still life: my mother's couch

the furniture in my mother's living room are testaments of a poverty striken existence. every piece is very old and either a hand-me-down from more prosperous relatives or a church sale find. take our couch for example. my mom bought it for twenty dollars when i was twelve. it was a nice couch, structurally sound and pleasingly comfortable. with regard to appearance, though, it left one important element to be desired: colour. at the time of purchase it was an ugly burnt orange and clashed with my mom's complexion. the burnt orange had to go.

after much idle talk about the awful colour my mom finally decided it was time for a change. she bought burgundy dye. the cushions absorbed the colour well. the body, however, proved a more difficult task. it was decided that black paint should do the trick so we tried it. being poor, however, our budget only allowed for a few bottles of black told paint and, since it needed to cover a large sectional couch, we were left with no choice but to water it down. the result was messy. the arms of our couch are a mixture of black, gray, and burnt orange while the cushions are an even burgundy. i, personally, preferred the ugly original.