The Farmhouse Chair

4 Materials
$50
8 Hours
Easy

I wanted to finish this Farmhouse Chair for a while.

Here is our antique Farmhouse chair, as found about 4 years ago. It lived in a few rooms before making its way into the project barn for an overhaul.


It’s pretty beat up. I think I paid $5 for it years ago. When I picked it up it was in pieces. All the spindles have been glued back in place, and a few broken ones were repaired over the years.

Farmhouse Chair – Before

There were some additional repairs to the spindles that needed attention before I could get to painting. I used wood glue and clamps to attach the broken spindles together. Gorilla glue worked great.

As you can see, this chair has been pretty loved over the years. The patina finish should preserve a lot of this charm.


Preparation for paint


I used a medium grit sanding block to sooth out the surface and remove any wax and dirt buildup and any loose wood. This chair was pretty beat up.

Painting Base colour

The first coat is a canvas white in colour. I used Dixie Belle Chalk Paint. It's really thick and you almost pull it across the wood, like a dry brush technique. This first coat is more like a primer. Some of this will show through when it's complete.


If you're unfamiliar with chalk paint and how to work with it, check out my how-to here

Preparation for the colour coat

I wanted to expose large areas of the wood, but keep a rich worn feel to the piece. To make this easier, I used petroleum jelly and rubbed it over the areas where the chair had the most wear. This will make it easier to remove the colour in this area when distressing and bringing the patina into the wood.

Colour Application – Dixie Bell Palmetto Green

The Dixie Belle Palmetto green is like a beautiful muted forest green. Like the white, a dry brush style of painting is required.

After drying I took fine-grit wet sandpaper and started to expose the wood in the areas with the heaviest wear. This followed by a scrub down with hot soapy water, to remove any paint that didn’t bond where the petroleum jelly was applied.

Final Finish – Wax Sealing Antique Chair

To preserve the chalk paint and provide added durability I sealed the chair in dark wax. This stuff is kind-of like shoe polish. You rub it on with a soft cloth or brush, then give it some time to dry. Then using a soft clean cloth, or work towels, start to buff all the excess wax off. you’ll be able to tell how sticky it feels initially to the nice smooth shiny finish after buffing. This process was the longest, and in some areas, I sanded a bit more to expose more wood, then waxed again. The final result below. I think this farmhouse chair in dixie belle paint looks fantastic!

Voila!! Green antique farmhouse chair. It looks like it's been green for decades now :) Be sure to check out AugustDecemberHome for more furniture and DIY projects.

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  • Karen.gay Karen.gay on Jan 25, 2021

    Do you have any pictures after sanding and before painting

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