Sunday, July 10, 2011

Old Brown Couch

In my days as a young'un, my 'rents bought this awesome Cargo furniture. 
Yep, that's me and my dog, Pansey.

This furniture was pretty expensive aparently.


It was durable, that's for sure.
And comfy enough, I suppose!  That's me and my Grandpa.  I miss him!  Ohhh look at that awesome Lamp O'Beans on the side table!!  Food storage!!

My Mom changed the cushion covers many times through the years.


And so this lovely wooden furniture stayed with our family through 20+ years.  From Ft. Worth, TX to Findlay, OH to Fredericksburg, VA.

One day, it ended up in the garage.

Unloved.  Unused.  Unappreciated. 

{Side Story...real quick:  Years ago, Mom and Dad went to the Cargo furniture store in Northern VA to pick out all new cushions.  Mom let Dad pick the fabric...why why WHY!!!???  The lovely Southwestern print above is what he picked out.  Let me remind you we live in Fredericksburg, VA and this contradicts any kind of decor Mom already had}

Anyways...

Mom tried unloading the furniture.  But she just wouldn't let it get away without a price.

After all, the 'rents had spent beaucoup $$$ on this stuff back in the day.  I believe it!  This stuff is solid!

Well, as you know, I've recently started to find some beauty in some of the old, unloved, loney furniture in the world.  Could the Cargo furniture have some potential? 

I'll let you be the judge.


I wanted to do it the right way.  I used an electric sander.  Man, that was exhausting!  I'm not bein' funny, it make my muscles weak!  Then, I hosed the furniture off.  Dust, cobwebs, spiders....all gone!

All in 100*+ weather!  Lovely!

Next, priming.

Bam!  Justin and I really hesitated to do this, but we bought an electric paint sprayer thingy from Home Depot.  It was $69 well spent!  Once the paint was thinned out correctly, it took like 10 minutes to prime everything.  Awesome!

The brand was Wagner, I believe.

We did this because this is a BIG project...too big for having to use 20+ cans of $5 primer by Kilz.  Not gonna happen.

Now, the paint.  Again, used the paint sprayer....LOVE it!

I used Olympus brand paint in Almond Paste.

Now, this project actually was idealized by myself months ago.  During that time, I had browsed the web for fabrics to make new cushion covers.  I found the perfect fabric at The Fabric Guru.  There is a Clearance section online.  The fabric I chose was flawed at the edge, so it was super cheap.  I was confident it wouldn't be a problem, so I got something like 13 yards for $70 after tax and shipping.  Around $5 a yard is an awesome deal!

I have to recognize my Mom now because I really didn't help with the sewing of the cushions.  I just don't really know that much about sewing, plus my machine is awful.  She didn't seem to mind doing it.  It was a bit of a frustrating project at times because she had to start over and buy more fabric and stuff...but after all was said and done...it all turned out!

Of course, I glazed the furniture.  Ex-hau-sting!  But so worth it.

You ready for pics?!  Cause I am!

Hold your breath....


Oh.my.gosh...I LOVE it!! 

And you know what?  I'm happy for it to be a part of my little family.

I had a very happy childhood.

Lots of memories created while these couches sat and watched.

They're happy to be out of the garage. 

And I'm happy to have some space in there.

7 comments:

  1. Emily!! This is so awesome! They look amazing!!! You are so crafty!! And it is even better because they have such a sweet history with your family. It made me so happy to read this post! :)

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  2. Wow, I cant' believe you could give this old girl such a fresh look. You did good with this one, and it looks like a lot of work, but paid off. Thank goodness for that paint gun. I can't wait for you to put some of your other projects up here.

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  3. Wow wow wow wow wow! I'm super impressed. They're gorgeous!

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  4. I love what you have done! I have actually been on the CL hunt for over a year now trying to find some similar couches that I could pain glaze white too. You have done a fabulous job.

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  5. That is so awesome! You did such a great job! Love that your mom helped and that you have so many great memories attached to that furniture.
    Visiting from Vintage Revivals.

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  6. I just inherited the SAME SET!!! The couch, love seat, and side table! Mine also came with a coffee table, too. And funny enough, mine also has southwestern cushion covers!!

    My father-in-law purchased the set several years ago for my husband and I, but he bought them second hand. I would love to know where/when your parents purchased your set!

    Thanks for inspiring me to redo my set!

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  7. thanks for sharing information.
    to get fabric on demand from weaveron textile.

    ReplyDelete