Revamped Stool

Sometimes when I am wanting something new, I just have to force myself to look around and say, "Okay, what can I MAKE new? What can I make better? How can I turn this ugly thing into something I like?" Because ultimately I get the same pleasure out of it as if I were buying something brand new. We have these simple kitchen stools that we have had for a while. I know I had the same exact ones in college so they could be the very same ones, but I'm not sure.

Anyway. They are plain and simple. They work, but they could definitely be a lot cuter. I decided they could use a little love. A new look for the new year. Some color and some style! I found a great video tutorial for adding fabric cushions to stools from Lauren Conrad's Blog (I know, I know. Don't laugh at me!). You can view the video here. And here is the how to.

You will need:
Old stools
Foam padding (Sold at craft stores and fabric stores)
Fabric to cover them
Adhesive glue (This stuff comes in handy!)
Staple gun (I didn't have one of these and I thought it was well worth buying for future projects)
Staples
Scissors
Exacto knife
Hammer
Marker

1. Lay the stool upside down on top of the foam padding and trace a circle around the round top of the stool with your marker. This way you are using a perfect stencil for the size of pad you need. Cut the circle with an exacto knife. It takes a few times around to get all the way through the foam.

2. Spray the top of the stool with the adhesive spray and stick the foam circle on top of it.

3. Cut a large square of fabric out (better to be bigger, just in case) and then lay the stool upside down, on top of it.

4. Pulling the fabric tight, start stapling it to the underside of the stool. Go all the way around, basically making a circle with the staples. Hammer down the staples that don't go in all the way.

5. Trim any excess fabric as neatly as you can.

Now you have a brand new stool!

You can use almost any type or pattern of fabric for this project to fit with your decor. Linen would be really nice and would go with pretty much any style.

I am loving how fun and fresh my stools look now!