Filecabinet/Bench UpCycle

So we had this large freestanding wooden filing cabinet given to us by a friend.  Having no clue what to do with it, it had various uses in the old house.  The drawer that held the files was broken off so it was just a large wooden box on legs.  After moving we face the common conundrum of finding a place for all the furniture.  Since the thing was taking up too much space and I had a free weekend (Josh was in the field) I came up with the somewhat ingenious plan of turning it into a bench for at the foot of our bed.  WARNING: Have a plan first, unless you like to aggravate yourself and burn out your husband's rechargeable battery for his drill.  I had to buy him a new one soon after.  Here is the best before picture I could find of the box with legs, I got so excited that I forgot to take some pictures during the process.

I started out by unscrewing everything within the reach of the drill.  I figured that I wanted to get rid of the three sides and use the top for the cushion.

Here are the pieces that I stuck with.  As you can see it is a lower to the ground bench, but it is perfect for Josh to take his boots off after work and to allow Liam to crawl into bed with us.  After I tore it apart it was time to put it back together with the fabric that I chose.

It was actually a bedskirt that I found at the Goodwill for $5 and I just dyed it to match our bedding as best as possible.  I measured out three sections that matched up and then sewed them together. 

After they were connected, I stapled the edges to the underside of the top of the file cabinet leaving room for the stuffing that I would use for the cushion.

 After I went through a few times of stapling it the right way, I had to redo it because I forgot to remove some of the trim on the top, I stuffed it full with as much batting as I could.  Once it was stuffed, and Josh was home by this time, we went about tufting the cushion.  As you can see there is some variation in the coloring of the material from dying it.  I didn't mind it too much, but if you are picky you can always spend longer to dye it how you like.

Josh is drilling screws into the cushion to tuft it.  I would recommend not doing this, but hammer nails in instead.  We just figured that screws would work just as well and faster, but it tears up the material a bit.

Here is Josh sitting on it to make sure that no screws that connected the top to the bottom came up and stuck him in the butt.  He is such a good guinea pig for me.  All in all, I wish I had directions when making the bench, but my failure can be used for your success.  I would have also used a material that I had more of so I could do one piece of fabric rather than three.  I also would have used more batting as well as nails for the tufting.  Here is the finished product (that may be redone in the near future).

As you can see, it compliments our bedding and bedroom.  But I am not 100% happy with it.  Maybe once things slow down a bit I can redo it and update this with a better looking bench.  But in all the project cost us $20 all together, $5 for the material, $10 for the batting and $5 for the dye.  I guess this also shows you what you can do with those free or handed down pieces of furniture that you have no clue what to do with.

Happy Re-mollying!
Molly

End Table Redo

So it has taken me awhile to post this due to the flu hitting our house pretty hard.  I was finally able to finish last night.  These end tables we bought at a garage sale for $20.  I loved the look, just not the stain.  I used the General Finishes Gel Stain Georgian Cherry on them and I think they turned out great.  Here is the before.

 After cleaning the table off, they were in the garage for a bit collecting dust while I worked on other projects.  I was working up the energy to sand them, but with the gel stain I did not need to.  I removed the drawer and legs and started on the base.

I love this stain, look at just one coat.  Although I did not go all the way to the end of the base. I wanted to see what it looked like and was so excited that I went ahead and took the picture.

 Here is the table, drawer and legs after one coat.  I think it looks pretty good with the darker cherry stain rather than the light wood look.

Unfortunately, Liam decided that while it dried it needed his footprints on the top of the base, so I had to add one more coat on the top.  But here is the finished product.

I used the foam brush technique, it put the stain on more smoothly and evenly than a rag or sock did.  The sock method is great for unfinished wood, not really for wood that has a coat of poly on it.  It took me a few days to do because the flu hit us and then the added bonus of wee footprints in the stain.  But it was a fun project. Here is the before and after of the tables.

I think the cherry makes the tables look richer in color and more "antique".The total cost of this product was around $45.  $20 for the tables, $20 for the stain and $5 for a large pack of foam brushes.  I'm telling you this stain is the best, even to just have around the house for quick projects.



Happy Re-mollying!
Molly

New Look

Yup, updated the look of the blog.  I figured since the holidays are approaching I would keep the background generic and switch it out according to the holiday, or my mood.  I did have a blast with the header though.  Things has slowed down just a bit here at the Lyonsden, Northwest edition.  Now that my workbench is built it is just a matter of moving all my craft and project gear downstairs and putting it all away.  Only problem is that I have also been buying more with the holidays approaching and my thinking I'm crafty enough to make all the presents.  My next big project is to make little man Liam a play table for upstairs.  I am trying to curb his wanting to color on the walls with sitting him down at a table.  Let's just hope that I can convince Josh to make it or help me make it.  I am also looking forward to making table runners for my relatives who celebrate Christmas.  When I come home, packages in hand, Josh just shakes his head in wonder.  To all the men out there, never let your wife/girlfriend hit up craft stores on Labor Day when they have 50% sales.  Speaking of packages, I am not so patiently awaiting my remaining gel stains from Amazon so I can finish the floors as well as start my refinishing of two end tables, seven dining chairs, as well as our flooring upstairs.  I am really looking forward to getting rid of the light colored wood.  I will be posting pictures of the before and afters of the projects.  I also will be posting the before and afters of the different rooms as we finished them.


Happy Re-mollying!
Molly