Beautiful chairs from skip - what to do?

[palminnie1]

my twin and i dug out three fab kitchen type chairs. A sort of deep blonde wood and very hard wood too.
it had a cottage style carved centre back batton and beautifully turned legs.
How do you start process of making these shine?
I know i want plum striped padded seating, maybe but not much else at present.
all suggestions for this greatly appreciated.
these are like the old trad chairs with a bit of a difference.

[junkista]

i'd love to see a picture so i can give my tuppence worth..great buzz from finding an old thing that you can give life to!!! warning! its addictive!

[TillyL]

Well done on your 'skip find'. These chairs look like they might be oak. Clean the wood with very fine steel wool dipped regularly in white spirit. Then wash off and rub with boiled linseed oil and when this is dry, shine it off with lint free cloths. The timber can be rubbed regularly and this will just give a nice soft sheen. Good luck.]

[unapam]

OMG - they are gorgeous! No matter what you do with them they will turn out lovely. Can't wait to see the finished result.

[BCD]

the chairs are lovely..Its a crying shame the beautiful things people just dis guard..They are so quaint looking..Have fun doing them up and as Unapam said they'll turn out lovely no matter what ya do with them..good luck,

[palminnie1]

www.junkmarketstyle.com

Please answer my questions after viewing the site i found on the net!
would i be destroying if i go down this 'paint/fun' route, rather than sand down and wax or varnish?

I always wanted 'funk' after seeing what one person on the 'before and after' forum did to a sofa! orange and flowers on the trim!
and of course the chair another found in a skip all slashed seat et al, and put a plastic oil cloth, fab green, agin the backdrop of flowery material.
i wonder what you have to say on this, i dont want to destroy them, but i am an artist by profession or rather WAS one in a past life.
what think ye?
ann
oh on that same day thrawl, twin found a fab wooden gate and more strong wood to make extra panels to put at side of her house, two wee childrens plastic chairs, some vases, sherry glasses, watering can.
she had wood left over and is now constructing a pergola.
she has discovered the power of a power drill!

[Gormal]

I think they would look fab painted with some really funky material. It really depends what you would like, since you're the one who's going to live with them.
I really liked the chair on that site with the butterflies, although I would have preferred less up the back of the chair.
Can wait to see what you decide.

[palminnie1]

someone said to me today that these look like 'arts and crafts' chairs and i would be Cotton wool MAD to paint them up, boohoo, i am so sad, i want to be MAD.
does anyone know their 'arts and crafts' all opinions welcome on this before i set the brush on them.
x

[palminnie1]

I pulled three chairs from a skip, but someone told me not to funk them up as they are too good and might be from the 'arts and crafts' period, anyone here an expert on these sort of things?
would really love opinion before i butcher them with funki beauty.
see 'beautiful chairs pulled from skip - photos added.
thanks in anticipation.
palminnie 1

[cascais]

hi palminnie,

these are gorgeous ! congrats on a truely great find.
i am no expert though but they definitely look valuable.
did you call an auction room or two to see if they could value them for you ? i think they offer this type of service, send a pic and they'll tell you how much it's worth type thing...

i would personnally go for the traditionnal sand and varnish route and nice seating refurb , but i guess this is totally up to you, it depends if you like brown furniture and if you would like this type of furniture in the house i guess (everyone's different)
at the end of the day, you will be the one using them, so you will be looking at them every day...

good luck with the project !
cascais

[okidoki]

my twin and i dug out three fab kitchen type chairs. A sort of deep blonde wood and very hard wood too.
it had a cottage style carved centre back batton and beautifully turned legs.
How do you start process of making these shine?
I know i want plum striped padded seating, maybe but not much else at present.
all suggestions for this greatly appreciated.
these are like the old trad chairs with a bit of a difference.


I cannot believe someone would dump these - I would clean them down and recover with a similar strip seat, they are fabulous even as they are!

