The unique back of this vintage chair caught my eye.
I recently acquired a mod tulip print fabric for a different chair. Then I saw the shape of the back of this one. Screech! (That’s me, changing gears.) I decided this would be perfect for the tulips.
First came a good scrub and some minor repair work on the frame. Ironically, the clamp I had to buy cost more than the chair! I primed the wood with Zinsser BIN and added a coat of Annie Sloan’s Pure White.
Then disaster struck.
Turns out this chair is mahogany. Mahogany is strong and beautiful but bleeds through paint badly. After a couple of days, these spots began scattering across the frame. Ugh — that’s what primer is supposed to prevent!
I stepped back and reconsidered my plan. Should I go with a darker paint? But I really wanted the chair to be white. That meant adding a layer of shellac over the whole frame to seal the wood. And yes, starting all over with the chalk paint.
But it was SO worth it!
Take a look at this beauty! Now you can see why the tulip fabric was well-suited for the shape of the back. This chair has gotten a crazy amount of attention on an online chair enthusiast group. (Yes, they exist.) And that’s where I got the title for this blog entry. One post said the original design was “funeral parlor” but the finished product was “happy place.” And that’s what I like to make — happy chairs!
Status: SOLD!
As always, if you have any questions about or interest in the items you see on my blog, please let me know via my contact page. And check back next Monday for my new reveal!
