New "Cabinets"

You've seen my kitchen cabinets, I'm sure. They are actually original to this 1952 house, and well...'nuff said. Over all this time, they actually didn't even close anymore, and I was getting increasing frustrated with them. So I had an idea...to remove them! Re-facing/replacing them is too much cost right now, and even new hardware is too much (wasted) money, when the whole thing needs (and will eventually get) an overhaul. Taking them off completely seemed like the better option, to me. (Note: I left the 4 upper cabinet doors alone. They all still work and close perfectly, I only did this to the bottom cabinets)

MY BIG IDEA. It involved me using my super awesome sewing skills (hah!). I found little tension rods for 2.50 each, and spent $10 on 2 yards of fabric. So for 3.75 per cupboard door - this is what I came up with!!! Bonus - Brian really liked both the idea, and the look. Whew!

Doors, be gone!! I, being raised by a carpenter, and now married to one, did the proper thing. I filled all the screw holes with wood filler, sanded, and touched up the paint. Yes, despite me choking on the smell of sawdust and avoiding the touch of raw wood (aahhhhh. Gives me the willies!), I *have* picked up a thing or two over the years.

All done!! It's really cute, super functional, way better looking than before, and machine washable!! It actually felt really good to complete a project in only 1 day, and with no help from Brian at all.

I had 3 decent sized scraps...I literally just started sewing. The kids *loved* watching me. Kenna declared the sewing machine to be quite magical. I made this project with out measuring or pinning, or anything! Freestylin' :-) Which is actually a bad idea for those who are not experienced sew-ers.

Idea: a place to put school books and pencils etc, when we need the table for lunch etc.

I held the fabric up to the chair and made the "slipcover part". Then for the pocket. My inexperience shines through...I sewed the pocket across the bottom seam to attach it, but couldn't sew it up the sides to attach it, without sewing through the sleeve I already made. HAH. So I pinned it up, and it works!! YAY!

So today, I need to rip out the side seams on the chair cover part, sew on the pocket, and re-sew up the sides. Simple little project, even with that mishap, this only took minutes. Mind you, it's not exactly "square" or perfect, but it's close enough:-)

EDIT:After I posted this, I ripped out the side seams, sewed on the pocket, and sewed 'er back up. Done! It is actually really good looking, and will be very functional for us this school year. I think I might need to go buy one more yard of fabric and make some for all the other chairs. :-) I'm inspired! I love simple organizational functionality for small spaces!