Online auctions are interesting. It has been a great way for traditional auctioneers to continue their business in the age of Covid. After being burned a few times on things I couldn't look at in person, I stopped looking at the offering daily. However, my bestie has become obsessed with online auctions. So I was over at her house one evening and she asked if was bidding on anything that was ending that evening. I told her I hadn't even looked. Then she says the magic words..."I thought there were some things you would be interested in." Well, we both whip out our phones and start browsing and before you know it, I had won this little gem.
At first glance, it's just an ordinary footstool (that somehow has a piece of carpet tacked on it).
But when you see the sides, it is this gorgeous spoon carved wood stool. So pretty!
The top comes off to reveal a small storage area (awesome), but then it also reveals a piece of wood has broken off the lid. This is one of the problems with purchasing online. This wasn't disclosed in the listing and I didn't notice when I picked it up. Now I only paid $6 for this stool and I was pretty confident I could repair it, but still, it's a pitfall of online auctions.
I flipped it over to remove the carpet and it took maybe ten seconds to remove it. It was lightly tacked and basically lifted right off the lid. I discarded it and removed the tacks holding it in place.
Removing the carpet revealed the beautiful carving on the sides of the lid.
To repair the lid, I looked through my stash of wood to find something that was the same thickness as the wood already in place. I found this piece of plywood and it was almost the length I needed, I just had to trim off a smidge. I measured the space of the missing wood and marked it on the plywood. I cut the wood with my circular saw and used four small nails to secure in place on the lid.
Perfect!
I selected this teal fabric with flowers to upholster the top because I thought the fabric mimicked the spoon carving detail on the wood. And the color complemented the tone of the wood.
I cut a piece of one inch foam to fit the size of the lid. I added batting and secured the fabric with my staple gun on the underside of the lid. I folded the fabric under before stapling to ensure a cleaner finish.
For the sides, I folded the fabric to align with the edge and secured it with upholstery tacks.
I cleaned the base and re-glued one of the crossbars which had come loose and wasn't secured in the original hole. I cut a piece of scrapbooking paper to line the inside of the stool. The color complemented the fabric. It is not glued to the wood so it can be replaced or removed altogether if desired.
I really loved how it turned out! Not bad for an overall investment of less than $12 (fabric, foam, batting and the cost of the stool). This storage compartment would be a perfect place for tucking an embroidery or knitting/crochet project. It would also be a great place to keep all your remote controls (personally, I FIVE remotes for my television/satellite/streaming services!). I think this fabric is far more comfortable than an piece of carpet to rest your feet after a long day!
Thank you for reading my blog! If you would like to see more, follow me on Facebook, Instagram,and Pinterest! Just click on any of the social media links above! Thanks for following me on the junking adventures!
Below are some links to products I used in this project. Disclaimer: Junk is My Life is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.
Below is an image to pin to Pinterest if you would like to save this idea!
