Cleaning Up the Front Hall Closet

The front hall closet is an eyesore that it always visible as there is no door. The shoe rack is not sufficient to hold everything and the area beside it just becomes a pile of stuff all jumbled together.

To clean it up, the idea was to install shelves that ran the entire length of the closet, not only creating more storage space but being more attractive than the old shoe rack. I started building with some 1x2’s as a frame and then added plywood to the bottom of both shelves.

After screwing the frames in place in the closet, I added another layer of plywood to the top of each shelf and added trim to the front. They need a coat of paint, but I am happy with the way they turned out, they look much cleaner now.

And now we know: install the bottom shelf and the top layer of plywood before you even start installing the top shelf. I had to cut the top layer of plywood for the bottom shelf to get it in place as it wouldn’t fit with the top shelf in place.

Chair Frames Complete

Well, Tom has me on a deadline again. The chairs are close to being done and we have a couple of parties coming up so he is nagging me like there’s no tomorrow. The first item towards completion was finishing off the backs so I added a sheet of 1/8” particle board, shimmed to lie flat with the frame and stapled in place.

From there I added 2 layers of quilt bating and some fabric and stapled it all in place. After sewing another 2 strips of piping in the dark grey colour, I glued them on around the edge to hide the unfinished sides and the staples. Not all the staples are covered, but I am currently at a loss as to how to address that problem.

So now the chair frames are complete, all that is left is hand sewing up the cushion covers, 2 of which are already done.

And now we know: the hand sewing will take me forever to finish…its my least favourite part

A Couple of Pillows

This weekend was all about laminate flooring. Not for our place, but installing it at a friend’s condo. There wasn’t much time or energy for anything else, but I did manage to complete a pair of pillows that will sit on the new chairs. They are red with white polka dots and trimmed in dark blue fabric.

And now we know: installing laminate is easy but tough on the knees and hips…I am so sore

Great Progress on the Chairs

The chairs are almost done and I’m really happy with the way they are turning out! I started work this weekend with stretching the webbing on the 2 remaining frames for the backs. Using shorter staples that I had bought, the work was much easier and went much faster.

Once those were complete, I applied 2 coats of clear semi-gloss Verathane with a light sand between. The finish is really nice, there is a subtle sheen to it and it really enhances the stain.

The next step was to install the webbed seat and back frames into the chair frames. After clamping the seats in place, I drilled into the chair frame from underneath every 4 to 6 inches. For the back pieces I first stapled on a layer of fabric overtop of the webbing then screwed them in as well. This will give a more finished look if the back cushion shifts or is removed. The 2 seats went in no problem as did the first back piece, but the 2^nd back wouldn’t fit into the frame. I ended up taking it apart at one end, cutting off 1/8” on the table saw and putting it back together. It only took 15 minutes and ended up fitting perfectly.

All that is left to do is stuff the 2 remaining cushions, sew all 4 closed and finish off the backs of the chairs. For the backs I will staple a piece of fabric and add piping around the edges. At least that is the plan so far…I could also staple the fabric to a piece of cardboard and use finishing nails to secure it. We’ll see how I feel next week.

And now we know: I think my husband is actually impressed! He asked if I though I had gone into the wrong line of work, which is nice to hear.

A Second Coat of Stain and Starting the Webbing

After a semi­-fun week of vacation, I am ready to get back into the workshop and am determined to complete these chairs before our second Christmas party on February 11^th. First on the list was a second coat of stain. Both frames got a light sand and a wipe down with the tack cloth, before a second coat went on. The red oak accepts stain really evenly and the colour was a pretty deep brown so there seems be no need for a 3^rd coat.

While the stain set, I got started on stretching the wedding on the inner frames. This was a new experience; I read up online and watched a youtube video but was still a little hesitant that I had enough webbing. At the fabric store, the guy told me 3 strips of webbing in both directions were enough for a 24” square seat. I decided to trust his advice, however for the back, which are an extra 4”, I added a fourth horizontal strip.

Using my electrical nailer, I attempted to attach the first piece. After adjustments to the gun and attempts to push harder to counteract the recoil, I realized it was just not powerful enough to staple into the hard oak. Out came the finish nailer and compressor which had no problems stapling into the wood. The only staples for this gun that I had on hand were 1.25”, a little long and sometimes tricky to get all the way in, but I managed to complete the 2 seat frames.

I must say it was new and fun experience to use the webbing stretcher, the tool which allows you to pull the webbing tight. There will definitely be more projects using this technique in the future.

As for the cushions, 2 are now stuffed and ready to be sewn closed. The foam got wrapped in 2 layers of quilting batting before they were inserted into the covers.

And now we know: electric staple guns are not powerful enough for some woods, good thing the finish nailer can also be loaded with staples!

A First Coat of Stain for the Chairs

Before we depart for a week in Florida, I got the first coat of stain onto both chair frames. It stank, it dyed my arms brown where is splashed and luckily it looks great.

And now we know: wear long sleeves when staining

Sewing the Chair Covers

As I caught a cold/flu/sore throat bug, the wood shop was not the place for me this week and I didn’t really have the energy anyways. I’ve been working on the covers for the chair cushions; there will be 4 in total @ 24” square by 4” deep. The fabric I got is a textured neutral that feels really soft and the piping will be a charcoal grey. A few weeks ago the cat helped me cut out the fabric, very helpful of her I might add.

I started by sewing all the piping, 8 strips of 8ft each, 2 for each cushion. Then came sewing the piping to the 24” square pieces and sewing a 4” band between each set of square. Once complete I headed to my mum’s and serged the inside of each cushion cover. The edges of the fabric were shedding so much that the cat was eating the strips and even pinking shears wouldn’t do the trick.

All 4 covers are now complete and ready to be put on the foam cushions and had sewn in place. Unfortunately I have only bought 2 of the foam inserts and ran out of batting to wrap them in so the actual assembly will have to wait till after the Christmas season.

And now we know: the cat really like to eat the strings that fray off the edge of the fabric…wonder how bad that is for her?