color, who knows?! Or, perhaps I will do it next year!
Here is a great site with TONS of awesome chair makeovers:
http://betterafter.blogspot.com/search/label/chairs%2Fottomans%2Fseating?updated-max=2011-02-17T13%3A30%3A00-07%3A00&max-results=20
Yeah… I have 4 other chairs in my garage, too. Boxy, 60ish things with faux leather seat cushions. Haven't been quite inspired yet HOWEVER, thanks so much for the link… I think! I just spent an hour, yep, an hour, working my way back through the posts there. What serious fun! Makes me want to comb the surrounding neighborhoods for cast offs! BTW… good luck tackling your projects.
Confession: I have 2 lovely chairs waiting (and waiting ) for me in the garage. One will be fire-engine red and the other is going to be a wonderful bright yellow with scandinavian folk art. Now, when to find the time….
Aw, come on… if I make time to do mine, you need to make time to do yours! Take it as a personal challenge 🙂 BTW… we'd love to see photos when you're done!