Thrifty DIYer Reupholsters £10 Chair In On-Trend Tropical Curtains, Saving £250
- Andrea Jakeman, 61, found an old armchair from a house clearance company for £10
- She bought some £44 curtains from a catalogue and reupholstered the chair herself using the curtains
- Andrea estimates she saved at least £250 by upholstering the chair herself rather than buying one new
We all know the feeling of falling in love with a piece of furniture, only to be put off by the price tag.
But one savvy DIYer came up with a genius way round expensive prices when she was looking for a new statement chair.
Andrea Jakeman, 61, a mum of four from West Sussex, found an old armchair from a house clearance company for £10.
She then bought some £44 curtains from a catalogue and reupholstered the chair herself using the curtains.
Andrea estimates she saved at least £250 by creating the chair herself rather than buying one new.
Andrea told money-saving Facebook group DIY On A Budget UK: "I've done a few projects like this over the years - mostly to upcycle as money was a bit scarce as I have two sets of twin boys three and a half years apart.
“Of course being 61 this year, my kids are all grown up now so I have spare time to do more of these projects.
"There's a house clearance company near me and so I got the chair from them for £10.
"It had looked a nice creamy colour in their Facebook Marketplace photo but it turned out to be a salmon pink which is not my colour scheme at all, so I decided to cover it.
"I chose curtains from a catalogue for £44 that had a 90cm drop - that way I knew I had enough length to do the two long strips at the back.
"A lot of people make a pattern but as I've no intention of removing the cover I didn't bother.
"I basically started with the seat cushion and front piece, then began the arms and sides.
"What I find easiest is to place the fabric where you need the piece to go, pin it and cut, making sure there's enough around to turn under or to baste (tack) to the chair as a base for the next piece to overlap.
"All the sewing was by hand, and hopefully fairly invisible.
“There were bits that I stapled, like the bottom edges underneath for example, so a staple gun is useful.
"I found it easy from the cutting and sewing point of view but as I've had a hip replacement and have osteoarthritis in my pelvis, knees and lower back, the chair had to be manipulated around and balanced against things as I can't get onto the floor anymore.
“It took me about three days - but that's because I'm limited a bit by my osteoarthritis.
“The whole project cost me under £60.
"I’d been looking everywhere for a chair I could afford and by covering one myself I think I must have saved at least £250, so happy days!
"I'm so pleased with it that I've got plans to do my other chair as soon as I find a contrast print.”
Tom Church, co-founder of LatestDeals.co.uk, comments: “The tropical print trend has been huge for quite a while now and isn’t going anywhere.
“But buying one new can cost hundreds or even thousands of pounds.
“Andrea’s solution is genius: it’s saving her money, giving her a brilliant project to do, and also means she’s ended up with a one-of-a-kind statement chair no one else in the world has!"
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Wow Andrea, you have done an amazing job transforming this old chair. You have given me the inspiration to tackle my two old Parker Knoll chairs. Every year I keep saying I will start them and then something crops up and they are pushed aside. Im amazed you have stitched them by hand which would have took you a while to do. Thanks for sharing and I hope mine will come out just as good.
