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11 Magnolia Lane

Sharing our easy DIYs, decorating, entertaining and more!

Sometimes it works…and then sometimes…

February 16, 2011 By Amy 3 Comments

This Post Contains Affiliate Links

33 shares

As I have mentioned I am working hard to get my home ready to go on the real estate market.  So, recently I have been updating certain problem areas to help my home “show” in the best possible light. As I don’t live close to many retail establishments, this has involved spending LOTS of money with Ballard Designs.

I love Ballard, they are just my taste. I am always happy to see the catalog arrive in my mailbox, and love pouring over each issue. But, as you would expect with mail order, sometimes things work…and sometimes they don’t.

My success today came in the form of the Ballard Couture Chair Covers I ordered for my dining room chairs. This was admittedly, a risk, as I totally don’t have the Ballard chairs they are designed to go on! I did measure my chairs vs. the dimensions in the catalog (as well as sadly, passing on having them monogrammed so I could return them if they didn’t work out) and I knew they would be off, but not by too much.

Here is the “before” of my chairs. They came from Storehouse many years ago, and while I love the lines of my table, I have never loved the chairs. The set was the first furniture my husband and I purchased after we were married for our little townhouse. So, it was time for a little updating. Plus, I recently painted the walls chocolate, with the intention of making almost everything else in the room white.

Here is the chair before: (I had recovered the seats a few years ago)

dining chair

I figured (correctly) that my chairs would need some help to match the dimensions of the slipcovers, but I just added some layers of quilt batting over the back (top) of the chair, and slid the cover on. While it’s not a perfect fit, its fills out the slipcover and is a huge improvement.

Ballard Designs Couture Chair Slipcovers

I know that I could have made something similar, but at $35 each, plus the 15% off coupon Ballard just ran, it was well worth my time to just order them and not pay for materials, childcare and deal with my lack of patience with sewing. I love them! I did not love the amount of ironing they took when they came out of the package–but hopefully the remaining wrinkles will fall out over the next few weeks.

Now, my “fail” of the day…I have been waiting for WEEKS for the Ballard Burlap panels to come back in stock. They arrived yesterday, and after even more ironing, I got them up. Then took them down, rehung the curtain rods higher, and put them back up. Their weight promptly pulled the rods out of the wall, so then I re-anchored them and rehung them again. And decided it was all a waste of time…

Here they are (see the rods still falling out of the wall?)

Ballard Designs burlap curtain panels

In my opinion they just don’t work. While I hoped they would cover up a less then pretty view out the back window, I don’t like how dark they are, and how wide they are in the space. The final straw is the cost of new (more substantial) rods– on top of the curtain cost– it just wouldn’t be worth it just to make the room look good to show. So, back to the drawing board!!! I am thinking a trip to Ikea??? I need a cheap, easy short-term solution, and as always it’s a good place to start.

Thanks for stopping by!

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Filed Under: Dining Rooms, DIY/Projects/Tutorials, Room Makeovers Tagged With: Ballard, Ballard Designs, Before and After, Chair, Decoration, Dining Room, Slipcover

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Bella Michelle says

    February 21, 2011 at 4:05 pm

    Amy, I think the chair covers did wonderfully, especially for not being exact!!! I am a Ballards lover as well and if I had the money, I think I might chuck a lot of what I have and just order it all from them.

    Reply
  2. Michelle says

    February 25, 2011 at 11:22 am

    I am in love with these seat covers… Is there any chance you would share a link to them, as I have had no luck finding them myself…

    Reply
    • Amy says

      February 25, 2011 at 4:48 pm

      Michelle, I just looked on the website and can’t find them either. Strange! I suggest calling Ballard and asking., I am sure they can help. Here is the intem: #UR012 WTW / COUTURE CHAIR PLEATED SLIPCOVER WHITE TWILL 2
      I copied it right off my order history.
      ALSO, there is a 15% off coupon for spending over $200 so look around on the internet for a code if you spend that much! Good luck, I hope they work out for you.
      AMY

      Reply

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  • MEET CHRISTY & AMY
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33 shares