Family Downsizing and SheShe gets the loot: Three Chair Rehabs

While I was in Greenwood for Easter, 

my fellow dealer and friend, Caroline,

 had me out to her wonderful home. 

She and her husband, Ray, 

are downsizing, 

and they had lots of goodies for me!

I came home with a car load, 

including these three chairs:

Check out what I did to them!

 Two primitive rockers had been sitting out on a porch for years.

I started with this one: Handmade in Staunton by a craftsman.

The seat was intact.  

I sanded everything down with a sanding block.

 

My secret weapon.

 Here you can see on the bottom back 

the difference when applying this.

The old dry wood just soaks up the nourishment.

 A little propping in my booth, 

and it lasted one day.

So I moved to the second one....

The seat in this one was giving way...

Once again, I sanded and used Restore-a-finish.

 

Then I used a thick piece of fabric to wrap around

and support the bottom. 

I stapled the edges to the underside.

I covered with batting, 

and then used this Schumacher

outdoor fabric to upholster the bottom.

I

It's in my booth at Greenwood for $75.

Endless staging possibilities!

And lastly, the most difficult rehab -

This sweet little victorian heart shaped back chair.

Seriously needs a makeover.

The foam is crumbling,

and it has a zillion tufts.

I ripped everything out of the seat.

And then I moved to the chair front and back,

where I removed all the tufting and batting.

Next, I  painted the chair in Annie Sloan Chalk Paint

in Old Violet, with a dry brushed Old White top layer.

Then waxed.

Isn't the detail beautiful?

Now it's time to rebuild the seat. 

I screwed in a piece of plywood.

Then I added an under support of scrap leather,

which i stapled to secure.

Then I pieced foam to fit..

 Then batting.

 Now the seat is all rebuilt.

I added two layers of batting to the front,

and then used this remnant to upholster,

stapling all along the edges.

 Next, the bottom.

I'm going to use this plaid Schumacher fabric.

 Back and front upholstery complete.

Time to load up in the car to return to Richmond..

Last night, I finished...

I did the back, then added white gimp

along the edges to hide the staples.

For the front, 

I decided on a little more glam:

I used strips of nickel nail heads.....

 It's just about finished!

 Here's the bottom edging, 

along with the nailheads 

I also used on the top edges of the legs.

 The front......

The perfect little boudoir chair.

Or vanity chair.

Or frenchy  desk chair....

In a bathroom to hold towels????

Wherever it goes,

it will be sweet and unique.

It's going to my booth at RVA Antiques on The Avenue today.

For Sale: $165.

Thank you, Caroline and Ray, for the treasures!!!!!!

SheShe, The Home Magician

Sheila Fox

sheilafox@aol.com

804-402-4370