More upcycled vintage curtains...

And as they originally were:

Birds, stage-by-stage

Here is the stage-by-stage process of my new bird print – from original line drawing to a selection of prints, finished and laid out to dry!

Original line drawing in Indian ink.

Re-drawn branch, feathers comb and tail detail.

Selection of finished prints on various wallpaper backgrounds, laid out to dry.

Almost there!

Second coat of Liquid Gold. Foam block, calico seat cover and seat fabric in place.

Just the back and underside to do and there will be no more photos of chairs, I promise. (Until I find my next 'project' in the street!)

Blue chair then and now.

Cracking on!

Got a lot more done on the chair yesterday. Got all the tacks out except for the stubborn ones in the hard wood corners; sanded down the wood (my least favourite bit) and applied the Liquid Gold; cut the seat foam to size and put the wadding, the calico layer and the fabric on the front face of the chair back.

My new favourite person is the lady in the foam shop at Fiveways who advised me to put a bread knife in the freezer, have a glass of wine and then cut the foam with the bread knife. I had beer instead of wine but it still worked!

The Blue Chair in progress

On new year's day I found a decrepit chair in the street but decided that it would make a great upcycling project. The arms are really lovely and I'm sure it could be totally transformed.

It's been sitting there ever since and I've been putting off starting on it as once I start something I'll steam ahead until it's finished. Now I'm two days into taking it apart, it's much more complicated than any of the furniture I've tackle before.

Day one I began prising the old leather cover off but, typically of me, without the right tools. It was firmly held in place with lots of rusty old tacks and I was using a fish knife to prise them off! I'm sure it's no surprise to hear that I eventually had to stop as my fingers were cut to pieces and my hands bruised.

A day in between for recovery and the purchase of a proper tack removing tool, and I started again. Easier than it was, but still a tough job.

The leather of the seat and back just would not budge, I pulled it it tore and eventually the culprit popped out – this little plastic figure which had been wedged down the back of the charm between the timbers! (See how he's still gripping a piece of the seat foam in his determined hands!)

Now it's finally stripped down and the arms have had their first sanding. The next stage is a bit more sanding and them some Liquid Gold to restore the wood. Once that's dry I will be able to move on to the upholstery.

Atomic!

Unlike most of my upcycled furniture, this one wasn't found in the street – I did have to pay actual money for it in an actual charity shop.

The covering on the plywood top was badly-adhered and wrinkled Fablon, so off that came. But what to replace it with? Still thinking about what to use – I kid you not – a large piece of printed oilcloth actually blew along the ground towards me at the Sunday fleamarket. 'Twas meant to be, obviously.

And on that subject, we all work better to music: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Tko1G6XRiQ

Upcycled offfice desk, part two

After all that sanding (still can't remember who I lent the sander to), priming, glossing, steel wool-ing, cutting, glueing and pressing, the upcycled office desk is finally finished.

The first photo shows the layer of heavy books pressing down the new blotter sheet after it had been glued into place with contact adhesive. The very strong smell of glue was still all over the house two days later, despite the windows being open (in the freezing December night).

Now I'm gearing up for the not inconsiderable task of dismantling my computer and all its peripherals, not to mention sorting out the huge stash of fabric, portfolios, wires and other stuff under my old desk and moving it all into place.

Upcycled offfice desk, part one

Last Sunday I found this office desk left out in the street.

I have been scouring the junk shops and markets for ages for something to replace my battered old Ikea table top and trestle legs and, although I wasn't looking for something that needed QUITE as much TLC, I've decided to give it a go.

The drawers are okay but the top of the desk was really badly damaged, and there was quite a sizeable chunk knocked out of one corner, so I decided to repair it and sand the desk down and paint it rather than keep the wood veneer finish and varnish it.

I've built up the damaged corner using two-part wood filler and my own patented "two plastic rulers and sticky tape" method.

Unfortunately, I've lent my sander to someone, and cannot remember who on earth it is, so I had to sand the whole thing down by hand – what a mucky chore that was.

Now it's primed and ready for its first gloss coat. After that I'm planning to replace the original blotter sheet (which has one corner mysteriously cut off) with a new piece of oilcloth.

I'm itching to get on with it but now – how irritating – I have to stop and get on with my work.