Happy Wednesday! Recently I decided to paint some old rocking chairs which we keep on the front porch at our lake house. The chairs were in poor shape after braving the elements for a few years. Come see how paint completely transformed these rocking chairs!
I bought these two rocking chairs from a consignment store a few years ago for $50 each. They are from Cracker Barrel so I knew they were well made and comfortable. And they retail for around $150 each, and I knew it was a great deal! Here’s how they looked when I purchased them:
You can see the seats of the chairs show significant wear and tear from exposure to the elements. Sometimes paint is the best way to help protect and preserve wood. We already have two similar rocking chairs on the porch which are white, so I decided to paint these to match.
I began by flipping the rocking chairs over so I could prime the backs and underside first. I decided to hand paint a primer on the rocking chairs first so I would get a thorough coat on all sides of the chairs. However, you can use a spray-on primer just as well and is quicker.
After hand brushing one coat of primer, you could still see the stain through the paint. Clearly this job requires a primer and a coat of paint.
I finished priming one of the chairs and loved how crisp and clean the chair looked with just a coat of primer. So, on to the second one! (Or, “time a nutter one” as my great-niece Josephine likes to say!)
Because of all of the round dowels, slats and crevices on each of the chairs, I decided to use spray paint for the final coat. Not only would this save time, but give the chairs a nice, smooth finish. I used my favorite white semi-gloss paint by Rust-Oleum. Semi-gloss paint seems to hold up quite well outdoors and it makes cleaning the chairs a snap. And here they are on the front porch at Happy Hill! (aka our lake house.) I added some green Pottery Barn cushions to make them extra comfy and to add a pop of color. Despite the fact this side of the house faces the road rather than the lake, we sometimes enjoy rocking and drinking our coffee out here.
Here is a quick before and after. The power of paint never ceases to amaze me! And now these rocking chairs match the other two, for a cohesive look on the porch. Now all we need out here is a swing!
Paint is the easiest way to spruce up furniture, don’t you agree? (I sure wish I owned stock in spray paint!) It took me a few days from start to finish to allow proper drying time between coats of paint. When we are staying at the lake house it seems there is always a project! Between the interior and exterior at the lake, we’ve painted every inch at least once, if not more. Would you like to see the roof my husband built? I’ll see if I can find some fun before and after pictures and hopefully will share that soon!
Until we meet again, may the good Lord take a liking to you! ~Roy Rogers.
I hope you have a great day! xoxo Dell
