I bought these 4 chairs sight unseen. I had no idea the cloth seats were so attached to the base of the chair. It wasn’t the normal unscrew the seat and rewrap it with new fabric. No these chairs were professionally done at one point with lots and lots of staples, piping and hard work. I had heard that you can use chalk paint to cover chair cushions. I haven’t really ever tried it because it seemed a little odd to me. I decided that these chairs would be the project that I tossed all caution to the wind and jumped in. You never know until you try something if it’s gonna be for you or not. This is a project that I will do again because I had a blast and the end result is amazing.
I started by wiping down all the chairs, including the cloth seat. I let them sit over night so if moisture got into the fabric. The next morning I got so excited to try my hand at painting the fabric I started with the the fabric. That went really well it looked amazing I gave it 2 coats in Chalk Country Pure Pewter. After it dried I used the Defender Clear finish to seal it. I tested it with water and it bubbled up and didn’t soak in. I wiped it with a very damp rag several times and it dried right off with a dry rag. Everything was going so well, I was learning a new project skill and having fun. Then it happened I started to paint the base of the chair and bumped the piping on the seat several times. So then I had to let that dry and go back and touch up. The next 3 chairs I reversed the process base first then seat and all was good. No more bumping and now more touching up the seat. At one point I used a rag to dust off the seat after I did the sanding back. That rag had wet Crisp Color paint on it and wouldn’t you know it got on the seat after I had already painted and sealed the Pure Pewter. I was so shocked when it wiped right off with a damp rag and a dry towel. I know that most of you are asking about the seat and how the paint feels. Well I was just as shocked that after the seat was painted it was just as soft and comfortable to sit on. It wasn’t stiff or hard to the touch, nor did it crack after sitting on it.
I love to learn new ways that I can give restored life to things. I can’t wait until this weekend I’m going to try to tackle an old wingback chair. I’ll post some pictures and let you know how it does on different fabrics. You never know until you try something. My friend Vicki had done this a while back and it looked really nice but I was to unsure to try it. I just needed to step out of my box and color outside the lines.
