screw it

screws. my nemesis of the week. 

I finished my last final exam Thursday evening and wasted no time getting started on my Christmas break to-do list, namely, my latest upholstery project. Things with the tear down went smoothly until it was time to take off the legs.

 Oh, those legs. 

There were a total of 4 screws and a bolt holding in each leg/arm combination - and boy, were those screws really in there. Rusted, in deep, and looking worn. It took me about a half hour to get leg number one off, but leg number two left me completely defeated. 

After a few text conversations with my brother-in-law (and he just redid their kitchen, so I figured he could easily help his sister-in-law several states away remove an old screw in no time, right?), and a few google searches, I was not any closer to getting those screws even a tiny bit loose. Wd40'd them like crazy, heated them, pounded them, cried at them, heated them again, and even tried to rationally negotiate with them, all to no avail. 

So this morning I called my more local brother-in-law, packed 'ol Sally in the trunk of the car, and drove to his auto body shop so he could have a look and use much more extensive tools than I have in my mini home upholstery shop (I mean, they fix cars. They can easily remove a few screws, right?). 

It still took a good 30 minutes, but with a lot of banging, twisting, and pulling they were finally free. 

And this, is likely the cause of all my turmoil. 

Who knew screws could bend so much!?

Back home the fabric was off in no time, along with the layers of old matted (and musty smelling!) cotton.  

The webbing on the back was extremely loose and needs to be replaced as does the burlap over the springs. 

Leaving her slightly vulnerable looking:

And still, I panic a little looking at a chair like this. Can I really make that look like a chair again? I mean, it's really just two wooden squares loosely nailed together at this point. 

I'll begin the rebuilding process this weekend: reinforcing some wood, adding on the webbing, burlap, foam, and cotton. 

I'm also really hoping to pick out fabric this weekend - I can't decide what to do with those leg/arms until I know my fabric (paint? stain? what color?). 

So a special thank you shout to my brother-in-laws without whom I would never be able to complete my most dreaded part of upholstery: the tear down.