Thrifted Bench Makeover With Upholstered Seat

Is there anything better than finding an unwanted item at a thrift store and turning it into something useful with just a couple hours of transformative work? Well, maybe when the reinvented item can be used in two ways. In this post, Thrifted Bench Makeover With Upholstered Seat, I show you how I turned a $12 CAD storage bench into an upholstered painted bench seat. I also show you how this storage box can be used as a decorative planter.

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Before Photos

This is the storage bench before the transformation. Since I bought it second hand and there were no identifying markings on it, I don’t know where it was originally purchased from. I have been told by a reader that this is a discontinued IKEA piece, so it’s something some of you may have at home! This small storage bench is solid pine with a clear top coat. The lid lifts out rather than being hinged, which makes it the perfect candidate for easy upholstery and for my bonus use that I’ll share at the end of this post.

Upholstering The Seat Top

I used a 1″ thick layer of upholstery foam cut to the dimensions of the lid. Then, I topped it with a piece of cotton quilting batting to soften the edges and hold the foam in place. I cut the batting large enough to wrap around the sides of the top piece and to have about 2″ excess fabric on the underside.

Next, I flipped the seat upside down with the fabric in place and used my staple gun (with air compressor) to staple the cotton batting in place close to the edges of the lid (about 1/2″ away from the edge). I spaced my staples about 3/4″ apart and pulled the batting tight as I stapled. Start stapling in the middle of one of the sides, adding just a few staples and then stapling down the opposite side. Always leave a few inches open at the corners as these will be the last spots to staple in place. Once I had stapled all the way around, I trimmed the excess batting before adding the fabric I chose.

Adding The Fabric

I choose a pretty tone-on-tone grey houndstooth upholstery-weight fabric for the seat top. To add the fabric, I cut the fabric the same size as I had cut the cotton batting and I stapled it to the underside of the wood using a staple gun. I place the staples about 1/2″ apart and about 1″ from the edge of the wood to entirely cover the cotton layer underneath. I left a few inches unstapled at the corners so that I could mitre the fabric at the corners using a hand sewing needle and thread.

Next, I stapled down the corners, keeping my work as neat as possible. Finally, I carefully trimmed the excess fabric to leave a straight, neat edge on the underside of the seat top. If I was selling this item I would add a decorative gimp but it looked tidy enough for use in our home without the trim. This is a pretty heavy-weight fabric that doesn’t fray or unravel so a finished edge isn’t needed for durability.

Paint

I painted the storage bench a soft shade of taupe, Bedford, by Fusion Mineral Paint. Prior to painting, I wiped the piece down with a wet, soapy cloth, then I lightly sanded, just to give the paint a more textured surface to adhere to. After wiping away the sandpaper dust, I applied two coats of paint with a brush to all four sides as well as the base. I decided not to paint the inside of the box or the underside of the lid. To read more about Fusion Mineral Paint and the easy prep required, click here.

Thrifted Bench Makeover With Upholstered Seat – Use Number 1

The main reason I chose this piece to upholster was to have a small cozy spot for putting on shoes. The storage inside the box is also a great place to store extra shoes, hats, or snow pants in the winter. I styled this little area of our hallway with a sign from KT Inspired Home, a blanket ladder and blankets (click here for my 1-hour blanket ladder tutorial), a snake plant (click here for the easiest and best house plants), and a few fabric pumpkins for fall. The tutorial for the fabric pumpkins can be found here, or you can purchase the completed pumpkins in many colours and sizes here.

Thrifted Bench Makeover With Upholstered Seat – Use Number 2

As mentioned at the beginning of this post, I discovered there is a bonus use for this thrifted bench. If I remove the upholstered seat, it works beautifully as a planter. I filled ours with fall mums and placed them on our front porch. To see all the details of our fall front porch, you can read my post Create An Inviting Front Porch For Fall.

How would you use this little bench?

Summary

I hope you have enjoyed reading about my thrifted bench makeover with upholstered seat. I love sharing my thrifted finds with you and I love the process of transforming a piece into something new and useful. Happy thrifting friends!