If you are at all familiar with this blog you know that I love to rescue old furniture and give it new life. I am particularly fond of tables and chairs. Not long ago I ran across this old chair at Goodwill. I had to wait for an older gentleman who was using it to take a rest before I could inspect it and make my purchase. I decided that it was worth the $15 price tag. I love the faux bamboo.
The photo below shows the hole in one side of the caning, the torn bottom covering, and loose metal straps across the bottom. I decided that all of those were simple repairs.
The label revealed a quality brand.
The delivery label on the bottom was dated 1964.
The first thing I did was remove the old caning. It was difficult to remove but my persistence paid off.
I purchased 3 feet of replacement caning at a cost of $5 per foot from the Furniture Doctor at Scott’s in Atlanta.The salesman was very helpful and gave me lots of tips.
Again, this was much more difficult than I thought it would be but I was determined it was not going to get the best of me. I finally got the new cane in place.
The cane must be wet in order to bend for installation. As the newly installed caning dries, it tightens up considerably.
I cut the cover off of the cushions and used them as a pattern to cut new foam since the existing cushions were as hard as rocks.
I then sewed covers for the new foam cushions. I used the solid blue fabric pictured in this post.
I took a piece of the old caning to my local Sherwin Williams store and had them match the stain for me. I think they did a great job.
This project was much more of a challenge than I thought it would be. In fact, I have woven a cane seat before and while it required more time, it was easier than this. Maybe it’s because this cane was on the side rather than the seat.
In the end, I am pleased with the outcome but would probably not attempt this again.
If you are interested you can see some of my other chair rescues by clicking on any of the photos below.
I don’t know about you, but I am feeling the holiday crunch now! I have so many things to do between now and Christmas but I am going to make a conscious effort to savor the seasons and I encourage you to do so too!
Have a great week!
I’m linking to Metamorphosis Monday at Between Naps on the Porch and to Wow Us Wednesdays at Savvy Southern Style. You MUST click over and see Susan’s creative use of ornaments that she purchased at Walmart!!
7 comments:
Pat,
Your determination paid off. . .this chair transformation is lovely, dear one!!! My Aunt took a course in chair canning and had told me you must work with wet reeds.
Bless your heart for making this chair a thing of beauty, once again!!!
Fondly,
Pat
Seriously...you are good! That looks amazing. I would have assumed you were going to paint it but you got the stain to match perfectly. The chair is better than new now.
Wow-those chairs look so good now. I am impressed with the canning you did-I have not tried it yet and am a little scared by the thought!
You did a magnificent job on that gorgeous chair...it was worth saving!!!...and must say that I am in love with the last chair in the post..it is also a real beauty!
I once bought a beautiful old French settee from Ebay. The caning was destroyed which was why I got it for like $10. I tried my darndest to repair it but finally had to take it to a caning expert. It is one of my husband's favorite pieces of furniture in our home.
I tip my hat to you for being successful.
Have a beautiful week.
Your just solo good Pat! I wish you lived next door to me and I can send you a pair that needs the same tweaking you did! Love it!
Yes, that chair is a winner! My dad has replaced caning before but I've never tried... I'm scared! ;) Beautiful makeover, thanks for linking up with us at Best of the Nest!
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