Introduction: Reusing an Old Fold-up Chair

About: Hello, my name is Kevin. I like to tinker in the workshop transforming the ideas I've engineered in my head into reality. My professional background is in automotive mechanical restoration and general metal …

Everyone probably has one of these old fold up camping chairs laying around or seen them in the garbage.  I decided to take this one into the shop to see what I could reuse.

Step 1: Disassemble the Old Chair

Disassemble the old chair.  I ran into a couple of aluminum rivets I had to drill out and that was all.  You're left over with the frame which is a bunch of tubing.  This tubing of course can be used for a variety of projects... wind chimes, pegs for a coat rack, etc.  For this instructable however, I'll stash all this sweet tubing for a another project and focus on the soft parts. 

Step 2: The Leftover Arms

For the rest of this project the tools I used were a hole puncher, a grommet kit, and a pair of scissors.  If you're missing these tools they can be found at any fabric shop, leather-working supply, etc. 

On the leftover arms I simply punched a hole and added a small grommet on the opposite end from the big grommet.  I then used a screw to secure it to a post in the shop, leaving some of the screw protruding out for the big grommet to hook onto.  Easy storage solution for hoses, extension cords, etc.

Step 3: The Leftover Seat and Seat Back Section

Here's the nice squarish part of the seat and seat back section.  On one end (towards the bottom of the picture) is a pad that was the old headrest.  The other end has some worn through grommets and then there are also some grommets in the middle.  An idea has popped into my head... an apron! 

Step 4: Added Some New Grommets

I noticed a leftover spot within the reinforcement section of the fabric at the top.  I punched a new hole on each side and inserted a grommet.  I then ran a rope from one hole to the other, creating the loop that goes around your neck.  I also tied some rope to each of the grommets in the center which will act as the ties to hold around your waist.  So simple! 

After having used it a bit, I think this makes a great shop apron.  I'm about 5'9" tall and 200 lbs, to give you an idea of the size... (please excuse my dog Crash and my disheveled hat hair). The apron covers most all of my chest and the cutouts around the waist are useful because it allows you to get to your pockets easier.  The material itself is strong, the backside of this one has a water resistant layer (though I don't know if they're all like that).  One other thing I noticed is that if you locate the pad at the bottom of the apron with your knees it acts like a built-in knee pad for those times you have to be kneeling.  Much more comfortable than having your knees directly on the ground. 

Well I hope you've enjoyed my first Instructable!  Thank you for visiting my page!  If you really liked it please vote for me in the Weekend Projects Contest.  Thanks! 

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