A Modern Take on a Vintage Dining Chair: The Transformation Process Revealed

Hi Steemit friends,

One of my hobbies is refinishing old furniture. This dining set was completed a couple of years ago and sold locally. I thought I would share the transformation process in this post.

The project started with the purchase of a set of vintage dining chairs from an antique store with the hope of learning how to re-upholster them. They were kind of cheesy at first glance but there was something about them that I loved and thought they were rather unique. So I took the chairs home and left them in the basement until I was finally ready to take a crack at re-upholstering them. At a nearby community college I learned the basics of re-upholstery. It is definitely not for the faint of heart - quite a bit of work indeed! Even for a simple seat cushion there is a lot of time and detail that goes into it from selecting your foam and fabric to aligning the fabric pattern, to stretching the fabric and stapling it in place with a staple gun. Our instructor was an experienced upholsterer so his guidance was invaluable.

Then came the fun part - refinishing the wood chair. I chose Annie Sloan's chalk paint in Pure White for the chairs and Duck Egg Blue for the table. I find chalk paint really great in that it allows for more versatility and artistry in the finish such as distressing and colour mixing. It is an awesome medium and easy to use. Once the chairs were painted they were finished with a protective clear wax.

Below are photos of my progress from beginning to end:

Rehabbing vintage finds is a great way to use your creativity and in the end you end up with something functional and unique. It amazes me how much old furniture is out there looking for a home. I highly recommend up-cycling if you have the will to do it!