Turquoise And Yellow Cane-Back Chair

This weekend I went to my first estate sale of 2013. It felt great to be back at it! This time I had Hunter with me. The Hubby was away on business so it was just the kiddo and I. He's been to a sale here and there, but mainly tag sales so I wasn't sure what he would think. When I told him we were going he was excited, but mainly because I told him he could be my assistant. He thought that was the best thing since Lego.

When we got to the estate sale I was pleasantly surprised to see the women running the sale were older. That might seem like an odd thing to care about, but not when you have a 7 year old estate sale 'assistant' with you! I was hoping the cute factor would work in my favor. The first thing I found was an old leather suitcase. It didn't have a price on it so I sent my 'assistant' to ask for a price. Now if you think I didn't do this on purpose, you're wrong! I knew he would get a better price from the grandmotherly women working the sale then I ever would. Sure enough, turns out I'm a genius, he came back all smiles saying, "It's only $3...I told them it's sold." SMART KID!

I found one other small item and then I came upon something I'd been on the hunt for....a cane-back arm chair! The price on the sticker was higher than I was willing to pay, but lucky for me it had been marked down. I still had my secret weapon with me and again he was able to score me another great deal.

It was great getting the deals, but the best part about this estate sale experience was when Hunter was carrying out the chair to the car (a smaller chair I bought not the cane-back....I'm not mean!). Hunter told me, "Mommy we should have our own show on HGTV!! We have to think of a good name." Then in the car he said, "Going to the estate sale with you reminded me of Sarah 101 and the guy and the girl going out shopping together." I guess he's Tommy and I'm Sarah? :-)

Here's the before picture of the chair my 'assistant' helped me buy.

Solid chair with great lines, but the upholstery job on the seat cushion had to go.

I took the seat off the the chair and found this mess.

There were lots of staples to remove and tons of dust.

A layer of dust covered cotton batting was underneath the dusty fabric.

Then this was underneath the cotton batting. I should point out here that I love upholstering chair cushions, benches, etc however I cannot stand the ripping apart process. It grosses me out! The dust, dirt and deteriorating foam make my skin crawl.

I decided to keep the burlap on the seat. I gave it a very thorough banging and then an even more thorough vacuuming and it was dust free.

I took it upstairs to my office because it's still way too cold to paint or work outside in my garage.

Since the chair already had springs in it I decided to use a thinner foam. I put the seat on top of the foam upside down and took a sharpie and marked where I needed to cut.

After the foam was cut I decided to put in a few staples to keep it in place.

Next came the batting. I put on 4 layers of batting. I'm not sure why, but I wanted it to be soft and cushy.

I got the fabric on and then I started stapling. I use a plug-in staple gun. I like it because my hand doesn't hurt when I'm done.

Here's the finished job from the underneath.

I absolutely love this fabric. It's an outdoor fabric from Joann's that I found this weekend. I saw it and was immediately drawn to the color and the graphic pattern.

I put the cushion on the chair to make sure it fit OK and it fit like a glove! Now on to the next step the paint. You didn't think I was going to keep it like this did you?!

I always go through the same process in trying to decide what color to paint a piece of furniture. I look at it and it kind of speaks to me. I know that sounds weird, but it's true. I can look at it and see what it can be when I'm done. With this chair the fabric came first and then the ideas starting to flow. I recently changed the bedding in my master bedroom. The area rug in there has to go due to my Hubby's allergy to dust so I figured it was as good a time as any to change the color scheme. The bedding is a paisley with lots of different colors, but the one I cared about the most was turquoise.

I decided to paint the chair in Annie Sloan Provence. After I painted two coats of Provence I added some Pure White so the details on the chair would pop. Finally I gave the chair a coat of clear wax, reattached the seat and I was done!

Here's the chair before I reattached the seat.

Here it is all done!! I can't tell you how happy I was it was sunny outside!! I convinced the Hubby to carry the chair out so I could take pictures in front of the tree again. The snow it just about melted...WOOHOO!!!

I know I'm biased, but this is one of the most gorgeous chairs I've ever seen. I'm beyond excited about how well it turned out.

The fabric and the paint are a wonderful pairing.

I love the lines on this chair.

Even the back is pretty.

Here is the suitcase Hunter scored for $3 at the estate sale. I had to take a picture of it with the new and improved chair.

Not to get all sappy on you, but this chair is a lot more to me than just a chair. For me it's a reminder of the day Hunter and I went to the estate sale together. It's a reminder of how he's interested in the things I do and wants to be a part of them. It's a reminder for me to include him more, even if I'm in a time crunch. He's 7 and soon will be 8 and he won't want to hang out with his Mom at an estate sale for much longer.

This is my favorite chair project thus far. The colors and the memories it recalls make it a huge hit in my books.

Hunter is already asking when we're going to another estate sale. I'm hoping next time he'll be my lucky charm again.

Thank you for reading,

Melody

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