It's a good day when friend texts a photo to you saying "I'm at a garage sale, do you want this?" A lot of my friends are treasure hunters, just like me. They know I will take the ugliest piece they can find as long as I think I can make it pretty again. So of course, I said "yes, I will take it!"
It was a smaller version of a grass-cloth covered trunk I had done earlier this year. You can see that project by clicking here.
I began the makeover by removing the lid.
Tip: I use these plastic crayon containers to corral all the hardware when I tear a piece apart. It keeps them all together and when I have muliple projects going on, it helps to know what hardware goes with each project.
I removed all the trim from base of the cabinet. It was very brittle and just snapped off. I didn't intend to reuse it, but it would have been difficult to save it if I had wanted to.
Removing the grass-cloth is fairly easy. It comes right off with a scraper. It is messy because the grass-cloth is disintegrating and there are bits and pieces all over the place. As messy as that it, removing the glue is messier!
I used wallpaper remover gel to remove the glue. Spray a liberal coat on the surface and allow it to remain for about 15 minutes.
Then use a scraper to strip the glue.
Once it was all scraped off, I used soap and water to scrub the bench to remove the stickiness.
After it dried, I sanded all the sides until it was smooth. I finished it with a coat of Varathane Crystal Clear Satin Polyurethane.
I painted the legs with Folk Art chalk paint in the Sheepskin color. I distressed the legs and coated it with polyurethane.
There was no way I was going to try to strip the lid. Someone had decopauged various images on the lid at some point in time.
I cut a piece of foam to the exact size of the lid. I cut a piece of cotton batting and the upholstery fabric a few inches larger than the lid allowing enough to fold around the sides of the lid.
I pulled the fabric around the bench and stapled it on each side in the middle.
Once I made sure the fabric was straight, I continued stapling the fabric, rotating the lid and working my way out to the corners. That will ensure the fabric is taut.
The upholstery turned out well, but I wanted to add some tufting.
I covered four buttons with the same fabric and added them to the lid.
It was almost finished. I grabbed the plastic container with the hardware and reattached the lid to the base of the trunk.
I painted the handles with the Folk Art chalk paint in the Sheepskin color as well and then distressed them, added a coat of poly and reattached them to the trunk.
And then it was finished!
I love how this one turned out. I love the colors on the fabric. It's neutral while still adding a fun pop of color. Now its ready to hold someone's treasures.
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Below is an image to pin to Pinterest if you would like to save this idea!
