I made a pair of pants & tee this month. Will be sewing on a prototype for a shooting accessory that a friend thinks we'll be able to get rich & retire on (I'm not quitting my day job just yet).

I went to the American Sewing Expo in Novi, MI today & got so many ideas & inspiration. Went to 3 seminars, ran into an old friend/colleague & had lunch w/her. 1 seminar was on grommets, they featured really nice snap-together grommets, reminded me I need to make drapes in the family room & back bedroom. I got some Hmong hand-embroidered inserts, am attaching a pic of an old netbook bag I made with 1 a few yrs ago.

I got some Sue's Sparklers, I like them & got to save on shipping. Now I need to make a couple tees for them. I also got an ironing board cover thingy, not sure if it's worth it or not, we'll see.

I'm going back to the expo Sunday for 2 more seminars, sadly I've spent most of the cash I budgeted. I'd like to get a jump start on some holiday gifts, may resurrect the thread on gift ideas to sew. Who's next, what are you sewing on?

I have quite a few irons in the fire right now...a fall jacket for a five yo gson, a skirt with five pockets and vest for his big sister. As soon as I finish those, I will get back to the wool winter coat I'm making for my dtr. It's going to be gorgeous!

I do love to sew!

My next project which involves some sewing will be my first attempt to reupholster an office chair.

I've already removed all the old fabric and saved each piece to use as a pattern for the new fabric. I also took many photos as I did this removal.

I'm waiting for the fabric to arrive. Below, is a picture of the fabric I ordered (the sample on top). It's a tone on tone herringbone pattern. The fabric is called Jumper and the color is Pecan.

The sides of the seat and the sides of the back are stitched together.

This shows where the side of the seat curves underneath the chair. The stapling occurs under the chair.

Close up of L side of the back

I like the chair fabric! I bet it'll look nice when it's done.

Wow! Impressive! I'm working on curtains for my daughter's room. Almost finished. I have several small projects in the hopper for Halloween. Next year I do want to try re-upholstering our dinette set -- I hope it's easier than what you've got.

I just finished my daughter a blouse & I had bought 3 or 4
yards of fabric & cut out a matching blouse for me & my daughter, her blouse will have long sleeves & mine short so we can tell them apart & had enough fabric left over for her a skirt. I just haven't got started sewing yet.
And my husband has started another quilt.

I am so enjoying reading about and seeing all of your sewing projects. Please keep posting when you can if you are not busy sewing :)

Sue

I am trying to get in the mood. I have some pretty red corduroy that I want to make 3 of my granddaughters jumpers. Then I need to make a few more christmas stockings and a new tree skirt. Sure hope the bug hits me soon!!

I made my last charity quilt - been sewing them for 30 years, and it's getting too hard. Now it'll be lap robes and little dresses for Africa or Haiti. Planning to make some binding for arm holes, etc. Always, making old pants fit my weird shape!

We've got overnight guests coming so I'm putting some finishing touches on the guest room....I'm moving in a round table to put between the two beds and I'll make a round table cloth to cover it. Nothing like company coming to get those projects done!

isn't that the way Annie. I can put off any household chore until company's coming, then I get going like gangbusters.

I finished the office chair, today!
Above, I had posted pics of the old blue & white plaid chair.

Now, the chair has new life thanks to my little Singer 221 Featherweight and a electric staple gun.

My next project will take a lot longer. I'll attempt to reupholster a matching sofa & love seat.

Here's some pics of the "new" chair. My Photobucket site has a new look. I used to be able to resize my photos (& make them smaller). Anyone know how I can resize them after they are on Photobucket's site? I used to be able to move my cursor on the very top of the photo & the words "resize image" would appear. Then, I would scroll down and pick on "400x600" to make it smaller.
Thanks,
Laurie

Great job Laurie! Your chair looks really nice, bet you'll enjoy it.
I have a tough time posting from photobucket here. I resize then I can't figure out what size I have, even after refreshing my post here before I release it. Then I come back a day or two later & my pic is a different size than I thought when I posted it. Weird. And I can't find anywhere on photobucket what size a current pic is....

I cut out a top last week, then looked carefully & I don't think I prewashed the fabric! Aaargghh it's 100% cotton, so I predict shrinkage, hopefully not too much.

Thank you jomuir : )
I was happy with my "old Photobucket" system....it will take a while to learn this new set up : /

What type of top are you making? Maybe you can use slightly smaller seam allowances? Or, when it needs to be washed, use cold water and hang to dry or put it in the dryer with low heat setting.

Laurie

that is an amazing reupholstery work! We did a rocking chair and footrest for the nursery - it was ok, but nothing as good as your chair. How did you do the middle back stitch? How did you make it to pull back so tight so well?

To Laurie 2008: Where did you find the herribone fabric that you used for your desk chair? I have been looking for this everywhere...

jollyrd - Thank you : ) That dent/tuck (or whatever it's called in the middle back part) had me wondering the same thing before I started this project.

As I slowly took apart the chair fabric, I noticed all the layers and learned how it was "puzzled" together. I also took lots of pictures along the way.

I'll post some pictures (below) of the horizontal slit/opening in the back of the chair. This is where the fabric tucks in to. Then, it comes out the back and goes under the bottom back of the chair where it's stapled. There is a section of this where I use scrap (less expensive/paisley swatch) fabric for tucking into the slit & wrapping under the chair. This part eventually was covered with the fitted top part of the chair...it slid on over everything and covered it all up.

I would love to see your rocking chair and footrest : )

If anyone can explain to me how I can reduce the size of my photos in Photobucket...that would be great. I would like to post medium size photos as opposed to ginormous : /

ratherbesewing - I saw (and answered) your other post earlier this evening, but will answer here as well in case it helps someone else.

The herringbone upholstery fabric I purchased is available in a number of places. The best price I have found is at Mary Jo's Cloth Store. It's also available at Calico Corners.

At MJ and at CC the fabric is called "Jumper" and it comes in a large variety of color choices. At Ethan Allen it's called "Turner". At Pottery Barn there is a similar fabric called "Chunky Herringbone". At PB it is only available in 2 different colors.

Pecan is the color I used on the office chair. I had a feeling that color was also going to be great for my next project (sofa & love seat), so I was using the chair as "practice" and to also see if I love it in a large piece (as opposed to just seeing it on a swatch/sample piece).

For the office chair, I had to pay more (even though it was on sale) and order through Calico Corners because of the small amount (2 yards). At Mary Jo's, the color Pecan has to be ordered in a larger amount...I think because they don't stock it? It's not that way for all colors. It's best to give them a call and check first.

I was so pleased with the color of the chair, & the way the fabric feels and sews, that I ordered 18 yards from Mary Jo's for the love seat. Whatever amount is leftover after the love seat is done (probably in a few weeks), I can use toward the matching sofa. I'll place a separate order for the sofa. The shipping is very reasonable, so not an issue in this situation.

The 18 yards from Mary Jo's arrived yesterday. It looks exactly the same as the fabric from Calico Corners. When I get a chance to work with it (tomorrow), I will know more. If there is any difference at all, it may be that the backing is a tiny bit thinner on the fabric from MJ. I can't be certain, but may know more tomorrow. Sometimes, I see the fabric's manufacturer/vendor listed as Valdese and sometimes as UC Manufacturers. Maybe those two companies are the same?

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