French Connection

I have a ton of work to do, and probably shouldn't really be typing-up a post on my blog, but I can't seem to get motivated to do work today. Probably because I just spent two fun days with my grandparents (more on that in a separate post) and the aftermath of the fun is distracting me.

Another thing that is distracting is my new-found fascination with inexpensive DIY (do-it-yourself) home projects. I've been building up an interest in interior design and thought a good first project whould be dining chairs to put in my modern french-themed dining area. When my sister moved out, she took the dining chairs with her, since she bought them. I've been succumbed to using the little wooden chairs from my garden and, let me tell you, they are NOT comfortable to sit on when trying to have a nice dinner.

Taken from an idea that I found on one of my favorite blogs, bryn alexandra via a guest blogging post she did on another fav jeune marie, I surfed my local Craigslist to find some used dining chairs that might have some fantastic potential. Here are the contenders:

The chairs in this pic are cute. They have simple lines, which would make them simple to paint. The cushions look easy to remove too, which would make them easy to reupholster. The seller labeled them as "antique," so I'm questioning the sturdiness.

I LOVE the design of this chair. It would really compliment the victorian Paris painting in my dining area. The person is selling two of them. The seat wouldn't be as simple to reupholster and I would need to be tedious about painting them, since the arms and top of the back have an intricate design. Still though, they may be worth getting.

Since both sellers are selling two each, I may buy from both of them. You can't really tell, but the legs on the two different chairs actually match. They have a common look between them, which makes me think it might be neat to buy both sets. I was originally looking for just two chairs, but having a set of four would probably be better.

If I buy them, I plan on painting them a soft white, like Bryn did. I think it would look good with my black wood dining table. Here's what I'm thinking to reupholster the seats:

It's a simple, very very soft blue-ish green color that would look pretty on a white chair and would compliment a black table. Plus, with the chairs having a busy design on the backings, I thought to keep the seat color simple.

All I need to do now is buy the chairs and find a weekend where I'm actually not doing anything, so that I can devote the time to do this project!

Update: I bought two of the chairs in the second picture. The lady lowered the price from $175 to $100! I couldn't say no. Keep checking back for restoration updates on this bargain!