[noni]

Hi, If you are going to paint them you could go for the "shabby chic" look,
paint them white or cream with emulsion paint then rub off lightly before it dries
the paint stays on the crevices on the legs and on the lovely design on the top of the chairs. Just an idea!

[jenniferalan]

I agree, I think a sand and varnish would be perfect

[palminnie1]

i have sent pics to a firm in manchester from the site mentioned here, but no answer as to what they might think, still holding out to see what answers i get on their make and origin before i do anything with them.
xx for now.
ann

[palminnie1]

Hi,
didnt get a reply from that place in manchester, have to do sommut fast with these chairs, they lookin a bit sad in their present state!
xpalminnie1

[EvenstarArwen]

Hi Palminnie,

I think these are fabulous chairs. I think if you want to refurbish them, and this is in my own opinion, it would depend on the colour scheme of the room you possibly considering putting them in.

If those chairs were mine and I was considering refurbishing them, I would paint them white and have them reupholstered in blue/silver material on the seat, it would be so beautiful.

I wish you the best of luck and have fun doing those chairs up

[leopard print]

u can do ur self i done mine pic fabric in hickeys or any fabric get hot glue or staple gun release seat off top chair use iriginal stuufing part cut fabric 2 size needed cover staple or glue onto base and reattach it s worth ur while an no one will have anything like yours

[Proteavalley]

be careful as the things you take out of skips is theft and you can be prosecuted for it, its mad I know as the stuff is going to the dump, but legally the stuff in the skip still belongs to the person throwing it out

[damiond]

my twin and i dug out three fab kitchen type chairs. A sort of deep blonde wood and very hard wood too.
it had a cottage style carved centre back batton and beautifully turned legs.
How do you start process of making these shine?
I know i want plum striped padded seating, maybe but not much else at present.
all suggestions for this greatly appreciated.
these are like the old trad chairs with a bit of a difference.


They are hand made chairs, circa 1940-50. Probably west Ireland. General manufacture. Wont go for much. Sand and polish with a bit of Bee's Wax. Good for prop or home deco. Check for the turner's stamp/mark

[palminnie1]

yes, there are marks underneath and must take pics of em and put them up. i love em.
they are gorgeous but no chippendale but well well made and craftmanship brill.
i will sand them a bit and put beeswax i think.
and thank you.

[damiond]

yes, there are marks underneath and must take pics of em and put them up. i love em.
they are gorgeous but no chippendale but well well made and craftmanship brill.
i will sand them a bit and put beeswax i think.
and thank you.

send a pic of what you see as markings and I will see if I identify the maker. No problem. If I had the cash I'd take them off you. Pity :)

[humdinger]

I Think Those Chairs Are Very Good Quality(i Do Restoration) And My Advice To You Is To Sand Them Down And Stain Them With Wood Stain To The Colour Of Your Choice Let It Dry Fully, And French Polish Them It Will Bring Out The Beauty Of The Wood, You Will Ruin Them If You Paint Them As For Covering Pick The Colour And Design Of Your Choice And It Can Be As Funky As You Want As The Wood Will Enchance The Covers The Best Of Luck With It Looking Forward To Seeing The Finished Product....

[palminnie1]

yes, i am not touching them bar doing what you have advised, i would hate to ruin them. pity i only have three but i love em and everyone here really does too.
i have them now in the 'what will be the eating area' they look great, may cut the table down to meet them, as the legs of these chairs i would say slightly smaller than we are used to, i think over a decade or two people have grown taller!

[humdinger]

glad to hear your not touching them yes people were shorter back then my Family are still small LOL!!! i got a chair there last year its a victorian nursing chair and its very low when i sat in it i had a job getting up out of it i will get around hopefully in the summer to bringing it back to its original beauty its in tatters at the moment keep an eye out at car boot sales and second hand shops/charity shops you could be lucky and pick up one the same for very small money.i look forward to seeing them finished.....