Dining Chairs Restoration

We salvaged these two dining chairs from my grandmother’s home post-hurricane, though to be honest, I almost left them behind. They have definitely seen better days; years of use, very dated upholstery, faded wood finish, and water damage from the hurricane. My friend convinced me to refinish them, and I’m so glad I did! Here’s a recap of my first reupholster project.

[Read the origin story of these heirloom restorations here: Heirloom Restoration]

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I named them “the sisters” because they are alike but different, and I think one is slightly older. I found photos of my mother with them in the 1960s but I suspect they go back much further. I have no idea where my grandmother picked them up, but they had identical upholstery despite being slightly different. I remember them being accent chairs by doors when I was growing up, and they always had duck pillows on them, so I didn’t realize they were different until we picked them up. They could tell stories, I’m sure.

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I have no sentimental attachment to them, and they do have some damage, so I felt like I had artistic license and didn’t feel obligated to restore them to their original condition. They sat in my living room for about a week until I decided I would paint them matte charcoal and reupholster them with a fun print. I also had to figure out what tools and supplies I needed, and how to restore them properly. Here’s my shopping list:

Repair and Refinish

Cleaner: Murphy Oil Original Formula Oil Soap Liquid, 32 oz 2 Pack

Sandpaper: 3M 907NA Small Area Sanding Sponge, 3.75 in by 2.625 in by 1 in, Extra Fine/Fine (3 Pack)

Wood putty: Elmer’s Carpenter’s Color Change Wood Filler, 4 oz, Natural (E912) – New

Paint: Rust-Oleum 302590-2PK Chalked Ultra Matte Spray Paint, 2 Pack, Charcoal, 2 Piece

Reupholster

Upholstery gun: Search for upholstery stapler kits on Amazon

Canvas: CCS CHICAGO CANVAS & SUPPLY Heavy Purpose Canvas Cotton Drop Cloth, 4 by 12 Feet

Foam: Upholstery Foam Cushion Foam Seat Foam Padding (1″ x 20″ x20″ Pack of 4)

Batting: Hobbs Heirloom Premium Cotton Quilt Batting Wadding Ivory

Fabric: Pottery Barn Helena (I found a king sham on eBay for way cheaper)

Cording: Marine Masters 50ft Hank of Black Parachute Cord 550lb Type III 7 Strand Paracord

Fabric spray: Scotchgard Fabric & Crafts Water Shield, 10 Ounce

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Removing the upholstery fabric and padding went pretty quickly, but I did not remove any rusty staples for fear of damaging or weakening the wood. It was clear that these chairs had been reupholstered before, maybe more than once. The fiddle back chair was probably caned originally because it had uniform circular holes around the seat, and it also had a layer of horsehair padding. This likely means it was Victorian. The ladder back chair didn’t have cane holes or horsehair, so maybe it was Edwardian. I have no idea, so if you’re reading this and you can identify their age, let me know in the comments!

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I also removed the fabric under the padding and under the seats, as it was pretty weak and dusty. This revealed webbing that still seemed pretty strong. Lucky me, I didn’t have to reweb them (and I returned the burlap webbing and stretcher that I bought from Amazon). If I need them for a future project, they’re easy to find.

Webbing: ZAIONE 10 Yards Width 2″ Roll Natural Burlap Red Line Jute Webbing Ribbon Upholstery Chair Webbing Tape for Outdoor DIY Gear Repai (Red Stripes)

Stretcher: Home Sewing Depot Double Rock Webbing Stretcher

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As I mentioned, these chairs have seen better days, but they are still very sturdy! I cleaned both chairs with oil soap without getting the webbing wet. The ladder back chair had a very old crack in its front leg, but was repaired, at least structurally. I used wood putty to fill in the crack, and once dried, I aggressively sanded it down so it would be less prominant after painting. I used wood putty on a couple other small areas on the chairs, but I didn’t try to make the chairs perfect. Their wear gave them character and I didn’t want to erase that. I used ultra fine grit sanding sponges around every surface to remove what little varnish was left, and sort of prime the wood for painting. I went through about 3 sanding sponges for 2 chairs.

This is a long post and I know it’s a lot of annoying scrolling, so I’ve broken it into two pages. Now that all the prep is covered, let’s proceed to the refinishing (click the page 2 button below)!