Hello AT'ers,
I was in Hudson, NY this weekend and saw a few vintage grasscloth covered console tables, similar to the one pictured above and here for $2900.
I love this look but it's out of my price range, but I was thinking that maybe I could get a similar effect by applying grasscloth on more resonably price parsons table, such as the ones they have at West Elm.
I'm a novice DIYer and was wondering if anyone had any thoughts or suggestions on how to accomplish this? Also, would it be important to have a real wood surface or could one apply this to a laminate surface?
All the best, Rebecca
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I used to work for a designer who made rediculous amounts of money having me glue nice paper finishes onto crappy, off the shelf stuff from IKEA... I was a one man decoupage sweat shop... i never used grass cloth but I can't imagine it is much different...... just lightly sand the piece ( it doesn't take much) and apply a good primer, something with a stain blocker and a good grip (maybe Kilz), and glue away.
Sure, solid wood or wood laminate (as found with West Elm tables) would work as a strong enoungh substrate. Finding the right method to lay down the cloth would be the trickier part. My first take is to adhere the cloth with craft store spray adhesive. Spraying one or both surfaces to attach.
Where can you buy grass cloth? I've been looking for this material for a while to make "cat benches."
If you plan on covering a table yourself, even cheaper than West Elm, go to Gothic Cabinet Craft.
OMG I think I have one of these. Are you kidding me? $2900??? Mine is bigger and better that the one shown. Are you kidding me? I was thinking of painting it. OMG I bought it from a decorator in the '70's, so it is possible it's real. How can I tell?
My mother did this (on a parsons console, no less) about 15 years ago. The table is still going strong. She used grasscloth wallpaper. Because the table was narrow, there were no seams.
I saw a guy do it for REAL cheap on a design show once. He ran something like a piece of corrugated cardboard along the semi-wet paint, to create the lines of the grass cloth. Is that too tacky to suggest?
Although I'm sure you can find grasscloth online, here's another possible place: A while back (I think 5 yrs. ago?) I worked at Sheila's Decorating on the Lower East Side - at that time grasscloth wallpaper in a variety of colors was in all of the new wallpaper books. Assuming Sheila's is still around, she also had a basement full of random wallpaper - some vintage, some new. If she happens to have grasscloth, it should be cheaper than ordering from the book. Good luck.
Thanks for all the suggestions! These are great ideas, and I'm glad to hear it sounds very doable.
To kasta - you can definitely find grass cloth online - just do a search for it. There's tons of it out there.
To Team Decor - yes, if it's from the 70s, it could absolutely be as valuable as this. I saw at least 3 of these in antique stores in Hudson and they were all impressively expensive! They all had the rounded corners pictured. Don't paint it!