From dated and tired to a whole new life

Back on August 4th, I told you about a chair I saved. It was tired, old, nicked up and even gouged in areas.  But it was still strong and had plenty of life still in it.  I thought it would be a quick face-lift but then life got in the way.  Well I can finally show you the finished chair. Here’s the beginning.

Nightmares of the 1980s

There are a few things I definitely hate about these chairs.  I have first hand experience with this furniture.  Back in 1988 I was surprised by a new living room set of furniture by my grandmother.  She thought it would be nice if I had matching furniture.  Now I loved the furniture I owned at the time.  But she hated it.  Not only did she buy me new furniture, I had picked it out for my first home and it was only 6 years old,  but she arranged for new owners of my existing furniture. To say I was upset would be an understatement.  But respecting your elders meant to me at the time to keep my mouth shut, smile and say thank you.

Fast forward 2 years, and the only time my youngest son ever need stitches was after a fall near this furniture which left him with a scar in his one eyebrow.

When I took in this chair I knew I would ask my eldest son and wife if they would like it.   They were buying a home and would need more furniture.  They wanted it,  but didn’t like the color or the cushions, and I wasn’t going to give it to them with the sharp edges which led to my son being hurt.

There was plenty of sanding to do.  I enjoy the process of sanding by hand and rarely use a sander, but this job was too much to tackle without a sander.  The varnish was so tough it gummed up trying to remove it.  I went through more sandpaper than I had expected with this job.

Then it was on to fixing those pointed edges.

Plenty of edges to be rounded

Sure it’s wood so kids can still get hurt, but there is no need for pointed edges

Since my son has a black futon in the family room for overnight guests, and this chair would be used in the same room I knew it needed to be darker.  I decided to use an ebony stain. I’ve always liked the look others got using ebony, but I never had a project that needed it.  In hindsight,  I should have just used a no VOC black paint and watered it down to get a consistency that would have acted like a stain.  It would have been faster, and fume free.  But I can say I’ve used the ebony stain now.

Here’s the final look of the chair.

Using the original cushion covers

Now planning the project, I spotted some upholstery fabric and dragged my dil to see it.  She liked it and I was able to buy more than enough to recover the entire chair. Now that the stain is darker, she likes the original covers.  I’m not sure, but it’s her chair now.

What do you think? Here is the new fabric draped over the back. Which would you like?

I vote for the new fabric