I’m back as promised with:
- an egg chair update (since I just tossed pillows on it but promised to share the rest of the details once we figured out a real seat and all that jazz)
- three new egg chairs that we recently brought home
I guess we should skip right ahead to those huh? Don’t worry, our living room doesn’t look like an egg chair family reunion. They’re of the dollhouse variety (you can read more on Clara’s DIY dollhouse here):
When a super sweet reader (thanks Nicole!) told me CB2 had them on clearance for 50 cents each (wahooo!) I couldn’t resist. They’re actually Christmas ornaments (hence the super sale price so far into the year) and all I needed to do was clip off the string that was meant to hang them from the tree and they became serviceable chairs for a certain small pig family. So that’s how three of them somehow ended up in my cart and I just clicked “buy” – and the rest, as they say, is history.
The fun part is that Clara loves putting Olivia and the rest of her family in them since they’re a bit more “hold-y” than her other chairs (they don’t slip out as much as they do in the smoother and smaller brass chairs that she has in a few other rooms). So that’s the dollhouse upgrade that’s going on.
But back to the real-person-sized egg chair in the corner of the living room. Remember when we got it from a local thrift store and he looked like this?
And then we painted him and tossed a few already-had-them-around pillows on during the “just for now” phase?
Well, we’re finally in the “taa-daa, it’s finished” phase thanks to a pretty simple and cheap-o update. Yup, we landed on a permanent seat cushion for the guy. And oh happy day, it doesn’t look like a feminine hygiene product anymore.
Although I thought I might end up buying foam and fabric to make a custom seat, we ended up finding a seat cushion on sale for $14 at Pier 1 in a soft blue tone that’s pretty much a neutral in our house (it’s in nearly every room in some form – like art, pillows, curtains, etc). We weren’t sure if it would fit the chair though (it has a pretty unique rounded shape) so we just bought it and hoped for the best. Turns out it totally didn’t fit at all:
Womp-womp.
But then I wondered what would happen if I turned it around so the rounded part that should be the back of the cushion was facing out towards the front. Lo and behold, it sat a lot better and actually looked like it made sense!
So I cut off the ties and the tag which were screaming “this is the back of the cushion” and didn’t look back. Oh yes, I’m such a rebel. It actually kind of looked like a custom cushion made just for the chair since it’s such an unusual shape and it laid so well on top of the chair. Then it was just back-pillow time and I tossed a few different options on there. Like this blue and white back pillow from HomeGoods a while back:
And this faux fur pillow from Target last year:
And this bunny pillow from HomeGoods a few months back:
I finally landed on this rhino-meets-pig combo (the pig pillow is from a local store called Buford Rd Pharmacy a while back):
So that’s the story of our egg chair’s quickie new cushion solution with a bonus dollhouse egg chair update tossed in there for good measure. Ten points for anyone eating an egg sandwich while reading this post.
Is anyone else out there buying chair cushions or turning things around to see if they work better backwards than forwards? Any other dollhouse decorating going on?
Love how you and Clara both have pigs in your chairs!!
Haha, I didn’t even notice that. Hilarious. There’s a subconscious pig theme.
xo,
s
Haha – I was just going to comment on the same thing! I actually thought it was a joke in the first picture since you had just shown Clara’s pigs in her chairs. Too funny.
for real! that’s awesome!
I thought the same thing! :)
Adorable! I still love that pigs live in the dollhouse! :)
Girl you are just too awesome! Great solution and it looks perfect!
LOL about the old cushion looking like a feminine hygiene product. Didn’t occur to me before, but yep, that assessment is spot on. (Apologies for the pun there.)
Nice switch up on the pillow – the color is great and it does look like it belongs that way. More importantly, I like how your chair has a little pig in it, just like Clara’s! Very fun!
I think you should call it a bacon and egg chair now.
Hahahahahhhhahahahahahahahahah. DONE!
xo,
s
Best.post.of.the.day!
