BRANDED CHAIR

I saw this photo in Vogue Living Australia some time ago, and was so inspired by it. 

 I loved the mix of children's artwork with  the very formal furniture.   Jane and I thought it would be a great idea to buy and old chair, have it re-done in plain canvas, then let children loose on it with Sharpies to share their own ideas and inspirations.  It was obvious to both of us from the beginning that this would be a wonderful way to raise money for children's charities.  We immediately called Jane's aunt Sidney who is a pediatrician at Cook Children's hospital in Ft. Worth.  Sidney had initiated the idea that  Cook's was in need of a palliative care program, and now that this program is well underway, she is still involved in fundraising.  It was a perfect match.  I was not aware of what a palliative care program was, so here is Dr. Sidney Aldridge to tell you in her own words:

There are now many little patients who are living longer and better because of our advances in medical technology, but they do live with very complicated medical problems and many will unfortunately still die at a young age.  As you can imagine, this is a very difficult journey for these little children and their families.  A new specialty has emerged in Pediatrics to help these most special patients called Palliative Care.  The Palliative Care team would like to provide support for a family at the initial diagnosis, then all along the course of that child's life, and finally, help the family prepare for their child's death.  

  The Palliative Care team helps the child with symptom and pain relief, and also provides much needed psychological and spiritual support for the child, their siblings, and parents during these very difficult times.  The team consists of physicians, nurses, social workers, child life specialists, psychologists, and spiritual leaders, such as ministers, priests, and rabbis.

  The Palliative Care team wants to help a little child live as well as possible for as long as possible, and then help make the end of that child's life be as pain-free as peaceful at possible.   As you can imagine, it takes very special people to be able to practice Palliative Care.  This kind of treatment requires hours and hours with each patient and family, and is not adequately funded by insurance companies.  We rely on wonderful charity organizations such as the Careity Foundation here in Ft. Worth to provide this much needed care.  The Careity Foundation has an amazing charity event, a western themed Gala called "Branded" here every August to raise money for our new Palliative Care Program here at Cook Children's Medical Center, and they have provided us with unmeasurable support.  

Thanks for letting us get involved Sidney!!

The chair project became more exciting and meaningful when we were invited to Cook's to let some of the other patients design a chair. Here are photos of the kids at work.  (Carol had to miss, she was on vacation with her dad, she was so disappointed)

Jane couldn't resist leaving her mark.

Morgan was one of our artists.  She has a little help from her horse.

Here is our finished product!!!  (4 coats of clear lacquer were applied to seal the chair and protect the artwork.  It also gives the chair a rich deep shine)

The chair will now be auctioned off at the annual Branded event.  For more information go to Branded.

Jane and I have been looking forward to sharing this, she featured the project on her blog too.

 

Comments

[caroline]

Awesome. totally awesome. I love it :) oh, and hello from London!

[Leanne]

That is the cutest and most inspiring thing ever! And for such a great cause!

[fashionispoison]

I love this Judy!

Great work. Very admirable. <3

[Lizbeth]

such a great idea!!!

Love the chair, but love the charity aspect.

[andrea]

I love this! Especially what it was for!
So wonderful and inspiring!

[Kathleen]

I love it! What a wonderful project and cause!

[E. David Goltl]

This is awesome. Tell me more!

[stephanie]

Wow! That looks amazing! Great project too! Good luck at the auction :D

[Lucy]

Such a great idea!

[adictazapatos]

great project!!!

[eLLy*]

This is absolutely brilliant! It suprisingly looks GREAT! I shall show this to my mama & say, " See! You should've just let me use my imagination when I 'painted' your sofa 20 yrs ago. It could've been a great artwork today"

[Mel]

That's amazing! I love how sweet and thoughtful you and Jane are. Thank you for an amazing post. The chair looks amazing and how adorable are the kids. Thank you for making my Wednesday.

[Barchbo]

What a sweet and wonderful project for such a fabulous cause. A fabulous way to give back!

[judy Aldridge]

Awwww-Elly, I bet your sofa was a masterpiece! judy

[french cloud]

Fabulous and for such a wonderful cause--quite the artists at Cooks!

[erin]

oh how sweet & how terribly sad too. :(

erin

[arline Jernigan]

I saw that sofa on another blog a while ago, but I never saved it, and was sorry. I thought it was a wonderful and clever to have a beautiful and kid friendly (which I don't have) house.

[Mel]

The chair looks fantastic! I love all the colors, and I'm glad it's going to charity!

[K-Line]

This is truly awesome. It makes me smile - and cry!

[Eli]

This is pretty cool! And for a good cause too. Thinking about trying this out myself now!

[Christine]

That is a GREAT idea!

The kids really must have enjoyed it and the results are fabulous.

[KD]

That is absolutely genius! Not only is the chair lovely but its going to such a wonderful cause!

