Rocking Chair Remodel

We received this rocking chair from my husband’s parents. I believe it was originally his great grandma’s chair but I could be wrong on the lineage… either way it is an heirloom and I LOVE furniture that has a history to it! I am actually not a huge antique fan but when it comes from family, I can’t pass it up, especially if it has this much potential in it!
Here is how it came to me. Luckily my father in law sanded it down for me (I hate that part lol). The cushions were very unattractive and smelled REALLY bad! They HAD to go!

Here’s my assistant! She was loads of help

I wanted to darken the wood up just a bit since most of the wood in our house is on the darker side. I added just one coat of Jacobean by Minwax stain and let it dry.

It actually continued to get even darker as it dried. I am glad I only did 1 coat!! Lesson learned that with staining let the product dry for at least 1-2 days between coats to make sure it doesn’t get too dark. Maybe that’s just the case for this project, but it’s better to be safe than sorry!

Next, I added 2 coats of Minwax Polycrylic in Semi Gloss finish. I really like this product because it protects the stain and gives it a nice smooth shinny finish.

Next, came the cushions. This was the trickier part but all in all I just used the original as a guide. I didn’t take the original cushions apart as a pattern but just measured the seat and went from there. The bottom ruffle piece is there to protect the cushion from the springs in the seat. I kind of wish I would have made them just a little bit longer since they have a tendency to stick out funny, but I don’t think it looks bad this way.

The hardest part about the actual cushion was cutting the foam cushion to size. the chair is wider in front than in back and curves, and going around the back legs wasn’t easy. I actually cut the fabric backwards (where the words would be upside down when looking at the chair) so I had to make a few adjustments here and there so that I didn’t have to order new fabric. It was a close call but I was able to fix it! lol Seems like with every project there’s something that goes wrong!

I looked up what the phrase on the fabric says before I ordered it so I could approve of it ha! In French it says, “Faites Comme Chez Vous” which translates to “Make yourself at home”. How perfect!!

Anyways, here it is. I LOVE the way it turned out! Now, to keep the girls off of it! lol