Last week in the “Afternoon Tea Set Up” post, I included a sneak peek of my updated kitchen chairs. I’ve been working on them off and on for several weeks. Actually more off than on, but I finally completed the project. The family thought I was crazy when I started stripping off the dark stain, but I proved that all the mess was worth it.
Truth be told, there were moments of insanity or inspiration, however you want to look at it, when I thought about moving the chairs to the curb with a sign that read “free firewood”. Refinishing furniture is work. I’m not going to sugar coat it. In my case, it took a whole lot more patients than it did skill to refinish the chairs. I’m just putting this out there, so that before you decide to tackle a set a kitchen chairs you know what you’re in for.
Dark finish before.
When I started stripping the old finish from the chairs, I didn’t plan on creating a step by step tutorial, so I only have one photo from my phone that I can share with you. It’s really scary looking!
After all the stripping, scraping, and sanding the new finish was revealed. The natural wood is very light, which I played up even more by adding a soft wax to chairs.
The lighter finish of the chairs works better with the dark kitchen cabinets and wood floor. The space now looks more open and a lot more interesting, because it’s not all the same wood color. Contrast is the key here.
Here’s the list of supplies I used for this project, (which contain affiliate links).
- Ready-Strip Safer Paint and Varnish Remover
- Plastic Scraper
- Paint Brush Pack
- Disposable Nitrile Gloves
- Plastic Drop Cloth
- Ryobi Sheet Sander
- Ryobi Corner Sander
Remember safety first, so follow the manufactures directions before starting. The Ready-Strip was a good choice for me because I could use it indoors. It contains no methylene chloride or caustics that might be found in other products.
The table will be another project I hope to start in the coming weeks. There are at least four layers of paint colors on the table top that I want to remove, in order to expose the lighter wood underneath. After that I’ll decide what to do with the table legs and apron.
Thank you so much for stopping by today. If you have suggestions on the table I would love to hear from you.
Cheers!
©2018 Updating Kitchen Chairs first appeared on Thistle Key Lane™
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