Oilcloth projects - not just for tabletops

Oilcloth really is a wonderful thing (you know, that vinyl/plasticky coated cotton fabric stuff)
I actually underestimated my love for it until I scoured the house for  'things what I have made from oilcloth'. I was quite astounded by the amount of stuff  I've done across a range of different surfaces and for a variety of different purposes.
And the best thing is you can wipe sticky 'kid marks' off the stuff. Kid marks by the way, not Skid marks although I'm sure it's perfect for that too.
For example there's lined cupboards and umpteen lined drawers (essential for an old Doris), 1 roller blind, 1 shoe pocket thingy, 2 tray bases and bags of varying shapes and sizes as well as 2 stool coverings (it always goes back to poo doesn't it?!)
Over time I've sourced the cloth from a variety of places including Ebay, Cath Kidston and of course the predictable charity shop, whereby some creations started life as an apron or random remnant, languishing in the box next to the embroidered tablecloths. All bought, as usual, with no immediate purpose in mind but for the fact I rather liked it at the time and thought "it'll come in..."

1. Stools - doggy style: now I'm not a lover of dogs per se, however I quite like a dog in a coat so I thought I'd recover these old bland, black, otherwise-perfectly-fine-and-functional bar stools. One quick look at the underside revealed a few easily removeable screws. I therefore knew I could simply stretch the oilcloth over the top of the existing covering of the removed seat pad, stapling all around underneath.
Time taken = approx 1 hour. Simps!

2. Bags - doggy style: not one to let a scrap go to waste, I ran up a couple of little bags  with the leftover bits to put my bathroom unmentionables in.

3. Tabletops (I lied, I did use them for tabletops as well): I bought shed loads of this original 60s vinyl covering from a vintage fair, again with no idea what to do with it. This stuff is slightly less pliable than its modern equivalent, so required a bit of perseverance and brute force when stapling to the underside. PVA glue first smeared over the top of the table surface helps enomously.

4. Cupboard and drawer linings: I like a tidy inner as well as exterior. This was a refurbished cupboard which I thought would benefit from a bit of internal oilcloth treatment. I treated the inside drawer bases to an oilcloth coating. PVA'd into place of course.

 

5. Shelf coverings: now when we had a major kitchen renovation done last year I said to Mr Doris "I want open shelves and I want them now" Being the doormat he is (!) he granted my wish and built me a set a fine set of shelves with required openness. I then went to work with scissors and PVA glue. A most useful addition to the Doris household.

 

 

 

6. Peg bag: of course there were bits left over from demanding Doris's shelf project - so I made a peg bag. I used to scoff at pegs bags but now think they're  'very useful'. Is finding things 'very useful' a sure reflection of getting old?!

 

 

 

7. Rollerblind: after years of enduring a grimy and bent venetian blind, when we finally renovated our bathroom 2 years ago I decided to make my own blind out of oilcloth. I saw this fabric on Ebay and loved the berry colours/feather pattern combo. I was determined to have a colourful bathroom (I really don't do neutrals or fish themes) so this rather fitted the bill a treat. Basically it's just an ikea rollerblind with the cheap fabric removed and replaced with chosen oilcloth. Rule of thumb: if the blind is cheaply manufactured in the first place then it should be easy to dismantle in order to 'hack'. And if it all goes horribly wrong then no big deal eh..?

 

 

8. Shoe pockets: now any busy household full of kids running in and out needs some kind of back door organisation. It drove me up the wall, what with dozens of shoes in varying states of cleanliness tossed asunder; causing a myriad of health and safety issues. So I thought "right you lot, enough's enough. Put your shoes in this" I can't say it's entirely effective as they still kick them off, instead leaving them next to the shoe recepticle (by the way I don't take responsiblity for the green crocs). Anyway there was a bit left over so I made a tray lining. Which made me happy.

 

 

9. A lunch bag: made from an old 'Walls sausages' apron!

 

 10. An old apron: ooh what to make...?