Sunday, October 25, 2009

A Futon Fit for a Guest

I've finally got all of the furniture items completed for the office! I still have decorating that needs to be done, but that can wait until I finish the reupholstering in the living room. I'm very pleased with how the office has turned out and will be very excited to finish it. One thing that I have learned is that the details really do make a big difference in a room. The office now has all the furniture, but is yearning for it's details to complete it. I'll get there... I have to pace myself. Mostly because of money, but we all have our constraints!

I can now welcome guests to come stay at my place, because I have a futon that is actually pretty comfortable (plus I have extra padding to throw on it). I inherited the futon from my mother. My youngest brother had been using it for a bed, but then it was decided a real bed with a real mattress would be best for everyday sleeping. I agree! So I went down to Salt Lake with her to pick up his new bed and took the futon of their hands!

Now, this futon has been around for a while and was in the need of some rehabilitation. The support bars were struggling and the futon cover was quite dated. Free, however, was the right price and I was pretty sure it could be rehabilitated. I don't have a before picture because I received it taken apart. Here are a few shots that I took.



Terrible green plaid pattern



Wood ends that I sanded down and painted black.

All I can say is that I'm terribly sick of painting. One thing I would recommend to DIYer's is to plan projects with variety in mind. If you have a few painting projects, try and space other projects between them. I found myself caring a lot less about this paint job than when I did the coffee table and entertainment center. I had ran out of paint and did have to buy a new bucket, so now I'm set on paint for future projects if I need it.

One of the support bars needed to be welded again, but the other was sort of beyond repair. So I (really it was mostly my parents, but we all did it together) replaced the second support bar with a 2x4 cut to the right length. Once we got everything back together, then I had to buy a new futon cover. I'm not a big Wal-mart shopper, but their futon covers are great. I love the color and it was super easy to put on.

So here is the view from the door before the futon...





...and after!

The pillows I already owned and picked the color scheme so that I would be able to reuse them. I'm really pleased with how the project turned out and am glad to have the extra bed for visitors.

Financial Breakdown:

Futon: $FREE
Paint: $11
Cover: $30

Total Cost: $41

Cumulative Office Cost: $131

I do still have some details to attend to, but won't exceed $200 for the entire room. Hopefully that frames some pictures for me, gets a rug, and an office chair. We'll see how awesome I am at being frugal.

To finishing what you start,

Boomba

4 comments:

  1. Wow!!! It looks really good. You are doing a great job.

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  2. Ah, your mother and I made some fond memories on that futon... Say, I wonder how that support broke...

    ;)

    In all seriousness, though, I'd say that for a futon, it's looking pretty kickin', and you can't beat FREE!

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  3. Sister dear, I must say I am so proud. I love the template and your cute blog, your frequent posts, and I'm so impressed with all your DIY projects! You're so creative! See, when you don't have kids, you can accomplish much on a "To Do" list. Enjoy it while it lasts...

    Looks like we'll be staying with you from now on since Kris is being a big boob! Her loss... BTW, is your place kid proof? :)

    P.S. How did Zookie come up with Boomba?

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  4. Why is Kris being a boob? I'm not sure if it's quite kid proof, but with a few adjustments I'm sure it could work. I've napped on the futon a few times and it's pretty comfy.

    My relationship with Zookie has changed over the years. In the beginning he actually had a crush on me, but then we just got to be such good friends that now I'm like his sister. We were just joking around once about how I'll never be his "boo", so instead I became his "boomba". Not sure what it means but that's what I'm called.

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