In the long time since I last posted, I finished my summer of programming at the software company, moved into my first apartment, and started the first semester of my senior year of college. I am not going to write about any of those things just yet. Instead, for my return to weblogging, I wanted to write about the project I undertook during my last two days of summer.
My grandmother gave me an old dining table and six chairs to take with me to the apartment. (Thanks again, Grandma, if you are reading this.) It was well-made furniture that had stayed with the family for 50 years. My father remembers sitting around it for dinner in his family's first house. It has filled my grandmother's informal dining room for as long as I can remember. All that history showed in the wood and seats, so when I loaded the first four seats into the trunk of my car, I knew I would need to do something to revitalize them and make them my own.
When I got home I brought one of the chairs and my dad's orbital sander out to the back porch. I turned over the chair, turned on the sander, and gingerly sanded a hidden surface on the bottom of the leg support. The chair did not burst into flames or scream out in pain, so I sanded a little more. Underneath the old varnish and years of use, the wood was still bright and beautiful. I knew then that I would have to go all the way. I retrieved some more supplies from the workshop and dove into sanding.
After I finished with the orbital sander, I rubbed each of the chairs with steel wool and then a wet paper towel to remove any remaining dust. Then, I sprayed each of them a thin layer of acrylic clear coat to protect the wood and bring out the color some more. I think the results are extraordinary.
My next task was to replace the thin and worn vinyl upholstery on the seats. I went to the fabric store and picked out a medium gray suede-ey fabric and some 1½ inch padding. I had never reupholstered a chair before, so I used packing tape to set the fabric and see how it would look. I mangled my first attempt at cutting foam— I now know that it is not necessary to bevel the edges of the foam with one's scissors— but everything went smoothly after that.
I used Dad's electric stapler to attach the fabric to the bottom of the chair. I just pulled as hard as I could to compress the foam into a nice curve and stapled where I was pulling. The corners required a little bit of work to prevent creases from showing. The stapler did not shoot the staples all the way into the wood, so I went back with a small hammer to finish the job.
Finally, I reattached each new cushion to the sanded chairs. It took me two afternoons to complete four of the six chairs. The last two had to wait because I needed to start packing for the move. I plan to finish them and perhaps the table during some vacation.
I love it when a project turns out better than expected.
