CUT, STUFF, DRILL and TIE: Quick and Simple 5-Gallon Bucket Seat Cushion For the Youth Pioneer Trek

Trek Buckets. They hold all your personal gear for 3 days while you hike 20+ miles with youth reenacting the Mormon Pioneer Trek during the middle of the 18th century. They also serve as a seat. The seat cushions I had seen on the internet were inspirational, but not exactly what I wanted. So I modified many of the posts I've seen and came up with this. Keep in mind, this project is FUNCTION over FORM at its FINEST!This project took about 15 minutes, start to finish.

I wanted it to be removable so it could be a pillow as well as a cushion. I wanted it waterproof so I could wash it off. I wanted it thick enough to actually keep my backside comfy. 

• No glue. 
• No staples. 
• No wood. 
• No velcro. 
• No sewing. 
• NO FRILLS!
• No hassle
• Removable. 
• Waterproof (depending on the fabric of your backpack.) 
• Can be pillow and a seat cushion. 

It's as simple as

CUT - STUFF - DRILL - TIE!

 Let's Do This!

I started with these materials:

• 1 drawstring back pack, about 13"x16"(you know, the free ones handed out for marketing purposes)
• 1 5-gallon bucket with lid from Home Depot (that already had "Let's Do This" printed on it)
• 1 22x22x2 piece of camping foam (also at HD in the packing/moving section)
• 1 drill with the 3/8" drill bit
• 1 kitchen knife
• 1 sharpie marker (not pictured)

CUT: 
I found a Corelle dinner plate that fit snugly inside the lip of the lid. I traced the plate on the foam with the sharpie.  I was able to get 4 circles out of mine. (I made two bucket cushions). I cut out the circles with the knife. 

STUFF: I stacked 2 circles, one on top of the other and slid them into the backpack, just like a pillow case.

Then tightened the bag.

DRILL: Just drill a hole in the center of the bucket lid large enough to pull the strings through.

TIE: Pull strings through the hole, and tie a knot.

It should be tight enough that the cushion will have very little movement on top of the lid.

 All done! Let's hope it actually works on the trek. I'm a trek rookie, so this ought to be interesting!

Lady's Chair

Guess what I found at a thrift store. Oh, just a way cute chair for my little Lady's bedroom! It's even a bit shorter than most chairs so my little Lady's legs will fit just right for quite a while. This is how it started. Brown. And really upholstered. UPHOLSTERED?!?
After I primed and painted the thing white (and taped off the real upholstered -beige-bluh- seat), then I said, "Oh crap. I have no clue how to take off the springs and burlap wrap underneath this very comfy cushion. What do you do when you have no clue?
You staple and glue! I stapled the new fabric right over the top of the old by tucking in the new fabric as I stapled so I had a clean edge. The corners were tough. But B helped me muscle our way around them.
I had to buy gimp to edge it. I had some pom pom fringe that would've been fun, but would've been pulled off too easily. I tried using different kinds of glue to hold the gimp down. Nothing grabbed fast enough. So, I ended up with the trusty hot glue gun. I know I left some skin under that edging, and it's not the most permanent thing to hold down the gimp. But, it will work if no one starts pulling on it. Let's hope, anyway.
Here she is. Finished and ready for the ball.