How to Create A Festive Chair
CHRISTMAS DINNER WOULDN’T BE THE SAME WITHOUT A MIS-MATCH OF CHAIRS AND STOOLS FOR THE FAMILY TO PERCH ON. BUT THIS YEAR WHY NOT GIVE EACH OF THEM A NEW LEASE OF FESTIVE LIFE LIKE BLOGGER CASSIE FAIRY WITH THIS TRADITIONAL ERCOL CHAIR.
Everyone needs a pop of bright candy cane red in their festive décor and what better way to introduce it than to give your dining chair a makeover.
Squeezing the whole family round the table for dinner is a predicament so many household’s face and more often than not someone will end up on the wonky chair you should have thrown out last year.
Preloved and vintage chairs are amass in charity shops and at car boot sales so there really is no excuse to leave poor old nan trying to keep her balance in the corner (and not just because of the sherry).
In a matter of hours you could transform an array of seats and benches into cute and whimsical festive furniture — even better if they are easy to stack away and store for next year!
What you will need
- Sandpaper
- Rust-Oleum Surface Primer
- Dust sheets or newspaper
- Rust-Olueum Painter’s Touch – White Satin
- Rust-Olueum Painter’s Touch – Cherry Red Gloss
- Masking tape
- Greaseproof paper
- A pencil
- An artist blade or sharp scissors
- Rust-Oleum Low Tack Adhesive
- Rust-Oleum Crystal Clear
Steps
PREPARE
Start by sanding down a wooden chair and giving it a wipe over with a damp cloth to remove any dust, dirt or grease. Allow to dry thoroughly before starting to paint.
PRIME
Use Rust-Oleum Surface Primer in white to cover the entire chair with a layer of primer. This will make it easier for the paint to adhere to the wooden surface. Allow to dry thoroughly.
PAINT YOUR BASE COLOUR
Choose a base colour for your chair. This chair is white with red, but you could paint it any combination of festive colours including green, burgundy or metallic tones. We used Rust-Olueum Painter’s Touch spray paint in satin white and gave the chair two coats of spray paint for an even finish, allowing the paint to dry thoroughly between layers.
PAINT THE SEAT
Cover the entire chair with newspaper, bin bags or dust sheets, leaving only the seat exposed. Spray paint the seat with two fine coats of spray paint to create a contrast. We used Rust-Oleum Painter’s Touch in Cherry Red. Allow to dry thoroughly between layers.
MASK THE LEGS
Use thick low-tack masking tape to create a candy cane stripe around the legs of the chair. Start at the top of each leg and wind the masking tape around the leg, smoothing out as you go.
SPRAY THE LEGS
Mask off the rest of the chair using newspaper, bin bags or a dust sheet, leaving only the legs exposed. Paint the legs in a contrasting colour, using two fine coats of the spray paint.
REMOVE THE MASKING TAPE
Allow to dry completely before carefully removing the masking tape to uncover the candy cane striped pattern on the legs.
CREATE A STENCIL
To add a festive pattern to the seat of the chair, create a snowflake stencil using greaseproof paper. Fold the paper into a triangle and draw on a snowflake design in pencil. Cut out the middle of the snowflake shape.
SECURE THE STENCIL
Brush a thin coat of Rust-Oleum Low Tack Adhesive over the stencil and leave it to dry a little and become tacky before carefully applying to the seat.
MASK AND SPRAY
Mask off any other parts of the chair that you don’t want to be painted and spray paint the stencil with white paint.
PEEL OFF THE STENCIL
Allow to dry thoroughly before peeling away the stencil to reveal the snowflake design. If any low tack adhesive remains on the chair, carefully peel it off. Spray the entire chair with a coat of Rust-Oleum Crystal Clear protective coat to seal.
THE FINISHED PIECE
