Adventures in Pinterest | Desk Chair Makeover

Adventures in Pinterest time! And I’m so excited about this month’s project, I’m giddy. If you follow me on Facebook or Instagram (and you should) then you saw the green chair I rescued from my neighbor’s trash last month. It was sitting in a pile of clutter they’d pulled out of their garage or attic. I saw it when I drove by the first time, went back around our oblong block, and saw it again. I looked up and down the street, a little embarrassed to be digging in someone else’s trash. And then I got over it and loaded the wobbling chair in the back of my car.

Almost as soon as I got home, I jumped on Pinterest for inspiration of what to do with my chair. And that’s when I found this pin from My Passion for Decor.

My desk sits in my living and dining room. It’s an old secretary that belonged to my great-great grandmother, which makes it super cool and certainly not a match for the vintage-style metal swivel desk chair I’ve been using since high school. But a new chair just wasn’t something I was ready to spend money on. That’s why this garbage-pile treasure was perfect.

The original chair was in pretty bad shape. The paint was chipping and the joints needed some attention before the it could be considered sound. And the cushion was nothing I wanted to sit on. Ever.

Keep on reading to see my desk chair’s complete transformation.

I began by tightening screws and bolts or gluing loose joints. And then I started sanding. I sanded off loose paint and rough edges. I sanded splinters and peeled spots. This was by far the most labor intensive part of the process, but it might also be the most important. Old loose paint that’s not sanded off can peel off clean fresh paint. And sanding makes for a clean, fresh surface to paint, which makes all the difference.

When the sanding was finished, I cleaned the surface with an air hose from the hub’s air compressor, and wiped it all the way clean with a tack rag. Screw holes were filled with new wooden plugs, and a new seat was cut from fresh wood since the old was moldy, damp, and just plain gross. Like Really gross. And yes, my husband did the wood cutting.

And then came the painting and my biggest take away from the pin: Don’t be afraid of color or drama. My living room is yellow. The dining room chair cushions are green and brown. My desk accents are red. I brought home several cans of spray paint-green, yellow, gray-before finally settling on the red. I love it. The fabric is the same style as the rest of the fabrics in the room room, and the contrast is really fabulous.

What do you think?

Don’t forget to check out what Adventures in Pinterest my co-hosts, Jessica, Wendy, and Megan are up to this month on their sites and on Pinterest.

Megan on Pinterest | Wendy on Pinterest | Jessica on Pinterest | Me on Pinterest

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