Upcycled

I am absurdly proud of myself today for a reason that is so mundane I suggest you stop reading here.

On the very few occasions that my sofa-bed has been used as a bed since I moved back in, it's been difficult and creaky to open and, allegedly, uncomfortable. And the sofa was lopsided. Six days ago I refitted the metal workings back onto the wooden frame to repair damage that must have been done while it was upended in storage, and I upcycled old duvets to make a mattress topper.

Then I lay on the bed and realised that the discomfort was partly because some of the webbing supporting the mattress was broken. I asked Timpson whether they could sew the hooks I'd retrieved from the frayed webbing onto new lengths. No they couldn't. Nor could a local upholsterer. So I ordered some webbing online to make up the lengths myself. When it arrived I discovered I'd ordered the wrong width. Sigh.

The replacement arrived today. I cut it to the right lengths, leaving lots of spare centimetres (to prevent future fraying), cauterised the ends (ditto), placed the hooks in the right places at each end and was about to set off to Timpson to ask whether they could run their heavy-duty sewing machine over them when I just wondered whether my temperamental 1987 sewing machine might be up to the job.

Yesss!

Tension problems, needle problems, but going slowly and carefully I did it. I'd measured the lengths right and they fitted back onto the bed, which had been open for a week, but now closed smoothly into a sofa that isn't lopsided.

I've been smugness personified for several hours now.

Told you to stop reading at the top.