Re-purposed Coffee Table Project

I have been wanting a bench for the foot of our bed for quite some time now.  I had certain things I was looking for with this bench.  I wanted it to be a place to sit when putting on shoes and socks, and I wanted it to also provide some sort of storage/organizational function.  I had found a picture online on Pintrest that sparked my interest.  They had covered an old coffee table.  I wasnt too jazzed about the completed look of their project, but I was jazzed by the inspiration that their idea provided!  I went on a witch hunt for a coffee table that would be propotioned correctly with the size of our bed, and would also fit in the needs listed above. 

I found an old coffee table at our local Goodwill for $9.99, it was heavy enough that it could withhold the weight of a person and it also came with a shelf underneath for baskets!  Not only can it have storage, it can be super cute storage to boot! 

This is the table with one faint coat of Rusteolum brown spray paint. 
Available at my local Walmart for around $3.00 a can - I used 1 can, and a little out of a 2nd can

View of the coffee table with the shelf for baskets....



In between coats of spraypaint, I was inside making my foam seat.



Materials Used and Prices:

I had 3 3" thick foam square pads from Hobby Lobby that were $6.99 each, for a total of $20.97

Scotch brand spray adhesive - heavy duty

Upholstery Material, Hobby Lobby - $17.99 a yard.   - I used 1 yard
(I picked a coordinating fabric that I thought went with our duvet, and added a little masculenity to the room, to balance out the floral in the duvet.)

I adhered the foam squares to each other, and then wrapped the fabric around the foam.  I wrapped it like you would wrap a present.  (This girl doesnt sew!) Each fold I sprayed with glue and held it until it dried and was good and stuck. 

Once the foam was covered I went back out to the garage and attached the newly covered seat to the coffee table.  Finished results....

I had the baskets already, so this saved me some money as well!!!

Cost Breakdown of project:
Coffee Table - $9.99
Spray Paint - $3.00 (I had on hand, but need to include price)
Spray Adhesive - $4.00 (I had on hand again)
Fabric - $17.99
Foam - $20.97, $6.99 a square

Total spent - $48.95 (I excluded the paint and the adhesive since I had on hand)

This is a whopping savings!!!!  The benches I have looked at started at $80.00 and went up in pricing, depending on how crazy you wanted to get.  I at least saved $30.00+ if not more, as the $80.00 bench wasnt a good fit for our bedroom, but I needed a starting point for pricing. 

This re-purposing project met all my needs and I am really pleased with the savings results and the decor results! 

This bench looks fantastic in our bedroom!!!!

The Never-Ending Laundry Land.....

Once upon a time... there was a lady.... and she ran her washing machine every day of the week... thus running the dryer every day of the week.... therefore going thru massive amounts of laundry detergent.... dryer sheets....water and electricity (much to the delight of the city of Pella, who Jerry Sandusky's you at every chance they can on city utilities, you know what I mean...).  She would collect clothes from all corners of her house, haul countless loads of dirty clothes to the laundry room, sort, wash, dry, fold, and place all the families clothes into baskets to be put away.... but not until the dreaded ironing was completed.  Now the lady of the house hating ironing so much that on certain occasions she rewarded herself for completing the ironing task with a nice glass of soda and something extra.  All items that required ironing recieved the attention that they need, on a very inconsistant basis.  After the muttering and the under the breath comments about the so-and -so clothing was ironed then clothes were put away in their proper places.  Now it needs to be mentioned that the lady of the house had a mild case of OCD and therefore all steps in completing the never ending laundry had to be completed in the process that her fantastical mind had made up....so clothing cannot be put away in their proper places before all laundry was washed, dried, folded and then ironed.  THEREFORE.... there is ALWAYS laundry everywhere and thus is the vicious cycle of the never-ending laundry.... 

(I cannot say the end.... as there never is an end....)

Once upon a time... there was a lady.... and she ran her washing machine every day of the week...

The moral of the story - I am thankful for piles of dirty laundry, it means I have family surrounding me!