my beloved recliner and her makeover

I have an attachment to this old lazyboy recliner in my living room. I bought it for $35 at a salvation army 12 years ago, when I moved into my first apartment. It was one of the few pieces of furniture that came with me when Clint and I married and moved into our first house together. It has stayed with us all these years and made the move with us into the Carolinas. It's old, the mustard gold has faded, and it creaks when you move it into the reclining position. But, man, is it comfortable! Everyone gravitates to it when they come over for a visit. It's like an old friend.

With four little ones in the house, things tend to get broken, ripped, stained, and torn. This chair has been no exception. There are many rips in the upholstery, and they have just gotten bigger as the kids have continued to play on the chair.

I've been trying to figure out what to do, as far as fixing the chair goes. I just don't have the heart to get rid of it!

this is what it's been looking like lately. i just threw an old quilt top over the front of it. but, it always ends up on the floor by the end of the day. the kiddos just love to pull that thing off!

one of the many big tears in the upholstery

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My mom gave me this amazing book for my birthday last April.

It's called "Handmade Home" by Amanda Blake Soule

I found this great section on one of the last pages of the book about what to do with an old, worn out chair. She suggests just handsewing bits of vintage fabric, crocheted pieces, and quilt bits to the chair. It's a celebration of all things vintage and loved.

And the best part is, the sewn on pieces don't have to match! Just pick things you love and add them to your chair. And after you're done, you've got quite the conversation piece and you've added years of life onto your beloved old chair!


So, I started sewing on some of my favorite vintage fabrics onto the chair. The first piece was a great retro butterfly and daisy retro print. I simply cut the swatch the size I wanted with pinking shears. Then I hand - sewed the piece to the chair with embroidery thread and a thick upholstery needle.

Then, I added a little bit of some pretty brown and orange floral fabric onto the arm rest to cover a little hole that the children loved to stick pens and crayons into! haha...

one side is done!

this great paisley print covered a place on the top of the chair with a large tear

here's what I've done so far!

I plan to continue to patch up other places on the chair that are worn or torn. Each patch takes an hour or so. (It's hard to sew on upholstery! - my thimble is quickly becoming my friend!) So, when I have some extra time, I can sewn on a new patch.

This is really a great idea! And I am happy with how the chair is looking now. Lots of vintage charm and character....

Have a wonderful Sunday!

Lora