Chair for a Friend

Chair After

Chair Before

My guess is that this chair was approximately one hundred and fifty years old, give or take. The seat springs were poking though the bottom, making it something you would not be able to sit on without falling through! Not a good scenario. But when my friend of fifty-plus years had asked me if I could reupholster this chair, I said, "Of course!" I would welcome the challenge, especially since I have mastered re-tying seat springs so they can be functional. 

Spring tying is a skill that you must have if you tackle upholstery projects and doing it right is essential to the future life of the chair. (Check out the springs in the photo to see what they looked like before they were repaired.)

So once I had removed all the tacks and nails, I stripped the fabric from the chair. The seat had the original horsehair. Next step, I replaced the old webbing with new webbing and re-tied those old springs. I began the process of building up the chair's seat by covering the springs with burlap to keep them in place. I added a one inch layer of foam over the burlap and stapled it. Next I added a couple layers of raw cotton to soften the foam and shape the seat. Finally, I covered the raw cotton with a high thread count muslin to keep it all smooth and soft before I stapled on the new ticking material that my friend had selected. The material was great to work with and looked terrific. Whenever I work with patterns, I make sure I find center of the seat before securing the fabric to the chair to keep it even and appealing to the eye.

Stripes all lined up, I worked on the top. The old webbing was not attached very well, so I replaced it with new webbing for strength and comfort, as well as long-lasting wear. I covered the webbing with thin foam and raw cotton before I attached the new fabric. The back of the chair needed a little bit of raw cotton before I could cover it with the final ticking fabric. Once all the fabric was stapled in place, I cut fabric for the welt cord to replace the old upholstery tacks used on the chair originally. I attached the welt cord to the seat, back front and back and made sure I had enough material for the armrests, which I did last. For the armrests I replaced the horsehair with foam and cotton and covered it with the ticking and finished it off with the welt cording. What a difference this reupholstery made in this antique chair. And it is as comfortable as it is pretty.

Springs Poking Through

Before repair

Credenza Gets Painted White

Credenza After

Credenza Before

This was a classic Booker Credenza, likely from the 1970s or 1980s. Our customer had wanted a completely different look so she opted to have Jim paint it white. She had selected a soft white to match her decor. Once the paint was chosen and cabinet was in place, 

Jim prepared this large, heavy piece by removing the doors and shelving and then masking the leather detailed doors since they would remain the same. The doors had a really interesting raised leather curved design, which looked great with  the style of furniture that this was.

Once he had everything masked off and ready, he lightly sanded everything then primed it. Once the primer was dry, he carefully painted everything using Benjamin Moore paint in a matte finish. Jim's many years of painting experience comes in real handy for these large paint jobs. For this type of work, spray painting is the best solution. It is even and looks great, without brush strokes. Certain pieces can be brushed well enough, but for larger furniture, spraying is superior. The finished product looked great.

Three-Tier Antique Table Refinish

Three-Tier Table

Three-Tier Table

Chances are your grandmother had one of these three-tier tables in her home housing plants or knick-knacks. These were very common in the 1950s-1960s, used for various household items. This table was in fairly good overall condition but needed a minor repair on one of the fluted edge molding pieces. 

It's actually amazing that these molding edges were still intact since many other tables we've done in the past didn't have them or they were too damaged to salvage. It looks better with the edging as it also serves a purpose, keeping things from slipping off the tiers.

Jim decided to take this apart to work on it since this made it easier to reach all the areas that needed to be refinished. He stripped, sanded and stained the entire table unit with a blended stain mixture he created. We get great results when we mix and match stains with other stains. You get a very rich, deep color and it brings out the tones and flavors of the wood. The result was stunning, a lovely deep, rich color that looked terrific with the style of the table. He used satin polyurethane to finish it off and protect it for the customer's usage. So it is once again ready to be handed down to the next generation for their enjoyment.

To see another table we have refinished, click on the link below. This one is only two tiers, but was very nice.

https://finalefurniture.blogspot.com/search?q=two-tier+table

Bookcase Refinished

Bookcase After

Bookcase Before

A simple three-shelf bookcase is always a handy way to store books and other items you want to keep close at hand. This old bookcase had seen better days as it was quite worn and in need of some TLC. Made of pine, this bookcase had a single drawer, handy for keeping checkbooks or receipts. 

It needed to be stripped, sanded and stained with walnut stain, then protected with two coats of  polyurethane to keep the finish new looking. The drawer pull just needed a little polishing and it was good as new. A perfect size for a small room or office, this bookcase will serve its purpose for many years to come.