Must Have: Boyfriend Watch

For several months now (more like a year actually) I've been on the hunt for the perfect 'boyfriend watch' - the big, oversized watch that looks like one you snagged from your hubby's valet.  I've never really been a watch person, but this trend has got me reconsidering. I love the idea of a layering a big chunky gold watch with tons of thin bracelets, or even just wearing it alone as a statement piece.


Here are a few that have caught my eye:

Michael Kors MK5437 - Macys, $275.00

Coach Boyfriend Bracelet Watch - Macys, $348.00

Feminine Contemporary Watch - Guess, $135.00

Fossil Boyfriend Watch - Piperlime, $125.00


These watches can get pretty pricey, but there are a few wallet-friendly versions available.

Gold Boyfriend Watch - Shock Boutique, $30.00

For a more feminine take on the boyfriend watch, many also come in this pretty rose-gold finish.

Crawford Boyfriend Watch - Amazon, $16.00

Fossil Riley Watch - Amazon, $109.95

Other options include black or brown bands in place of the gold metal, like this one from Urban Outfitters.

Classic Menswear Watch, Urban Outfitters, $25.00


Now to just decide on one...

How To: Reupholster a Chair

Tools needed:

- dining room chair

- fabric

- flat head screwdriver

- pliers

- scissors

- iron

- staple gun

Time for this project: 

about one hour

First you need to remove the cushion from the chair. My cushion was simply 'popped' into place in the chair, but some cushions may be screwed into the frame.

Since this was my first attempt at reupholstering a chair, I was careful to take note of how the old fabric was stapled onto the cushion so I could mimic it.

Using a flat-head screwdriver, carefully pry the old staples out of the chair cushion.

For stubborn staples, use a pair of pliers to help pull them out.

I was careful to keep my staples together to keep bare feet safe and curious animals from stepping on them.

If your fabric is wrinkled, you want to iron it before you put it on the chair.

After I quartered my piece of fabric, each piece was still slightly longer than necessary. 

I lined up the new and old fabrics and trimmed the new fabric to size.

Now comes the wrapping and stapling.

First I folded the corners in, then folded the excess fabric on each side to create a smooth edge that would be easy to staple. I used the iron to make a smooth crease along the edge.

Starting with the corner, you want to pull the fabric pretty tight and do your first staple. 

Again, keeping the fabric as tight as possible, wrap the rest of the fabric around the corner, smoothing it out the best you can and secure with staples. 

Once the corners are secure, fold the sides up and staple along the edge, spacing each staple an inch or two apart. Again, you want to make sure that you hold the fabric tight so keep the seat cushion smooth. If necessary you can flip the cushion over to check your progress and make sure you've pulled the fabric tight enough.

Once you have stapled all around the cushion, it will look like this:

The last step is to pop or screw the seat cushions back into place, and enjoy your 'new' chairs. 

Now it's your turn to give it a try.

Good luck!

Nesting = 'New' Dining Room Chairs

I took on an impromptu project this weekend - reupholstering the dining rooms chairs.


Yes, it was one of the items on my baby countdown to-do list, but I had pretty much accepted the fact that I wasn't going to get the dining room tackled before she came. I'm chalking it up to that whole nesting thing. With two weeks to go as of Saturday, I still have this urge to complete and perfect any project I can find the time to take on. 

Saturday morning came and I had errands to run anyway so I stopped at JoAnn Fabrics to take a peek at fabric. It must have been fate or just my lucky day because not only did I find gorgeous fabric, but it was the end of the bolster and just happened to be exactly how much fabric I needed to purchase. Weird, right? I took apart one of our old chairs and  brought the fabric in so I could measure the right amount for four chairs. 

Here is a close up of the fabric:

Isn't it beautiful? I fell in love immediately.

That's not even the best part. How much did it cost to buy fabric for 4 dining room chairs? 

Just under $7.00... TOTAL. I'm so proud of myself. 

The fabric was in the clearance section (I went straight there because I refuse to pay full price for almost anything). It only cost $6.00 per yard. It was the end of the bolster so I was able to get 1 yard and ten inches which happened to be exactly what I needed (actually a little bit more as I trimmed a few inches off). JoAnn gives you 50% off the end of the bolster after you take the last full yard so those 10 inches only cost $.83. 

$6.83 to reupholster 4 dining room chairs. Can't beat it.

For the past three years the dining room chairs have looked like this. 

 

The furniture set was given to us by my in-laws and my FIL volunteered to reupholster them once I chose a fabric. Our dining room walls were originally a bright green (painted by the previous homeowners) and I chose this fabric to match. See this post for a picture of how the dining room used to look.

I really loved the fabric for a while, but after I painted the dining room walls, the fabric seemed too dark for my lighter, brighter dining room.

$6.83 and about an hour's worth of work later, I now have this:

A side-by-side comparison of the old and new fabric.

I love it :)

I didn't take a picture of the full dining set because the other half of the room looks like this:

Believe it or not, this is after cleaning out the dining room so this looks ten times better than the room has looked for the past few months. So technically I can cross two items off my to-do list: reupholstering the chairs and de-cluttering the dining room. 


As for the bench, I removed the cushion with the paisley green fabric and plan to purchase some comfy, pretty pillows to dress it up. I snagged this IKEA blanket that used to be in the living room and just happens to match the new fabric. The pillow purchase will wait until we have the baby stuff out of the dining room once she is born.

I'm pretty proud of myself since this was my first time ever reupholstering a chair. I relied on a few tutorials I found online and followed what my FIL had done on the chairs before.


I will post a tutorial later this week for any of you who want to try. It was a lot easier than I thought. 

Bummer

The mirror for the nursery was delivered today.

And it's broken.

Talk about a bummer. 

I've already sent an email with the pictures to the company so hopefully we can get a replacement asap. 

Baby Countdown To-Do List Updated

Two weeks and 4 days until Lucy is due. Here's is where I stand with my Baby Countdown To-Do List:

Work on guest room for potential post-baby overnight guests

Organize decor on new living room shelves

Bonus points if I can do the above without purchasing anything new (ok, I bought ONE thing...)

Finishing touches in nursery (paint touch-up, fix window treatments, etc)

Ceiling fan for nursery

Blinds for skylight in nursery - still trying to figure how to tackle this one out without spending $200 on a custom blind

Find a mirror for nursery 

Clean and spruce up outside (front and back upstairs and down) - clean, yes. spruce, no.

Hang family wedding photos in upstairs hallway

Decide on a spot and hang Jordan's anniversary gift

Reupholster dining room chairs

FInd pillows for dining room bench

De-clutter dining room -  the dining room has become baby storage so none of these items have even been touched.

Purchase final frame for wedding wall collage in living room 

Re-organize linen closet - we actually plan to do this one this week... or so we say :)