Winner!
omg! Yay!! You got them!! And you really did shout me out!!! OMG! You guys are the coolest!! LOOOVE THE CHAIRS! And can’t believe how similar they are to your very own egg chair!! Waahooo!! :) Looks awesome!
Haha, thanks again for the tip Nicole! Clara loves them. And don’t tell her, but I totally play with them when she’s in bed. Shh.
xo,
s
Imagine if someone had a whole blog dedicated to redecorating a doll house. THAT was my first thought when I saw those mini egg chairs. As for your egg chair, props to you for thinking of turning the cushion around. It looks completely custom!
We just had a new couch cover arrive and when we got it in the room and put it on our couch, the light gray turned BLUE. I need a quick fix for that. Stat!
Someone does! I follow her on my Reader and it’s amazing! Here’s the link: http://minimodern.blogspot.com/
xo,
s
I love that the little chairs in Clara’s dollhouse and your big chair both house pigs. Such a subtle, cute tie in!
Need my Burger fix!
Check out Young House Life today: http://life.younghouselove.com/ (he has also been all over instagram and facebook lately- he’s a ham)
xo,
s
What a cute egg, pig story! Love the pillow, I’ll have to stop by but never knew they had decor there!
Oh yes, there’s so much fun house stuff in there. You’ll love it!!
xo,
s
Did anyone else find it odd that there would be egg chairs hanging on a Christmas tree? Great for a dollhouse find, funny hanging on a tree as an ornament!
Totally! I just can’t believe they’re the right scale! I worried they’d be giant or too tiny. Lo and behold, they’re perfectly sized for a family of plastic pigs.
xo,
s
Your own egg chair looks great with the new cushions…but I keep going back to look at the dollhouse. I want one of my own (I’m 34) to decorate! So fun! So much cheaper than decorating my own house! Those chairs are awesome and so stylish. Am I the only one remembering the Friends episode where Monica brought out her childhood dollhouse and Phoebe made her own with a ghost and a dinosaur? I feel like I would be very much a Monica with my own dollhouse, no dinos allowed. Clara’s pigs are great, though :)
Hahahahahahha, I love that episode.
xo,
s
FIX ME
What a great find on those CB2 chairs! I *may* be purchasing them right now even though there is currently no dollhouse in our home. I do have dreams of building one for my nieces to love on! Never hurts to be prepared, right?!?
Haha- they’re such a deal!
xo,
s
So I have a random question. How is your egg chair different than a small papasan chair? I keep looking at all of the pictures in the different posts and can’t see any difference.
It might not be. Haha. To me a papasan chair is tilted way back (it’s so reclined that you climb into it instead of just sitting down). This guy is tilted forward like a real chair and much smaller (you just sit down like a normal person, haha). There are pics of me and Clara sitting in it in a few of the posts I linked to in this one that might help!
xo,
s
Haha! I’ve been thinking the same thing, but didn’t want to ask and come off sounding rude! It’s just a mini-papasan chair which makes me wonder why you guys don’t make a nice round cushion for it. I’m so clutzy I would be putting my elbows through the holes in the wood all of the time!
It’s so hard to explain but since it’s not reclined I bet you wouldn’t slip into the sides or anything. Just like you can sit in a normal chair with arms without sliding into the space between the seat and the arms in that case it’s kind of the same thing. The pics of me and Clara in it might make it more clear though :)
xo,
s
Jessica, I couldn’t stand it anymore! I had to ask! I swear I have looked at every picture 10 times. LOL. And the whole time I’m thinking “Why doesn’t Sherry just buy one of those round papasan cushions?”
The pics of you sitting in it help some. You definitely sit up more in your chair. It looks comfy though, that’s for sure!
Haha, so glad those pics helped!
xo,
s
Although I no longer have my blue apron, I used to work at Pier 1 so I might be able to shed some light on the mini papasan vs. YHL egg chair debate! There are two main differences that I can see:
1. A Pier 1 papasan “bowl” and base are not attached to each other. From the looks of the pictures, the YHL egg chair “bowl” is attached to the base.
