DIY Upholstered Ottoman

Below is a glimpse of our first apartment in Provo. We were living large...500 square feet! Yes, we had hideous blue commercial carpet. Yes, we had a swamp cooler that was so obnoxiously loud we had to shout across the room to talk to each other. Yes, many hours were spent on this coffee table studying for tests. I'm getting super nostalgic here...yikes. Can you tell I miss Provo a bit? (weird!)

About that coffee table. We bought it from Target when we first got married. It worked really well but we found ourselves always wanting to put our feet up on it and it was super uncomfortable (#firstworldproblems). So for a few years I searched everywhere for an ottoman and couldn't find anything I really liked. I bet most people could find something quicker than that, but I was on a budget and didn't want to dish out $500 for something I didn't love. When we were visiting family, my aunt Leslie mentioned they were going to make their own ottoman. After some thinking, Cory and I decided we could do the same. This way, we could save money and could make it exactly how we wanted.

Here is how we made it: 

MATERIALS

• 2 yards of fabric (I used Robert Allen's Casablanca Geo in Citrine at $18.95/yard=$42.89)
• Staple gun 
• Sewing machine, heavy duty needle and thread
• 1.3 yards of foam (Foam was 50% off plus a 10% off coupon at Jo-Anns=$36.58) 
• Screws 
• Spray paint 
• Wood: 1 4x4, 1 2x4, and 1 2x4 sheet of plywood
• Spray adhesive

We decided the size we wanted and luckily, the piece of plywood we bought was pretty close to that. No cutting needed there. Then Cory cut the 2x4 into four pieces to make the frame.

Ok guys. Who knew foam was so expensive? I seriously do not understand this. But here is the spray adhesive we used to glue the wooden frame to the foam. 

(Side note: most people would put batting and/or foam to covering the wood on the sides. I was so tired at this point and didn't really care. But it would have been smart to have that extra padding.)

So now the fun part: the fabric! I placed the fabric on top of the foam and board and lined up the pattern. I also tucked in the corners so I could see what it would look like once sewn together and the edges stapled down.

Then I untucked the fabric and measured about two inches from the frame (two inches was plenty of room and I ended up having to cut a lot off the bottom after stapling). I drew a line around the entire ottoman, and then cut the fabric along the lines. 

I also cut a line from the bottom corner to the top corner, where the seam would be. 

This is where my fold would be:

All cut and ready to sew.

Using upholstery thread and a thicker needle, I sewed a line about an inch from where I cut my corners. I did this for all four corners.

Then I put the cover back on and to my astonishment, it fit! 

Had a little too much fun with the staple gun. 

Then Cory had to make the legs. This part ended up being the biggest headache. He cut the 4x4 into four pieces to make the legs about nine high. 

He drew on the frame where the legs would go and then numbered each leg to its designated corner.

Drilled a hole in each corner and lined them up with a screw on the leg.

We sanded the legs down and spray painted them dark brown.

Accidentally covering the labels Cory put on, we had to guess which corner they belonged to! Oops.

At this point I remember it being super late and night and we were both so tired. But I was so excited to have this bad boy done!

And here it is! This was our old apartment in Kansas. 

And then our place here in CA. I was so pleased with how it turned out! And thanks to Cory for doing all of the hard work.

Learning to love the process

I guess an update is in order! We are now California residents. Seriously can't believe it. We never ever thought we would end up here, and in Palos Verdes of all places (where both of my parents grew up). I've been coming here every summer so this place definitely feels like home. 

Let's rewind to about two months ago. We were in Overland Park, Kansas where Cory had a great job. But we felt that we needed to start looking for something else. He then flew out here for an interview and the rest is history. He's loved his new position and it definitely helps that:

1. my parents and brother live in San Diego, two hours away

2. my grandpa, aunt and uncle + their family live 10 minutes away

3. we live four blocks from the ocean

4. it is 70-80 degrees and sunny every. single. day.

I know to some, this may sound amazing but I don't want to mislead anyone. We have had our fair share of late nights and some big tears were shed as we made the decision to leave Kansas. We loved loved loved living there. We had no idea our hearts would be touched by so many wonderful people. But you go where the job takes you. And we should basically be pro's at moving by now, considering we made the big haul from Utah to Kansas just 10 months ago. But it always seems to be a huge pain. And to top it off, Cory and I both had strep throat which makes for a no bueno road trip across the country. Even though we were very fortunate to be given this opportunity, we had to pick up and go pretty much two weeks after we made our decision. It was a lot of work. I'm on the job hunt again. And in the past four years of our marriage, Cory and I have moved six times! But hopefully we're here to stay awhile. I am trying to work on this:

We are absolutely loving every minute of being here. We are so so happy. Visitors, you are very much welcome!

Side note: this is my cute younger brother Peter, right after he won second place in his golf tournament! So excited to see this guy more.

Paris is always a good idea.

These pictures are long overdue, but I love them so much I had to share. In April, we spent a few days in Holland and then went to France. It was so nice to go with Cory, my parents and brother--we soaked up every drop we could of the Parisian culture. 

Our view from our apartment in Montmartre. The Sacre Coeur is peeking out in the back. Loved this apartment--what a find! In Paris almost all of the hotels are teeny tiny, but we found this gem with two separate bedrooms and a kitchen for an amazing rate, just because we booked it for three days. It wasn't anything fancy, but because it was clean and we had more than enough space, we felt like kings and queens!

My favorite view of Paris (from the Sacre Coeur).

Our favorite restaurant in Paris, Babalou! Trip Advisor rates it #31 out of 10,000 restaurants in Paris and it was outstanding. The food, ambience, and service was excellent. Not to mention we loved it so much we went there twice!

Pear and gorgonzola pizza (divine).

It doesn't get better than this: the best moelleux chocolat I've ever had.

Ghost man escaping from the cemetary in Montmartre.

View from atop the Eiffel Tower...

You can't go to Paris without eating a crepe...

Creepy statues around the Louvre...

View from atop the Arc de Triomphe...

One of the bedchambers in Versailles. Can you say diva? Every piece of the wall covered in gold or fabric. Ri-dic-u-lous.

One of my favorite places we visited was the darling town of Chartres. We stopped here on our way to Normandy and it took our breath away! Driving through the countryside of France is beautiful, but we were so amazed to see this spectacular cathedral in a small little town. I mean look how huge it is! Stunning.

The church was built in the 12th century and the interior is currently being restored. Many historical churches are decayed and darkened so it was amazing to see what it looked like when it was first built.

Kitesurfers in Le Havre

The Normandy beaches.

The American cemetery.

Pointe du Hoc. 

The memorial and trenches. There were also many bomb craters spread throughout the grounds along the coastline. You definitely get a huge feeling of respect and admiration for our veterans when you come here. A few weeks ago, my dad recommended the movie, Honor Flight. After WWII, many of our veterans came home and never received a proper welcome. The WWII veterans are very old, some are terminally ill and until recently, many of them had never visited their memorials. This documentary shows an organization's goal of helping every single veteran in America visit their memorial. Definitely worth watching. 

There you have it, our trip in a nutshell!