the "other" stereo cabinet

So, the whole 'stereo cabinet hysteria' started with my fabulous neighbor Linda, aka my shopper/scouter extraordinaire.  She actually bought the first stereo cabinet which of course got me thinking.

I could do that, I thought.  So the next time I came across one at the Goodwill, I snatched it up.  The staff there all looked at me like I had totally lost it, for the record.  More than one of them asked me... "But what are you going to do with it?"

Meanwhile, Linda was struggling with her stereo cabinet.  We consulted on sanding, primer & fabric.  She shopped for hinges and spent hours on the demolition of the innards (the non-functioning stereo components).

Here is where she was, at this point, in her own words...

So you can put in your blog that your “neighbor scout” got so excited she decided to try a project herself and spent days roaming fabric and hardware stores asking herself  “WWKD?”  (what would Kathie do?).  Ultimately, she decided that the best course of action was to “let Kathie do it” and go back to scouting!


HA!!!  I was very happy to take over the project :)

So here is the progression of the piece, step by step.  

This is the best thing I have to a 'before' picture.  Thank you, Linda, for sharing these with me!

 Look familiar yet?  The fabric panels used to be in the empty spots on either side of the piece.

 Looking at that crowbar is making my hand cramp up.  Oh, the memories...

 All gutted out.

 Primed.

And, first coat of paint, and in it's new home in my driveway.

It felt right at home here in the land of unfinished projects.  What movie does that make you think of? 


Rudolph & the Island of Misfit Toys!  Did you get it?!

 I painted the three top panels a chocolate brown.  I would have loved to stain them, but they weren't solid wood.  My dad also helped me cut new panels for the front & back.

Sometimes I think I should rename my blog... A Few Good Pieces & One Great Dad.  It has a nice ring to it, doesn't it?

 Then I chose the new panels from my latest fabric stash ~ I've got quite a collection of yummy fabrics going here.

 Loving the fabric & the way the pattern mimics chicken wire from a distance.

And then it sat & sat, waiting on me & my dad to find the right hinges for the top.

And then it was finally ready to come inside.

 The piece has three interior sections, perfect for knitting storage, arts & crafts, or toys.  Each interior section has it's own lid that opens independently, as you can see in these pictures.

 It has got some great details on the trim work & the legs are so sweet.

I really see this as more of a bench than a trunk ~ a bench with storage.  Lots of potential!


In other news, the reason things have been so quite here on the blog this week is...

Can you even stand it?  In this room, we have the makings of:

• 22 centerpieces for our women's christmas dinner at church
• nametags for grandparents day volunteers at the school
• 'special' nametags for the grandparents day committee
• frames being painted for christmas gifts
• magnets being made to coordinate with christmas gifts
• donations (in bags) for the children's hospital 'art cart' from my 8 year olds birthday party (still need to get those to the hospital!!)
• christmas card labels (I am physically incapable of writing them ~ I learned to hold my pencil incorrectly, which never affected me {thank goodness} until I was in my 30's.  Now I can't write more than a grocery list without my whole arm seizing up!)

My cricut is practically smoking due to over~use.  

One more piece of scrumptious eye candy before I go...

Could you just eat him up?  The fat hands & fingers, the drool, the wispy-almost-head-of-hair?  This is my sweet nephew!

Thanks for coming by, everyone!

kathie