Glorious Peonies

Peonies are in the markets now, my favorite flower...
.....isn't Nature just so Astonishingly Beautiful?

Crazy Amoeba Stool

Here is my covered stool project that I just finished, do you like it? I found a cute funky little stool at my favorite thrift shop, but the fabric was worn and dirty, and definitely did not fit into my decor scheme. I am a big fan of African Kuba Raffia Textiles, and wanted to use one for this project. I looked for quite awhile on the internet, finally finding one on eBay that I liked very much, but it was not quite the right size. As I was pondering how I could make it work, it was snapped up by someone else - so much for that idea! 

So, I decided to make a cover myself, using a technique I have seen around - fabric appliques. I chose to work on a medium weight black linen, with a dark burgundy raw silk for the design. I decided on using an amoeba-like design as I have a lot of pattern going on in my apartment, and wanted this stool to be different, yet still harmonious.

Foot stool - before. Pretty ugly - huh?

Old fabric cover taken off, with new piece of foam cut to size.

I covered the foam with 2 layers of polyester batting to soften the edges.

Using the embroidery foot, along with lowering the feed dog, I sewed in a free motion around the edges of my cutout shapes. I guided the fabric as best as I could, not being too concerned whether the stitching was super perfect or not.
 

Fraying the edges of the raw silk shapes helps add interest and adds to the hand-crafted look I was after.

I removed the feet from the stool after first numbering them to return them to their proper place afterward. I then stapled on the fabric, being careful to keep the tension even so there were no puckers.

I came across these brass shapes while at the bead store, and decided to use them on the corners for an embellishment. Working with leftover suede leather scraps, I cut strips which I made into fringe tassels.

Binding the tassel to keep it in place.

Detail of the finished fringe tassel accent.

I added a layer of butcher paper to finish off the stool underside, and replaced the feet.

I later decided to gesso the underside black, so that it would look more finished. 

And violà - here is a closeup of my new foot stool. 

I am very happy with how the patterns go together! What do you think?

So now, I'd like to hear from you - what projects are you working on? Let me know in the comments section, thanks!