"Retro Fit" Nursing Chair

HOORAY - my sewing moratorium has ended!  Today I feel a huge sense of accomplishment because I finished a very ambitious project of reupholstering a nursing chair that a friend handed down to us about six weeks ago.  It has been sitting in the nursery begging for some lovin' but I've been much too preoccupied to give it any attention until very recently.  Unfortunately it was always there in the back of my mind, and as I continued to progress closer to my due date I became increasingly worried about not being able to tackle this project.  As you can see from my recent posts my belly has taken on a life of it's own (well, I guess it really has!) and my growing physical discomforts made me doubtful about my ability to crawl around on the floor to measure and fit this chair.  I started off slowly, spending only 30 min or an hour here and there last week when I had the time (or energy)...but then this weekend I was completely motivated to go all-out.  A lot of that probably has to do with knowing I don't have to work tomorrow because Friday was my last day of work for a whole year - crazy!

First let me show you photos of the original nursing chair. It's a pretty comfortable glider that rocks back and forth as well as swivels a full 360 degrees.  There was nothing actually wrong with the original microfiber cover but I wanted to make it a bit more updated and cheerful for the nursery.  Then I started to wonder whether I was really being too picky but after this weekend I'm very happy I stuck with my original idea.

The hardest part was trying to figure out how I wanted to sew the pieces and whether or not to reuse the existing pockets, straps, cushioning, etc.  Having to take on such a huge project with no pattern or guidance was pretty daunting.  I decided to make something fitted that would completely encase the existing microfiber fabric but could be easily removable to throw in the wash.  That of course was easier said than done.  I found that several times last week while trying to fall asleep my mind was actually doing mental gymnastics to figure out how to cut the fabric for the slip cover.  In the end I actually made six separate pieces, all easily removable, to completely encase the chair and existing padding.

Zipper for quick removal

I first took on the seat cushion and chair backing, which are actually attached to each other in the original glider chair. This made it really awkward to measure and handle because the two halves kept flopping around and became trip hazards.  Still, I was reluctant to cut them into two pieces because I figured the attachment was a good way of preventing the cushion from sliding forward in the chair when you were seated in it. I decided to make two separate slip covers for this part of the chair.  The first fits snugly around the seat cushion and has a Velcro flap that helps secure it to the metal frame beneath it.  The second wraps all around the back of the chair with a zipper down the middle to make it easier for putting on or taking off.  There were a few extra complexities due to the structure of the metal frame which required the addition of slits, straps, and snap buttons to the back cover (ugh) but it worked out in the end.

Securing the main slip covers to the chair

To be honest once these two pieces were done I was already quite relieved.  The arm rests are much smaller pieces to handle and I figured there would be a lot less sitting on the floor and wrestling with falling foam.  As I show here each arm rest is also made up of two slip covers (which is how I get to six separate pieces in total).  

Two slip covers for each arm rest

One of the slip covers (on the left) wraps around the main arm rest and is secured with an elastic seam.  The second slip cover (on the right) is more cosmetic and helps to hide most of the metal frame under the chair.  The original flaps each have a huge pocket so I decided to add one on each side flap as well.

Pocket for magazines or burp cloths

Putting the side flap onto the arm rest

Finally Mike helped me screw in the arm rests to the frame of the chair.  I was SO pleased at how well everything fit together!  And I am doubly pleased that each of the six slip covers can be removed for washing without ever disassembling the chair again.  Very convenient for the many spit-ups I anticipate will be happening in this chair.

Yay for sewing!

Just lounging in my new retro chair!