2. The YHL egg chair is attached to the small circular end of the base whereas a papasan is meant to sit in the large ciruclar end of the base.
It seems possible that it was a mini papasan that someone MacGyvered into its current egg chair form. A mini papasan cusion might fit (if they even make them anymore) but Sherry, I think your cushion solution looks a whole lot more modern!
Pier 1 used to have a papasan rocker with a bowl that was attached to the base (and rocked!) that was more like a chair to sit in but there wasn’t a mini version and the “bowl” was more oval in shape. The original cushion you inherited with your purchase looks like it was meant to fit that type of rocking papasan chair or a rather small double papasan chair, but I digress…
Whenever you want way more information than anyone could possibly ever need about Pier 1 furniture from the late 90s, I’m your gal!
Yes, it’s attached to the base and it swivels! Good points Julie! I didn’t even think about that! Haha.
xo,
s
I don’t know if you mentioned this before, or someone suggested it and it’s not what you’re wanting, but you do know they make actual cushions in all colors that fit that sized chair. I worked at Pier 1 Imports back in the day and they sold them all the time. Just an option if you didn’t know since it came with the double wide version cushion that didn’t go at all :)
Thanks Sara! We looked at what they sold and we liked the idea of a smaller seat cushion so you could see some of the “spines” of the chair on the sides (since you only sit on the bottom of the chair, not really on the curved sides of it) – so we didn’t want to cover the whole thing like a papasan chair. Hope that makes sense!
xo,
s
Raise your hand if you thought the chairs in the first picture were life sized. Anyone? Anyone? Just me?
Hahah, I totally did, as well. I thought it was a picture out of a magazine used for inspiration, in fact…
Ditto! Thought it was out of Houzz mag or somewhere really swanky:)
Me too! Totally fooled me.
Same here. My first thought was I LOVE THAT ROOM!
I just ate an egg and cheese crossiant like 30 mins before reading this! Whoa…
Haha, ten points for you!
xo,
s
What is the color of your bricks? Are they blue?
They’re a soft gray color (Moonshine by BM) but they definitely look different depending on your monitor.
xo,
s
I bought a set of wicker hoop chairs (regular & rocker) a while ago and have been trying to find a cushion that will work on them- Now I’m going to try your “backwards idea”!
I think Clara’s chairs need some pillows… maybe you can make some cases for a cotton ball :)
Hahaha, I love that!
xo,
s
Is it weird that I want to live in Clara’s dollhouse?
I’m obsessed with the wallpaper in her living room!
Haha, me too! I want to go to there.
xo,
s
All four look fab! No egg sandwich for me but bizzarely I was eating a long left over creme egg whilst reading! yum…
Haha, nice!
xo,
s
Your dollhouse furniture is just adorable! Some lucky little girl must be thrilled to peices!
Love the pig pillow- but the rest look great too!
Clara has the cutest dollhouse EVER.
For some reason your egg chair always looks like it’s tiny to me. I know in the pic you showed of you sitting in it that it’s not but something in the perception throws me off. Maybe I just haven’t had enough coffee?
Haha me too! In pics it looks so small – that’s part of the reason I made John take my picture in it! Haha.
xo,
s
Would you ever considering stitching the ties to the underside of the cushion, so you can hold it to the chair (without the ties being seen), so it doesn’t slip around when you sit…or a certain toddler climbs / dog jumps on it?
That could work! It’s sort of cradled by the chair so it thankfully doesn’t slip much but it couldn’t hurt.
xo,
s
LOVE IT!! I’m already planning a dollhouse for Christmas 2013! I can’t wait! I know, it’s sick. What can I say?! I had never thought about ornaments (can you say baby grand!!)
