A Second Chance for the Old Armchairs

They were free to a good home, or to someone who can fix them. Aren't they gorgeous? Of course, I jumped into my car and rushed to get them.

They were good old heavy chairs, strong build, solid wood, the seats were 28 inches wide, the backs 30 inches high. The armrest on one chair was loose. Otherwise, they were in pretty good shape.

I fixed the armrest by tightening the screws. That step was easy. When I was cleaning the fabric, I found a lot of cat hair in the fabric folds and wrinkles. My family is allergic to cats. I decided to re-upholster the chairs.

The two chairs were sitting in my living room for several days. I removed the old fabric, the seats, and the backs. The most difficult task was to remove old staples and fill all the holes.

Then I painted the frames white using Home Decor Sheepskin chalk paint.

I gave the frames 3 coats of chalk paint, sanding the wood between the layers. The great thing about the chalk paint is that you can add water to make as thin as you want - this way the paint is easier to work with and the coverage is better.

When the frames dried, I polished them with Home Decor dark wax for an aged look and also for protection. The trick I learned (from watching a lot of YouTube videos and reading many posts in different sites) is to apply clear wax first, rub it in, wipe the excess, and then apply dark wax.

I found this satin fabric with gold, light blue and very light green tones and a roll of trim that matched perfectly.

Here is one chair, all painted and with new fabric.

Love how these two chairs turned out! So much character!

The chairs were free, the upholstery fabric was about 50$ for 3 yards, 1 can of Home Decor Sheepskin chalk paint for $8, 1 can of Home Decor clear wax $8, 1 can of Rustoleum dark wax for $16 (I have a lot of wax left to be used for other projects), a roll of trim $6, and staples $3. Altogether about $90 bucks.