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