2016 Thrift Store Decor Upcycle Challenge – Red Weathered Chair
I’m so excited to bring you this Thrift Store Decor Upcycle Challenge! I’ve teamed up with 20 other bloggers for this thrift store blog hop. The rules were simple–take an item(s) from a thrift store, yard sale, resale shop etc. and transform it into a new piece of home decor. There was no budget or theme to stick to so we were free to let our creativity run wild!
Meet the Hosts
Amanda | The Kolb Corner Chelc| Inside the Fox Den
Erlene | My Pinterventures Kim | Made in a Day Sara | Twelve on Main
Emily | Two Purple Couches Shirley | Intelligent Domestications
Marie | DIY Adulation Lindsay | Crazy Organized Michelle | Our Crafty Mom
Julie | Live From Julie’s House Debra | Shoppe No. 5 Dru | Polka Dot Poplars
Maureen | Red Cottage Chronicles Pili | Sweet Things Channell | Hobnail House
Colleen | Life on Kaydeross Creek Ann | Duct Tape and Denim
Paula | Virginia Sweet Pea Sherry | Savvy Apron Stacy | Anastasia Vintage
Red Weathered Chair
There was a time when I wanted everything new, but the older I get, the more I appreciate items that have a little age on them. I think the imperfections of aged items give it a character that you just don’t get from new items. So when I took the challenge, I had it in my mind that I wanted to upcycle something old, but I had no clue what that old item would be. I visited several stores, some more than once, and started to worry that I wasn’t going to find anything. Then, on my second visit to Goodwill, I saw an old wooden chair and a light bulb went off – I have an old chair and it was sitting in my own backyard!
This chair is a little over 20 years old and was part of a blonde color dining set my husband and I bought when we first got married. The table is long gone, but I hung onto the chairs because I love the shape. Unfortunately, the blonde chairs don’t match our current dark dining table, so I decided to paint one chair black. I hated it. Then, I lost interest in the chair and it sat outside in the rain and scorching sun until it began to weather and crack. Yet, I still loved it and loved it even more! I could still see it’s beauty and knew it was time to pretty it up with some red paint.
I sanded off most of the black paint and then brushed on red acrylic paint. When the paint was dry, I sanded off some of the red paint to show some of the black paint and weathered wood.
Since the chair will be under cover at my front door, I used clear wax to seal the paint (use waterproof sealant for chairs that will be in the elements). Once the entire chair was sealed with wax, it was ready for its new home.
I can’t believe how a few months in the elements and some red paint can transform a chair. I’m totally in love with my updated red weathered chair and have a great piece to begin my front door update! Make sure to stop by next week for another decor addition and to see the step-by-step transformation of my front door area.
That chair looks fabulous! You’re totally right; the older you get, the more appealing older, used items become. It certainly helps save money, and usually used products have a very unique look about them. Awesome post! Thanks so much for sharing!
Your chair is lovely! The distressing with the red makes it feel very cottagey! I’m glad you linked it up this week to Dishing It! & Digging It! The other projects are great to look through too!
Love the chair! It reminds me of one my grandmother had. Oh, how I wish I had that chair! thanks for sharing at Dishing It & Digging It!
Thank you. Maybe you can find a chair and make one.
I love that you hung onto this chair for so long and were able to re-purpose it! And I have a feeling I know what the matching table looks like, because we have a similar set in our kitchen right now (that I hate but don’t want to get rid of because it’s a really sturdy set of furniture!) 😉
Thanks Emily. If you bought your set around 20 years ago it probably looks very similar – does yours have tile on it? I know the farm table look was really “in” at that time. And yes, the set was super sturdy! We ended up giving the table to a friend that needed it.
Great make over!! Thanks so much for sharing and for stopping by!!
Hugs,
Deb
This looks fantastic! I love that you have it outside. I bet it will continue to acquire character and get even more beautiful. 🙂
I love how your chair turned out! Thanks for sharing on Meet Up Monday!
That looks amazing! I love making things old, new again! Thank you for sharing with us at the #HomeMattersParty
The chair turned out lovely. And once you added the wax it made a big difference. I love the color you chose. Erlene I am hosting a link party that runs Friday till Tuesday and would love to have you link up with us over at Sweet Inspiration.
Oh love this so much! I have been doing a lot of up cycling from thrift store finds too lately and would have over to be a part of this challenge if I knew about it earlier 🙂 I painted a rocking chair yellow and love it 🙂
xx, Kusum
You don’t seem to see much red in these projects and this looks great! I only recently upcycled a second-hand chair to black, so I’ll have to wait a long time before it weathers! lol Lovely work. Sue via Friday Frenzy
I don’t know why I don’t use red too often, but I should looking at your pretty chair!! Love the weathered look too!
It’s so cool how you’ve had this chair for years, and it’s now taken on a new life. The weathered look it has now is perfect!!
The perfect colour for my little red cottage! I love the distressed finish.
Red is my favorite color so this immediately caught my eye. I love the patina of the chair after you sanded and painted it. What a nice welcome to your guests.
I just love this color! It is such a beautiful shade! I look forward to the rest of the transformation as well!
What a great outdoor decor piece! The red really makes it pop!
This piece is perfect for your porch. I love the weathered look!
Red is such an awesome color for the front porch! How nice that you were able to give new life to a piece of your family history like that! Love it!
Very cute I love the red too! I had a really cool antique chair in my bedroom and my husband hates everything old and convinced me to toss it! That was before I was a blogger. I have been on the hunt for another one ever since. I love that it was sitting outside and has great weathering already. It will look great in the future.
Kim
I love that you used red to paint your chair. That is so different and beautiful!
LOVE the distressed finish on the chair!! Red is such a happy color, isn’t it? Can’t wait to see the rest of the transformation.