In this before-and-after you might be underwhelmed, because I'm not a fancy decorator, but I want you to keep in mind two things.
1. There is now one less large object in my linen closet/stash/hoard.
2. I no longer feel mocked by the saggy cushion, even though it's still very much a lived-in chair, and that's how I like it!
So you will remember that I scored a great leather chair on Craigslist, due pretty much to the nice but spacey lady's unwillingness to answer emails, despite giving her email as a contact. She wanted a phone call and apparently I was the only one to be inspired by the thrifting gods to call her.
It's a high-end chair and real, full-grain leather that has a few flaws, but for the price ($300! vs. who knows how many thousands new!), I'm calling it a huge win! I love the design so much — it fits right in with my other furniture. But you know, the design issue with a down-filled cushion is the SAGGING.
BEFORE, saggy (and I mean I took this photo after doing my best to plump it up):
Yes, it's comfy, but you're always either trying to get it upright or ignoring it.
Mrs. Nice-But-Spacey had stuffed in some loose foam stuffing in an attempt to shore it up, and I had chucked in a small piece of foam sort of behind it… but it just sagged.
On the interwebs I read that you should buy a piece of triple-density foam, cut it the right shape, and pack it in there. And I was often making a mental note to do so or juuuust about to do so while actually standing in JoAnn's, pondering the foam. By often I mean once or twice, including recently when I was looking for a backing for the quilt I have in process.
So I did not pull the trigger on the triple-density foam.
Well, good thing, dear reader, because I cleaned out a whole bunch of things in the linen closet (not all, no, please, my mind hasn't been invaded by aliens) and I held an actual large piece of (not triple but still) foam in my actual hands and questioned whether or not to give or even possibly throw it away.
And then the clouds parted and the light of the Frugal Angel came upon me and I realized that I could take this single-and-maybe-more-density foam, cut it in half, cut the two pieces to size, and be the proud inserter of at-least-double-if-not-quite-triple cushion support!
AFTER:
So yes, this will always be a lived-in, authentic leather chair — the kind that you find in a normal household with lots of people and a dog. I'm great with that! I love it. And now the cushion sits right up rather than accusing me with a slumpy attitude.
Someday soon I will try my leather conditioner on it and see if that removes some of the imperfections, but you know me, I'm really pretty okay with it!
In order to get the two pieces in there, I had to use a clean plastic trash bag to slide the one piece behind the other. Then I slid the trash bag out.
The down insert is in front, still bestowing its comfy downy softness on the sitter. At first the whole thing was tightly stuffed, but as predicted (by me), it's calming down now and is tight and firm yet still cozy.
Thrifted leather chair, BEFORE:
And AFTER, with foam inserted:
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Julie says
I LOVE IT. good job!!
Jennie Cooper says
The chair is nice, but that throw pillow is incredible!
Cheryl says
I thought the same thing:)
Kathy@9peas says
Looks great!
Lisa G. says
Good for you! But you aren’t telling us how – did you have to rip out the stitches in the leather? Was it really hard to do? Hard to sew back up?
Leila says
No, Lisa, there’s a zipper. It’s a very well made chair!
Sara says
Oooh, I have a very similar chair with the same problem! Want to ship me the rest of your foam? What was your foam from?
Kristi says
It looked great before, but a bit Eeyore-ish. So much happier now! Yay, you!
Melissa Diskin says
Curious — what were the men’s shirts doing in your stash? What do you use them for? It looks like a nice manly quilt proto-stash waiting to be cut, maybe? 🙂
Leila says
Yes, Melissa — those were Will’s, from back when Old Navy had a few years there of really nice Indian cottons. They are men’s small, and he just outgrew them. Of course I was going to make a quilt… but actually they are so nice as shirts that I couldn’t really bear to cut them up — not worn at all! But a friend with a growing boy (and five more behind him) is going to take them and put them to good use. Maybe THEN I will make a quilt 🙂
Terri says
Outstanding! But doesn’t this just affirm your stash/hoarding tendencies?
Leila says
Terri — I know, right?
Nancy Starkey says
Always enjoy these post on how to remedy a problem whether it be furniture, a sewing project, or cooking.
Great looking chair that will last a long time!
Cammie says
It looks great! Good job!
Julie says
You had me scouring our local craigslist for something similar 🙂
Pippi says
Fabulous! But my question is, how do you get pen off the leather when your 2-year-swipes one and decides to do a little decorating of his own? Not that that’s happened at my house or anything…
Mary Eileen says
That’s the PERFECT leather chair!
Julie says
Love this post. Are you coming to my house next to help me with my projects? I love that you posted about this. What a celebration of thrift and beauty. -Julie C
Ann Turner says
This post reminds me of two things. First, when our leather cushions got saggy, we went out and bought super cheap pillows at the dollar store. We crammed about two pillows per cushion in with what was already there. At first it was a little full, but it has definitely shrunk down to comfortable This was my husband’s idea- the champion of the ‘cheap fix’.
Same sofa, a year and a puppy later: We left one afternoon and were gone longer than expected. We arrived home to a very embarrassed puppy, shall we say terrified (?), and a middle seat cushion from this leather sofa, with an entire corner ripped out with the foam all over the room. Yet another year later, and we finally decided to get the cushion remade with a cheaper than leather vinyl (is ‘pleather’ for ‘plastic leather’ in everyone’s vocabulary?) that was more or less the same color as the rest of the sofa. The same puppy now refuses to sit any where on the sofa but on the real leather. If we are at either end, he will literally climb behind us in an effort to get us to move over so he can have the corner, and the real leather. The nerve!
Leila says
Ann, your puppy has good taste — in more than one sense!