the dear house: Flea Market Fix-Up

I spent this weekend with my mother, driving all over Northern Illinois/Southern Wisconsin in search of antique shops, thrift stores, and indoor flea markets. We ended up at the Grayslake Flea Market in (you guessed it) Grayslake, Illinois. We managed to spend the better part of the day walking up and down the aisles looking at all the stuff. Mom was on the lookout for vintage photographs, postcards, and books. I, on the other hand, was looking to score some mid-century modern goodies. In the very first booth (this rarely happens to me) I found and fell in love with a little vintage footstool. It was $35, but I managed to convince the dealer to give it to me for $25. It needed a little work, but had great bones. Definitely my find of the day.

Its varnish had a lot of scrapes and bruises.

And there was a little water damage around the bottom of the legs. It probably sat in a flooded basement or something.

I decided that I needed to make a new cushion for it too, since the old one had become droopy and flat. I bought a piece of foam from Joann Fabrics and cut it down to size using a saraded knife. I also bought some fabric while I was there. It was 50% off and looked to me that it would fit with the period of the piece. I enlisted the help of Grandma and together we put together the cushion. We covered the foam with batting so the corners wouldn't be so harsh.

We then sewed up the cover, leaving the side partially open so we could slide in the foam. It didn't exactly slide right in, though. We had to "jam" it in, moreso. Helpful hint: Cover the foam with a plastic bag before you stuff it in. It'll slide a little better. Just be sure to put it in open-end first!

After the cushion was stuffed, I hand sewed up the open end. I then turned my attention to the wooden base. I began by smothering the surface of the wood with chemical stripper paste. I let it sit for about 5 minutes, then proceeded to scrape the old varnish off.