Vintage Kitchen Chairs Redo

Late September was quite lovely here and there were quite a few yard sales about. This particular one, enabled me to score so many vintage treasures... everything intended for redo's or repurposing...  a wingback chair, a carved wooden bowl, true silver flatware pieces, a vanity dresser set (brush, mirror and covered powder dish), a suitcase, a fur coat and 

... this pair of tall kitchen counter chairs.  

These chairs were in rough shape. The vinyl was torn and quite stinky on both of them. A thick brownish residue was stuck on and they reeked of cigarette smoke. BUT, they are solid and heavy duty.  And they swivel! Certainly worth salvaging. My mom could use them if I can get them to match her red gingham kitchen and they'll be perfect at her breakfast island. 

To begin, I disassembled the chairs. Then removed all of the stinky upholstery and padding. 

Then I washed, dried and painted all of the framework. (The rust was surface only and cleaned up well.)

I ordered 2 yards of Oil Cloth in Gingham Red.
(Love the durability of this material!)

I didn't use any of the original vinyl from the chairs for patterns, so I had to start from scratch by tracing the seat onto the fabric.  This first piece is the top of the seat where piping will be sewn on.

Using pvc clothesline cord for the seat piping, I sewed it into the oil cloth.

Then sewed the piping onto the top of the seat where I drew the edge line.

I bought both memory foam and batting for the top cushion and to pad the sides and top portions of the chairs. I cut the batting to fit onto the seat and around it.

Then stapled the sewn top piece onto the padded seat frame through the batting.

Following that, I stapled in the side paneling all around the seat, allowing material for attaching beneath the seat. This was done by meeting the raw inside edge to meet the sewn piping edge, then pulled the material down over the sides.

Then, reassembled the framework with its original hardware.

Because I was rushing for a few Thanksgiving project deliveries, I missed all photos. Here is the backrest of the chair that I reupholstered and used silver toned tack studding.

I cut the material to do the front of the backrest and stretched it to staple into the all around the center of the backrest. Then used another piece for the back and met the edges to the front, using the nail tack trim to hold it in place. This was my first time using nail tack trim on a roll. I think I prefer the individual tacks over this type.

The oil cloth is easy sewing but does not give too much, even heated with a hair dryer. I learned this on the top padded areas of the backrest where I wanted the material to fall smoothly.  So the corner tucking was tough.

Here are the pair ready for Thanksgiving Day delivery... 

and they sat happily matching each of the window valances and other red gingham in the kitchen. 

Deadline. Done and delivered. Whew~ 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~