I knew better.
But I was in a hurry.
I can’t even remember why.
I had purchased an outdoor wrought iron couch and two chairs (at an estate sale, of course) and I wanted to put them in my living room.
I know. Sounds weird but stay with me.
The couch was a four-seater, the set was made in the 70’s, so it wasn’t going to fit in my living room. But the two chairs would work just fine.
As you can imagine, being outside their entire existence, they were a hot mess.
I had just sold another set of chairs so I wanted to get these painted and upholstered, quickly.
I went looking for fabric and I was struggling to find something I liked. Truth be told, I really didn’t have a vision for the chairs I just knew I wanted something in navy blue.
So I made a decision I would regret for three long years, I bought fabric without really thinking it through.
I broke a major rule for myself and I struggled with my living room design for three years because of it.
I actually still like this fabric but I didn’t take into account how busy it would feel taking up that much real estate (the somewhat large seat and back cushions).
I realized my mistake the second I saw the cushions on the chairs and I about cried. The upholsterer did such a great job on them and my husband thought they looked good but I knew I screwed up.
So from that moment on I was trying to diminish the busyness of the chairs. I tried throw blankets and pillow after pillow to tone them down but I felt like I was making the situation worse. UGH!
I finally settled on this pillow and they have stayed there for three years.
I never even got the chairs painted because I knew I was going to change the fabric.
Then just a few weeks ago, I finally got the vision for the chairs. I moved quickly. The hardest part was telling my husband.
“What, didn’t we just get these reupholstered?” he asked.
“Yes,” I said, “but I was wrong, I made a mistake.”
I took several trips to the upholstery fabric stores to find what I was looking for and settled on this fabric and paint combination.
The chairs needed some work done so I borrowed some Bondo from my Dad, filled in a few spots, lightly sanded both chairs with the help of my young niece, Issy and we were ready for the new paint!
I was bummed that I wasn’t able to get flat paint like I wanted, but I was so happy to finally get these chairs painted that I didn’t mind the satin finish! (We got the chairs professionally painted in our backyard by a friend.)
I had also struggled over the last three years to find fabric that included the deep blue and rust red that were in my rug. I was fortunate to find such a fabric at hobby lobby and on sale for only $10 a yard. Score! I was so excited to finally have my chairs painted and my cushions reupholstered that I finished the new slipcovers for my pillows in record time! Lol
So after three long years of looking at chairs I didn’t like I finally have chairs that I love.
To learn from my mistake:
- Have a vision for what you want before you go shopping.
- Do not purchase a fabric on the fly. Get a sample, take it home, try it out in the room it’s going to be in (at different hours of the day) and THEN make a decision.
Also, set a time limit for your decision period. Right next to making a bad decision is not making a decision at all. If you don’t love it, don’t bring it into your home! You won’t love it more after you have paid for the fabric and the cost of reupholstery, trust me. It’ll just make you sick every time you look at it. Lol
Anyhow, I love my chairs now. When I walk into the room I no longer cringe, I smile. And that’s what it’s all about.
Blessings on you home,
Catrina
