something old is new again
A few years back I snatched a pair of these chairs from the dumpster outside my apartment. They were in fair condition… the legs needed to be detached, sanded and then reattached with some super-strength Gorilla Wood Glue. The seats were also a bit torn, but I put some pillows on top, and they were good to go.
A couple months ago I was out to lunch with some friends from work, and we walked past a reupholstering shop. They were having a vinyl sale, so we popped in for a peek. For $22 I got (a little more than) a yard of teal vinyl with the kitchen chairs in mind.
Since the seats were still in fair condition, with only a few minor rips and tears, I decided to take a short-cut by placing the new vinyl right over the old, eliminating the need for new padding.
The steps are outlined below… click on a thumbnail to view the full sized image.
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- You will need: vinyl, sharp scissors, screwdriver, staple gun.
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- Flip the chair over on a soft surface, like a rug, and unscrew the seat.
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- Cut a piece of vinyl a few inches wider than the surface you want to cover.
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- Place the vinyl, color side down, on the rug. Wrap the vinyl around the surface along a straight edge.
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- Staple into place, flipping the seat back and forth to make sure it is smooth.
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- After the first side is stapled on, flip the seat and gently stretch the vinyl to the opposite side. Flip and staple.
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- I like to start the second side near the corner. Corners can be tricky, keep flipping back and forth to make sure vinyl is taught.
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- For corners: pinch and tuck the vinyl in an accordian style, securing each tuck with a staple. It may not look neat, but no one looks at the bottom of your seat!
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- After you have a few key staples in place, you can trim any excess vinyl that is getting in the way.
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- Keep going, but remember… Do not staple over the screw holes!!
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- It’s okay if the bottom looks haphazard, so long as the top of the seat is smooth.
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- Screw the seat back onto the chair and you’re done… I love it! It’s like a brand new chair.
kinesis = kinetic sculpture
Set a child in motion and there’s no turning back.
Meet Eliza.
Eliza and I have been doing art together since she was 3 years old. In the beginning, whenever she got her hands sticky with glue or she was splotched with paint, all artistic activity came to a halt. After many, many baby wipes and much positive reassurance, a few key ideas became ingrained… Art is Messy, and (much to Nana’s chagrin) That’s why they make washing machines!!
By the time she was four, she was doing art projects independently as ‘surprises’ for the people she loved; drawings, collages, mixed-media works on paper. Lately, she’s been exploring her inner Jackson Pollock. So it came as no surprise, that after a week in the country… and a little help from the Grandparents… she returned with a kinetic sculpture any Alexander Calder fan would envy.
(did I mention he’s one of my favorite artists?!)
As I helped her reassemble the sculpture in the garden, she filled me in on the creative process:
The goal was to make a gift for her father’s birthday, so she applied the disciplinary planning techniques she acquired in art class last year and started with some sketches. After showing them to her Grandparents, they brainstormed about materials, then got to work.
The base was removed from a fallen tree in the yard, and shallow holes were drilled into the top. (Yes, adult help!!) Then came the first tedious part for her: rubbing oil into the wood. She emphasized how many applications it took to get a smooth sheen and bring out the rings. Afterward, she carved her name into the stump with a pointy object with a handle… sounds like an awl to me!
Next, she straightened the galvanized steel wire by banging it with a mallet. Another difficult step, she said. Then the wire was cut into six pieces, about 3ft each in length, bent by hand into a hook shape, and inserted into the holes in the stump.
The colorful moving shapes were cut from plastic school folders. She made a paper template for each shape, traced and cut them out, then popped a hole in the top with a hole puncher.
I helped her attach the shapes to the wire. We decided on thread, since it ties tight and is practically invisible (besides we didn’t have any fishing wire)!
The end result was exactly what she wanted.. a stunning sculpture that moves naturally.
Keep moving and check out these links..
Some Calder pieces: Spider, Lobster Trap and Fish Tail, Untitled 1939
