It’s no secret that savvy Kmart fans love a good hack. From transforming tea-towels into dresses and tablecloths to plant holders, it’s a seemingly endless source for creative projects. So when we heard about this teacher’s hack using a $20 Kmart quilt cover to recover a chair, we had to find out more.
Here, we catch up with mum-of-two Lucy Cullimore for the full story.
What inspired your project?
Since returning to work part-time after maternity leave, I have been teaching the music program at my school. I’ve always had a shared space, with my classroom being used by the before and after school care program. I never felt as though the space was mine, and I couldn’t decorate it the way I would have liked to. This year, however, I was given the opportunity to have my own classroom and as such, I wanted to make it look beautiful.
I had seen some posts on Facebook a few years ago where people had revamped their tired teacher’s chair, and so I decided to have a go myself.
Have you made many things before?
This is the first time I’ve ever attempted anything like this. Thankfully my husband is very handy with tools and offered to help. He has built many things around the house, such as a bench style seat made out of pallets.
What kind of look were you after?
My colleague and I decided a green leafy theme would help make the room feel comfortable and look beautiful. I wanted a fabric to suit that theme.
What was the biggest challenge?
I had a style of fabric in mind that I wanted for the chair but was struggling to find exactly what I was after. I happened to be scrolling through Kmart’s website and low and behold, I found it, as a quilt cover!
I also only had a night to do the project, as I had to return the chair to work the next day. After a late afternoon at work, dinner and bath for the kids, I only had about an hour to complete it, with tired, demanding children in tow!
The DIY process
- Unscrewed the two cushions from the metal frame.
- Cut the fabric to size.
- Using a staple gun, attached the fabric to the cushions, making ‘hospital corners’ around the back of the cushions.
Budget breakdown
The quilt cover was from Kmart. At the time of purchasing, only the queen size was available. Even though I didn’t need that much fabric, it was my only choice. The total cost would have been cheaper if I could have sourced a smaller size quilt. In total it only came to $18!
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