Welp, I finished my ottoman class. It was a bit traumatic, but I am glad I did it. Now I have a cute little ottoman covered in a disgusting purple fabric. Thanks to the teacher and his assistant for making the ottoman look good and thanks to me for picking such a nasty fabric. Here’s my excuse though…the week I had to pick out fabric I was suffering from crazy allergies so my judgment was impaired. It also didn’t help that the first time I went to look at fabrics (at Zarin Fabrics) they were filming an episode of HGTV Design Star and I couldn’t really look around. So the next day I had to rush back to buy something on my lunch break. In my allergic haze, I decided to just buy something cheap rather than something that was cute and $45/yard.

Anyway, you should be very impressed that I made an ottoman. I know it doesn’t look like much, but just to prove how hard I worked, here is a montage of images showing most of the steps involved. Now be impressed!!!!

Hi Everybody. I’ve been away working on a DIY project and then a do-over of said DIY project (more on that tomorrow), but I just wanted to let you know more about the upholstery class I am taking in case you are interested in signing up. The class is through The Furniture Joint which is located on Great Jones Street in Noho. The class is taught by owner Matthew Haly and if you sign up expect to get your hands dirty. This class is very hands on! Also, you probably want to plan ahead as classes fill up quickly. Expect to sign up at least a month in advance.

Last week’s class was pretty uneventful except there was an ABC News crew there filming a segment about the classes. Imagine having a camera 6 inches from your hands as you are trying to tie a knot and the teacher is looking over your shoulder saying “No that’s wrong….No that’s wrong.” It was very stressful! But then I tied the best knot of my life, so learning under pressure kind of paid off. Of course the camera didn’t catch that! And then the reporter actually miked me and asked me questions! I’m afraid to see the final result.

Anyway, this week we are going to begin covering out ottomans with fabric, so I’ll let you know how that goes.

Last week I took my first upholstery class as part of a month long series. And…uh it was hard! But it also felt good using my hands and power tools. For this class we are each making our own ottoman from scratch, meaning we each were given a wooden frame to start with. This first class dealt mostly with adding the webbing and springs for the ottoman.

Jute Webbing

Air Compressed Staple Gun!

After the first class, I’ve already begun to appreciate the art of well done upholstery work.  It definitely feels like an older craft…like basket weaving or something. But I digress. The best part of this class is that we get to use these cool air-compressed staple guns. These babies are awesome! And they will make anyone feel like a macho man. The teacher is cool if not a little intimidating. And the people in my class seem nice, although there is one “know-it-all” that I can already tell will drive me nuts. Grrr! But, I did pick up some good tips.

Different Types of Springs
A major difference between a quality piece of furniture and mass-produced “crap” is the kind of springs it uses. The best kind are coil springs (which we are installing in our ottomans). Spring coils will last 10-15 years. Next is the zig zag springs, which is very common in mass produced pieces because it is fast to install. This kind is ok. Then there is elastic webbing, which is basically just stretchy fabric. This is the worst as it will stretch out after only about 4 years. You can generally tell what kind of springs are used by following this rule of thumb: If the bottom of the furniture is solid then it is probably coil springs, if the bottom is hollow than it is either zigzag or elastic webbing. Of course, I can’t afford custom pieces, so I don’t have anything that is new that uses spring coils, but it is just good to know what you are getting into.

Coil Springs

Zig Zag Springs

Elastic Webbing GROSS!