Caned Chair Set Gets Newly Upholstered Seat

Chair With New Seat

Chair Before New Seat

My customer saw a set of these chairs at an estate sale and at first walked away from them, but after a while she came back and ended up purchasing them for $20.00. Even with the reupholstery work, they still cost less than purchasing new chairs. This isn’t always the case, because traditionally reupholstered furniture costs more than replacing furniture but if you have a piece that you cherish or is made very well, reupholstering is a great choice.

My customer chose a bold blue and white material with a loose weave. The chairs became statement pieces with their bold new look. The fabric had a modern theme which works well with many styles of décor. The seats were also quite large, which allows space for a vibrant pillow to accentuate the chairs’ unique style. These chairs had a “press-in” caned surround with solid wood structure and were very well made. If you come across furniture such as these chairs at an estate sale or resale shop, they are worth the price because chances are they are made very well and will last for many years to come.

Drexel-Heritage Dressers Jump Into 21st Century

Drexel Heritage Dresser Before

You never know what treasures you'll find at an estate or garage sale. When searching for used furniture, look at the "bones." If it's structurally sound, the rest can be fixed and refinished, revealing a classic, beautiful piece of furniture that is hard to come by. This was a great example of how very important it is to choose the right hardware for any project, as the hardware really makes a piece of refinished furniture shine.

This proved to be a challenging, yet very rewarding job for a client who had purchased these dressers at an estate sale. They were of excellent quality, name-brand furniture, Drexel-Heritage, in great condition, however, my client wanted to get an updated look for these classic pieces, bringing them into the 21st Century.

Drexel Heritage Dresser After

The challenge was twofold; stripping the old stain from two different types of wood and making the new stain blend, as well as replacing the original outdated hardware with new hardware she had selected, that didn't fit the original holes. Not until we had finished stripping the dressers did we realize that the bronze colored hardware she had originally given us wouldn't work. The drawer pulls didn't line up with the surface of the drawers causing the ends of the handles to stick up.

Petite Old Dresser Painted Black

Petite Dresser Before

Petite Dresser After

This little dresser was in really rough shape when we found it at an estate sale on Ursuline Street in St. Clair Shores two weekends ago, and we almost overlooked it. After we gave it a second glance, we knew we found a treasure. Seldom deterred by "ugly," Jim saw the potential in this unique petite piece and knew he could transform its outdated, rough look and give it a new and unique personality.
The dresser sports fluted sides, a rounded backdrop and the front two legs rest on rounded pegs for support. This little piece shows true craftsmanship of days gone by. Its five drawers were in excellent condition, but the exterior was in need of new paint. Given the luck we've had with black paint for the other dressers we've recently restored, we decided to use black paint again. We purchased new drawer pulls that we felt best suited the dresser's unique style and just as we thought, the dresser assumed a whole new identity, not at all resembling the sad little dresser we originally bought at the estate sale. It's now a respectable piece of furniture that anyone would be proud to own. With a little elbow grease, time and patience (of course vision), this old beauty has a modern, timeless look.

Here's another dresser that needed paint and TLC: http://finalefurniture.blogspot.com/2013/08/old-dresser-new-life.html