$12.

this project cost me a whole whopping $12.

less than!

my dad purchased an office building a couple of months ago to move his office into. it came with some office furniture... midcentury modern gorgeousness actually.

and then there was this.

it was stuck back in the back, covered in dust and grime.

the original upholstery (prob purchased in the 80's sometime) was ripped in the front.

i told him i could try and reupholster it for him.

he said i could just have it.

so i took it home, and husband gave me one of those looks,

like- why are you bringing that into our house?

picures are actually making it look better than it did in real life.

months ago, i stumbled upon this fabric that was cute enough...

but it was only $3 a yard so i bought 10 yards of it. why not really? it was $3.

i thought i'd reupholster my grandma's wingback in it but i am saving up my courage and strength for that job. so i decided to use it for this project.

it took less than 4 yards to do the whole thing.

but more than a few weeks to do it.

i didn't take any photos during.

just painted and replaced the fabric.

i kept all the inside stuffs.

is it the best bench/setter thing in the whole wide world?

no, not really.

is the new upholstery job better than the previous?

light years.

it was my very first time making piping. it was kinda fun actually.

i used this and this tutorial for help.

it was one of those tasks that scared the you-know-whats off of me until i made myself do it.

made some green velvet pillows for it and now i quite like it.

it's now going to live at my dining room table.

we have a settee at the kitchen table (which is next on the list for some re-up) and now we have one for the dining room.

so comfy.

whatchya think?

at least better, right?

and certainly worth $12!

JILL

new wall stencil

i think i'm going to purchase this ikat stencil i found on etsy last week, for my kitchen.

i'm getting ahead of myself. i am 98% finished with the family room painting projects after this weekend, and i'm not starting more until those are finished! (because i have a bad track record of having too many open projects!) but i got really excited when i found this. i originally had thought about wallpaper but i don't want the hassle of hanging it, or the hassel of taking it down when i inevitably want to change my mind :)

so a wall stencil it is. i've had my feelers out for a cool one for a bit now, but this one! i love.

at this very moment, i am going to paint my oak cabinets gray, and i'm thinking 2 shades of white and off-white for the walls with this stencil... and a killer color on the ceiling. i realize not having any pictures makes it near impossible for you to grasp what i want to do but they are coming... as soon as the family room is finished. promise. (p.s. silver drop is beautiful. love.)

one more thing, a secret i can't keep any longer... i bought a settee i'm going to use as a banquette!! pictures to come. it's on the list for some more homemade reupholstery... (sense the nervousness in my typing there? haha. we'll see if this one turns out as great as the last one.) and a new location- not for the dining room anymore! i know i know, the suspense is just too much :)

JILL

stencil found here.

all about ikat

it all started in early spring when i saw the madeline weinrib pillows featured in lonny mag. it was time to redecorate and somehow i wanted to include ikat

i checked out the website and realized that abc home on 19th and broadway carried her line! i was thrilled. my mom came to visit and we added it to our long list of places to make it to while she was here.

and then i found out they weren't quite in my budget. of course...how silly of me.

amanda nisbet house beautiful

then eddie ross did his window for bloomingdales. more ikat. this time quadrille. also a touch out of my budget due to the order minimum, and only to the trade. i contacted eddie to see if he had recommendations for other ikat fabrics. he and jaithan suggested calico corners. they definitely had some very good options, but not quite what i was looking for.

eddie ross

via calico corners

via a punch of color

domino

antony todd

the search was on. it felt like every where i turned there was more ikat.

via architectural digest

thibault

tempting me.

elle decor

being resourceful i jumped on ebay and found fabulous ikat fabric options that were much more affordable!

miles redd

i bid. i won...and a few weeks later my small package arrived from uzbekistan.

quadrille island ikat by john wiley

my mom made pillows for me and i couldn't be happier with them!

i was worried that the trend would soon be over, but i am still seeing it everywhere.

via anthropologie

via town and country

via elle decor

rita konig via nymag

via house beautiful

we are all about ikat.

xoxo,

elle