Dining Chair Revamp

Changing the seat covers is an easy way to revamp dining chairs. A coat of paint sometimes helps, too. :)  For my new (old) dining chairs, I kept the look simple with basic black-on-black.

I found the chairs (and matching dining table) on craigslist. The chairs were sturdy, but the seat covers were in horrible shape.

The original covers had been gold, like the chair on the left above. The seats were later covered with a beige fabric (by someone who should never be allowed near a stapler again).

After pulling out what felt like 10,000 staples, I removed the beige fabric to reveal... more staples!

When I tried to remove the ancient gold fabric, it practically disintegrated. After pulling it off the first seat in strips and strings, I decided to leave it on the other seats. To help smooth out the worn corners and provide a bit of padding, I added a layer of white fleece.

For the main cover fabric, I used some black velvet that I had on hand. I laid it out, placed the seat on top, and cut the fabric about 2-3 inches larger than the seat.

Keeping the fabric taut, I stapled it in place, paying special attention to folding the corners.

I spray painted the chairs black and put the seats in place. Done!

Sewing Expo Outfit

Last weekend, I went to the Rocky Mountain Sew Expo. It's billed a "Quilt, Craft and Sewing Festival." That's definitely a descending order description, as the expo was mostly quilting, some crafting, and only a little sewing. The place was filled with quilt creations of every imaginable type, which I enjoyed seeing even though I'm not a quilter. Most of the clothing was what I'd call "wearable art" -- store-bought clothing with appliques, embroidery, decorative stitching and/or other stuff added to it. I like recons as much as the next gal; in fact, I picked up an idea or two to try, but I have to say I was a little disappointed with the lack of booths featuring from-scratch fashion sewing.

I wore my typical outfit -- black tee, homemade skirt, black tights and black boots. Instead of my usual cardigan, I wore a vest because I knew I'd be too hot in a room filled with people.

I thought I might get a compliment or two on my skirt; it was a sewing expo, after all. But I was totally unprepared for all the attention I got. I was barely through the gate when I got the first compliment. Everywhere I went, I could hear people remarking on my skirt or my outfit. At least a dozen people complimented me directly. It was surreal. I was surrounded by people who quilt, craft or sew (or at least have an interest in quilting, crafting or sewing), and they were going nuts over a basic cotton skirt.

Though most of this outfit is in heavy rotation, I rarely wear the vest because (and you'll be shocked to hear this) it's too short in the torso. I know that nobody notices, but it bugs me.

The vest was a chance find at an odd store in the outlet mall. I liked it so much, I bought it despite the fit issue. It's made of a comfortable stretchy fabric that does not wrinkle, and the buttons are nifty. Best of all, it has a detachable white ruffle which is ingeniously attached by a series of buttons inside the vest.

buttons all around the inside of the vest

white ruffle buttoned in

ta-da! vest with ruffle attached

I get the look of a ruffled blouse without an extra layer that would make me too hot.

I should wear this vest more often, but first I need to sew some of the buttons back on. Because the vest is too short, I'm constantly pulling it down. I've managed to yank off the buttons along the bottom, leaving the ruffle hanging unattached. :P

Batty Car

After running errands this past weekend, I treated myself to dinner. Well, it was a plain baked potato from a drive-through... but any food is a treat if I don't have to cook it myself. Anyway... the girl at the drive-through said to me, "Oh, you're the one with the Batman car! My brother was telling me about you! He went on and on about how cool your car is."

my cool car

My reactions to this:
Woo! I'm famous! (Ha ha ha!)
Somebody thinks I'm cool. Or at least my car is. That's quite an accomplishment. ;)
And most importantly -- I need to change my tag so people will stop thinking it's a Batman car.

When I first put the bat decals on my car, I got comments about the bats on my car. But in the last year or so, I have been getting comments about Batman. My tag has my name on it, and people are apparently interpreting that as a nod to the villian Bane in the last Batman movie. I suppose the front mask might evoke Batman as well. ;)

Maybe I should get a "LUVBATS" tag.