Simply follow these steps:

1. Sand – use 150 grit sandpaper or 80-grit if you are sanding a piece with an existing varnish. This will help roughen up the piece of furniture so the primer will adhere easily.
2. Wipe – take a lint-free cloth to remove any type of residue.
3. Prime  – use a mini foam roller and a foam brush to get into any hard-to-reach areas. Once your primer is fully dry, sand away any drips with a 220-grit sanding block, and wipe your piece with a lint-free cloth.
4. Paint – use a mini foam roller to apply three thin coats of semi-gloss latex paint. Give it 6 to 8 hours in between coats. If you have any drips, start with step 1 and 2 again.
5. Protect –  last step, use a new foam roller to apply a thin coat of polycrylic water-based protectant in gloss. Give it about 72 hours to dry before use.

I can’t wait to see what you transform!

DIY projects are a great way to take an old piece of furniture and give it life.  Take a look around your home, is there anything that looks like it needs a little tender love and care.  It’s also a lot of fun to purchase a used chair and reupholster the cushion. You can start by browsing through the classified section on yallalist, right from your computer.  When you are looking for a chair, just make sure the wood frame is in good condition.  The fabric is going to be replaced, so it really does not matter what or how the fabric looks.

Supplies Needed to Reupholster a Chair:

• Needle-nose pliers
• Marking pen
• Scissors
• Staple gun and staples, 3/8- or 5⁄16-inch
• ½-inch batting
• Upholstery fabric (about 5 yards depending on the chair)
• Straight pins
• Fabric glue, optional
• Black breathable fabric (for underside of chair)

Let’s Begin:

• Step 1: Start removing the fabric and old batting that is on the chair.  The needle-nose pliers will help remove and nails or staples that are holding the fabric down.  TIP: Take notes or pictures of where and how the current fabric is applied to the chair. You can also use this fabric as a template to the size and shape your new fabric.
• Step 2: Cut and add the new batting to the chair by using the staple gun.
• Step 3: Layout the new fabric.  Use the old fabric as your template.  Add an additional 2″ of fabric around the outer edge, this will be trimmed at the end. Use the pins to keep the fabric in place when cutting. TIP: If you are using a patterned fabric keep in mind where you want the design to start and stop.
• Step 4: Place the fabric on the chair and start stapling.  Keep fabric taut and smooth when stapling. Trim excess fabric.
• Step 5: Flip the chair over and cover the backside of the chair with the black breathable fabric, that will hide the staples.
• Step 6:  YAY! You are finished.  Enjoy your new DIY reupholstered chair.

“One man’s trash is another man’s treasure”.

You have to let your imagination run wide.  I’ve seen people take ladders and turn them into a towel rack, or something as simple as painting an old chest with a fun bold color.  Don’t hold back, add a conversational piece to your home.  Yallalist is a great place to find furniture that you can easily repurpose, check out the classified section of the website.

Get some DIY furniture ideas:

• 22 Cleaver ways to repurpose furniture
• 12 New uses for old furniture
• 9 Ways to repurpose old furniture 

There is nothing like putting your personal stamp on an item in your home. So get going….Put on your creative hat and start having fun turning an old piece of furniture into something new.