[Sister Wolf]

You are a saint. The daughter, too. Please make sure not to scare the children with that big claw necklace. How much did that cost, by the way?

love,
Sister Wolf

[arline Jernigan]

I wanted to elaborate on my earlier post, as it was short. I like what the foundation does. It seems great, and bringing in a creative outlet for the kids is always something I am in favor of, and something I could put my heart into.

I would love to see more things like that develop. We have St Jude here in Memphis, which is an amazing treatment and research facility, that treats children with cancer and other horrible diseases, done all through charity.

I hope the chair makes a ton of money.

[Anna]

How cool would it be to have a set of these around a dining room table?! And the sweet blessing they are is the best part. So brilliant!

[LittleRus]

This is such a wonderful idea and the chair is gorgeous! x

[Alexandra]

What can compare to how visually interesting children's artwork is? It is almost impossible to replicate once one becomes an adult, too. I have tried to incorporate childlike artwork into some of my projects and it usually seems to fall flat. The hand has been too trained, as has the eye. I never tire of seeing a child's shaky, wonky handwork. Their use of color is also always eyecatching and vibrant. Simple, beautiful, unmatchable.

You and Jane are unstoppable and it's a pleasure to flip through Vogue and be shocked to discover you two inside. Thanks for doing what you do uniquely and with style.

[Solo]

Awesome! What an art work. ;D

Solo
Travel and Living
Job Hunt Pinoy

[lisa from london]

the chair looks amazing. its great how you were inspired by something in a magazine to do something this brilliant. x

check out my blog at
http://lisa-smalldetails.blogspot.com

[Pearl Westwood]

Absolutely brilliant idea you guys, such a creative and fun way to raise for charity, well done x

[thischicksgotstyle]

What a great initiative!!
And the outcome is beautiful :)

[Le Cocon]

equally as lovely as your daughter's blog.

xo Noah (Indie Music Blog)

[Katie]

Fabulous! Great idea

[michgund]

Kudos to you and Jane! I hope I can do that too here in the Philippines...the charis is so stylish, and very functional, and will help a lot of kids...what more could one ask for!

~your fan from the Philippines :D

[Miss Cavendish]

I saw a couch like this on A Bloomsbury Life (blog) and adored it. Love how you've added lacquer and are creating the chair for a wonderful cause.

[Josephine]

What a great idea with a beautiful product! :)

thequeenjosephine.blogspot.com

[donna]

The entire idea has a beautiful spirit. I love this, warms my day.

[Heini]

That is so kind of you. I wish I could do something for the little patients of our area. I´m extremely interested in entering med-school, so that dream might not be that far away.

[eeps]

that looks amazing. where can i find a chair similar to that?

[mr. freddy's mom]

this is a good project!
you and jane really have a good heart!
i'm more impressed on what you did!

those kids are so cute!
hmm...seeing the chair gives me an idea
and can't wait for mr. freddy to draw something on my
chair. lol!

[Maurenice]

Absolutely love love the idea! Now, I want to do something similar like that for my apt. Great posting Judy...and great great concept.

Muahhhz

Maury
http://heightsoffashion.typepad.com

[Jules]

Awesome! Can't imagine those kids can do such designs like this. =D Beautiful! =D

Summer
A Writers Den
The Brown Mestizo

[Brigadeiro]

I saw Jane's post on this, and thought it was such a BRILLIANT idea, on so many levels! :)
xx

[tracey ellle]

what a lovely initiative.. and cause.. great stuff

[StyleAntagonist]

Hi Judy, looks familiar from afar :D reminds me of the LV multicolor monogram with a touch of informality init. Something new. Indeed a briliant one. Very thoughtful of both of you.. Thanks for sharing this. Have yourself a nice day ahead.

[Donna]

This is absolutely beautiful, both in the artwork and in the thoughtfulness! I love your blog as it has so much substance rather than a regular old fashion blog. Thank you, and I will continue to look forward to your blog! :) I think your blog is one of my most favorites!

[jamieofalltrades]

What an amazing idea - very cool to make something so unique and have it go to a good cause.

[Lauren Estep]

What an awesome project for an equally awesome cause :)

[alex*]

WOw, what an amazing thing....the perfect blend of you and your interests and doing something fabulous for others. Again, crazy inspiring. I love Jane and her blog is so wonderful, but I think YOUR blog is a true little jewel lady. Thanks for being an amazing, sassy mommy. I hope when my little guy (who is 5) is the age of your girls that we are just as close as you guys are. I would love to collaborate with him someday too.
: )
xo

[juliet]

That is super beautiful! I saved few pictures in my inspiration box.

juliet xxx

[summer]

super cool. great idea!

[lenorenevermore]

So Inspiring!
Love this wonderful project!!
~Blessings*

[Gucci Shoes]

Thanks v much for the weblog awards nomination btw! I was completely unaware of the event till I saw the link in my stats and found your very kind nomination.

[Gucci Shoes]

Thankyou for a very entertaining and enlightening piece. It definitly opened my eyes to allot of things I had not thought of before.

[Coach Purses]

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