I bought this rocking chair at the last minute, about a week before the market. It had a cane back and cane bottom. The cane bottom looked new, but the back looked terrible. I haven't yet learned how to weave cane furniture, so I decided to reupholster this chair. And I was in such a rush to finish projects that I forgot to take a before picture. Bummer.
Using spray primer, I primed it and painted it with Annie Sloan Chalk Paint in Provence. I mostly primed it because I didn't know what color I wanted to paint it, but I'm glad I did because I didn't want any of the black paint to show through anyway. After the paint dried, I went over it with a coat of wax.
I was actually planning to put different fabric on it, but at the last second I realized how gorgeous the retro flowered fabric looked with the blue, so I decided to use that instead. Once I had upholstered the front and back, I had to figure out what kind of trim to use. I wasn't really wanting to sew double-welt cord, so I looked around my house to see what I had. That's when I saw my big bag of cord that I would ordinarily use to sew double weight cord. The oatmeal color looked perfect against the fabric, so I doubled it up and attached it.
I am so in love with this color fabric combo to the point where I might actually do our unfinished dining chairs in this style. I sold it to a lady who has two little boys and was decorating a nursery for her little girl on the way. I love that this chair will look adorable in a nursery but be able to grow with the little girl too.
So that's my favorite. I'll be back later this week with more info.
P.S. Tonight I'm going to see a lecture by Jonathan Adler at the Corcoran with some blogger friends and I'm so pumped. Anyone else in DC going?
Linked to: Primitive and Proper, The Shabby Creek Cottage, Domestically Speaking, Miss Mustard Seed, Redoux, Shabby Nest, Making Lemonade
Came here from the Old Lucketts store blog. Congrats on the great show at the market. Fellow NoVa blogger. I was there on Sunday. Remember seeing the green chest and those herringbone tables. You are doing a great job with the blog and all the projects.
ReplyDeleteGreat job on the rocking chair. I think I prefer the upholstered seat and back over the cane. Good color coordination of the fabric and paint.
ReplyDeleteI've got a similar chair to redo. How did you make the forms to wrap the new upholstery around?
ReplyDeleteI think that I probably used 2" foam on the bottom and 1" foam on the top, both with a layer or two of batting on it. The top probably has a couple of layers of batting on the back too (opposite side of the upholstery webbing). Most of the time I put the foam up to the chair and then trace around the opposite open side with a Sharpie. I try to cut a little bit larger than my trace line -- it's easier to cut down the foam than it is to cut a new piece.
DeleteIf you're looking for good tutorials, I suggest checking out this tutorial on backs from Design Sponge: http://www.designsponge.com/2011/12/upholstery-basics-picture-perfect-backs.html
And this blog post from Miss Mustard Seed: http://missmustardseed.com/2012/02/best-of-mms-french-chair-makeover-tutorial/
Good luck with the redo!
I would love to see the back. Fantastic job.
ReplyDelete