DIY - Upholstered Top Cedar Chest

Oh my!  The fabric just arrived for the top of my bedroom cedar chest and it is LOVELY!  I found it at Osborne & Little and am just head over heels for it!  Time to get motivated to give my old cedar chest a new look for my new bedroom.

Here is the "victim".  I originally bought this chest at Bed Bath and Beyond about 11 years ago for under $100.  Time to breathe some new life into her!

 You will need:

• Exterior and interior fabric
• Foam
• Buttons
• Grosgrain ribbon
• Staple Gun
• Hammer
• Fabric Glue
• Paint
• Paint Brush
• Sand Paper

1) Sand the chest and paint it!!  Two coats please... I choose the color of our walls BM Edgecombe Gray but in semi-gloss.

2) Cut Foam to shape and glue to top to keep from shifting.  If you don't have a custom foam cutter near by, you'll have to trim it to size.

3) Cover with fabric - pull tight and staple. It is MUCH easier if you have someone to help hold the fabric in place.  My husband was a sport and helped me :)

 I carefully folded the fabric at the corners to get them looking just right.

 My plan was to create a "tufted" top, but found the foam that I used too thick to drive the extra long needle through it...bummmmmmer it would have looked fabulous!  Instead I used the buttons as accent pieces to cover the holes for the original hardware. (see below)  I covered the buttons using extra fabric so they would match exactly.

4) Staple the fabric to underside and trim with grosgrain ribbon.  I used painters tape to help hold the fabric in place and a hammer to ensure the staples were flush with the fabric.

I used fabric glue to adhere the navy grosgrain ribbon to hide the staples and fabric seams.

Ta Dah!

And you may have spotted the headboard of the bed in the "before" picture painted various colors. Stay tuned...the bed is also DONE!

By the way, I was inspired by Jenny Komenda over at "Little Green Notebook"... check out her project here.

Good luck and let me know if you have any questions!
Cheers!
Becky