Ahhhhh I love that idea!!
xo,
s
I’m eating an egg sandwich! (Well technically it’s a sausage, egg and cheese sandwich from Starbucks.) Where do I collect my bonus points? :P
Wahoo! Ten points hereby granted to Olivia.
xo,
s
It looks great! What a lucky find that cushion was! And I love your fur pillow… so much fabulous texture!
Hahaha…I was actually eating an egg sandwich when I read that part and I LOL! I love thenew cushions and the little pig is to die for! Looks like a very cozy corner.
EGG CHAIR ORNAMENTS?!?! FOR 50¢?!?! What are the odds?
Love all the egg chairs.
AGHHHHH!
Get out of my brain! Totally just sat down to eat an egg salad sandwich and see what you guys were up to today. Love the pig pillow.
Hahahahaha!
xo,
s
Gosh I just love that little doll house of Clara’s. That first picture looks like it could be out of a Home decor magazine.
I love the new cushion too! Gotta love those Pier 1 finds.
Now I want scrambled eggs….yummmm
lol…as I was reading this post, I was eating a bacon and egg sandwich! Does that count for double points??
Double points!
xo,
s
Don’t get me wrong here- I love what you’ve done with the egg chair, but somehow I feel like all this tweaking is because you’re trying to make it into something its not- namely the “one that got away” at goodwill (the other one that you went back for along with this one that was already gone). This just looks like a dressed up papasan to me. I feel like lately you guys have been making hasty decisions and then having to go back and fix/tweak a lot of things. I know that’s how you roll and having a blog with constant pressure for updates may necessitate this but in the real world (non-blog land) people generally think carefully about decisions and move a little slower- doing it once the right way is sometimes better than doing it 3 times quickly just to get something up (i.e., your kitchen light, shelf brackets, original bedroom duvet/curtains/paint color..)
Our first house took over four years of tweaking, a few of them without a blog and some of them with it. I think it’s just how we work. I really think the only way we learn is by “doing” (and not getting frozen with indecision, since waiting doesn’t guarantee any better result). We did think about our kitchen for over a year before beginning and are still debating our carport to garage conversion, so the big things definitely still get thought to death! Haha.
xo,
s
Actually, I like when YHL goes back and tweaks things – in a perfect world, we all have time, money and vision enough to do things once and only once – but that’s not very real life for most of us. Sometimes it’s a minor change that makes all the difference – sometimes our tastes actually change a bit – and sometimes you just have to try something and see if it works – and alter if it doesn’t. I doubt there’s a designer in the world who gets everything perfect the first time around – even if they’re not spending their own money or labor.
Heck, I’m going to work on my bathroom over Labor Day – perfect world, a nice gut job – real world – some new paint and probably reusing a lot of the existing fixtures. Then someday I will do the gut job I want – but in the meantime I think I’ll be happy with my tweaking.
I agree…. It actually makes me feel better about re-doing a room or color on the walls etc. I think if the Petersiks change their mind or realize that what they thought they liked is actually something different then what they thought or originally did then I am in great company!
Aw thanks guys!
xo,
s
Tweaking is the name of the game in decorating. You can’t know exactly how or if something is going to work until you try it and there is always something you hadn’t thought of or seen before that becomes your best and favorite option.
Also if you pay attention to design shows… for ex. Candice Olsen and Dear Genevieve… you will see that they buy a ton of different options at the same time and try them all out before settling on the final design. Sherry and John are just doing that in real time on a real budget and I love it! It’s creative, it’s evolving and it’s not some bland showroom.
Agree with the others on the tweaks and reality.
Last night as my husband was falling asleep he said, “I really don’t like the direction of the bed. It reminds me of the set up when I was in rehab” (from his hit-by-car-while-riding-a-bike accident).
I asked him, “do you want to rearrange the room now?” and he remarked, “yes!”
So the once half-asleep man became an awake-bedroom-moving man in a matter of seconds. We moved nearly everything in the room minus his writing desk (we live in a 2 BR duplex.. not much space).
