If you remove the black plastic, the weeds & grass on top of it will come out at the same time. For weeds that have grown where there's no plastic beneath, or for those that survive pulling out the plastic (it's weakened, so it'll tear in lots of places), 9% pickling vinegar sprayed on foliage will burn it back, & the roots usually shrivel at the same time. This works best on a hot sunny day. Spray it full strength & leave it for a few days. You'll see the foliage wilt. Pull out the weeds, & then use your garden fork to turn the soil & turn up any remaining roots & toss them into a compost pile. Vinegar is much cheaper than roundup (I found it at HEB Grocery for around $3 a gallon), &, depending on your soil, it may help your ph: its effect on our alkaline clay is very good. & mulch is wonderful. It insulates the soil & plant roots, keeping them from freezing in winter & from cooking in summer, discourages weed seeds from sprouting, makes it easier to pull such weeds as you find, looks nice, & eventually decays & enriches the soil. Best luck!

Patty, I have to laugh! If my cellar wasn't so piled with chairs that II have found great buys on, I'd take a picture! There is NO secret, and this one was just a relative quickie as it needed no repairs, and I didn't have to strip and re-do the finish. I did my first chair a year ago, and have gone nutty having so much fun with them since. I snuck this one in between the leopard and the grain sack one, but I only have the after pics of the $5.00 chair on this laptop. I call it the 'manly' chair. The back and welt is done in faux leather from Barn Fabric that I paid $3.99 a yard for on their last sale. It sells on another site at 3 yards for $135.00!!! Foxes, with your hubby, you have a perfect partner to find one and make it totally YOU. I used AS chalk paint on this one, but did make my own for the leopard one, so that brings my costs way down. With the sample pots from HD or Lowes, and INCREDIBLE buys on fabrics from eBay, I just can't help myself. I'm a newbie 'upholsterer, but I love to help anyone who wants to try this, as it's the perfect way to get a custom piece for very little.

Thanks so much! I'm glad I'm not the only one that likes it. I wanted something with a little more interest and character than the booby light, something mildly blingy, but not too much. DH says it's going to be a dusting nightmare, and that he doesn't want to hear me whine and complain when I have to clean it. I do have concerns about what fixture will replace the one in the living room. We don't have a totally open floor plan, but it is a ranch, so from some areas, the dining room, entry, living room, and eat-in kitchen lighting can all be seen at once. All of those areas have their own identity and style, so none of the fixtures match finishes or sizes or styles. This light is most similar to the dining room chandy, but that's ok. I think in the end, the living room fixture will be very simple and plain. What's up there now is a ceiling fan with a Tiffany style light that gives off completely inadequate light, and seems a bit oppressive. I've debated about the ceiling fan part, but when we entertain for large parties, and there's 20-30 people in that room, a ceiling fan is really nice, and I like to use it when I mop, so the floors dry faster. I've not been able to find a ceiling fan that has an attractive, multi-light fixture for such a large space. The biggest fans seem to still only hold 4 bulbs, and some of them have a 40 watt limit! The quest continues for that light...later. I do love the look of seeded glass, but I'm afraid I'll be replacing one trend with another. I bet it would be really pretty, though. I may just take the whole thing to a glass shop and see what the different glasses look like on the fixture before I pick.

I have used a handheld one I picked up at HD, heavy duty one, but depends on what part of the chair you will be stapling too and if it's solid wood. if solid wood, I've had most of the stables not completely sink in and had to go back with a small hammer. I like the one I have now that attaches to the air compressor!