The perks are crazy!
*He can write and I barely see the light at night because our dresser separates the area (and my side is closest to his writing area).
*He now has a walk space to the bathroom (bed not against the wall).
*There is a mini “nursing” space of “play with the kid” hang out space when she comes around Thanksgiving.
*It feels as if there are 2 or 3 rooms in there, but all cohesively united in a 9×12 space.
*I slept better than I have any night we’ve been here (maybe because it’s not a ga-zillion degrees and we don’t have a/c, but maybe… because of the change?).
May each person do what is best for him/her whenever inspiration hits. Sometimes you gotta trust what works for you… :-)
PS Maybe you need a new blog category… Peter-tweaks ;-) (or not.. your call.. your blog.. will support anyway!)
Aw I love that story Wendy. Late night tweaks are the best!
xo,
s
Super clever with the seat cushion! And I love how there are egg chairs in the pig house and a pig in the egg chair in the real house! Too funny!
Is it strange that I wish the dollhouse bird “wallpaper” was real wallpaper and I could put it in my house? Never mind….I don’t care if it’s weird…I <3 it!
Haha me too!
xo,
s
Doll house egg chairs – SO CUTE!!! Our egg chairs have a round cushion in it so no matter how you sit, you are always comfy cozy. They are getting a little tattered now so I am thinking of either putting a seat cover over them or a total redo.
How many points for fried eggs (since that’s what I’m currently having)?
I am still in love with Clara’s dollhouse and if I had a sweet girl as opposed to an 8 year old boy I would definitely make one. Actually if the boy wanted a dollhouse I’d make it for him. Alas, he does not.
Double points for that.
xo,
s
Ok, those chairs are the strangest things I have seen. Not as the adorable doll house chairs you are using them as. That is perfect and looks like they were meant to be. But as “ornaments”, Huh? I kept clicking on the pictures on the CB2 site but they still made no sense. I noticed they were not hung up in the pictures, just kind of sitting there. Very strange. Glad you found such a cute and unstrange use for them!
If I were eating an egg sandwich I would have spit it out when I came to the feminine hygiene product comment! Too funny!
Inquiring minds want to know — just how many ‘pillows-in-waiting’ do you currently have? Noticed several in the before photo of the adult egg chair :-)
Oh yes John says I have a pillow problem. A lot live on the daybed in the crazy cluttered playroom and the one in the sunroom is overstuffed too.
xo,
s
Do you think my boys would be mad if I made them an adorable doll house complete with cool fabrics and furniture?
Yeah, I thought so!
Love the dollhouse update! I also really liked the set up with the blue and white pillow on your egg chair.
CAN I GET 20 BONUS POINTS FOR EATING A HARD-BOILED EGG? LOVE THE BLUE CUSHION!
Totally counts!
xo,
s
The new cushions look great!
I love the dollhouse you made so much…I can’t wait until my baby girl is old enough so we can make her one. That’s one big toy that I wouldn’t mind displaying in the living room!
OMG! loving Clara’s egg chairs for her dollhouse! That is just the sweetest thing ever :)
Soo cute!! I really like the 3 doll house egg chairs. Ridiculously adorable.
ingenioussolutionsfortheuninspired.blogspot.com
I love every single thing you guys have done to your house but I am still not feeling like this chair is complete. I love the base of it and I definitely understand you not wanting to cover up all of its awesome bones but those pillows still look like a temporary solution to me. I really feel like it needs a full cushion to be more inviting or to look like it was always meant to be that way. If you moved it away from the wall couldn’t you put it so that the back is visible and you’d see all the fun lines?
I hate to be “that person” but I feel this chair has so much potential and if anyone can make it sing, it’s you guys. I really am hoping this isn’t the last update we see on the “bacon and egg” chair.
Haha, it’s certainly possible that it’ll continue to evolve like the rest of our house!
xo,
s