Repairing finish on old rocker
Comments (10)
RNmomof2 zone 5
2 months agolast modified: 2 months agoRelated Discussions
Garden Rocking Chair
Comments (33)I haven't forgotten about your request to see a close-up of my rustic arbor. I promise to take a picture soon...our newborn has not been sleeping at night...up every hour...and we have been sleepless wrecks! :o) In the meantime, let me tell you about the arbor. The sides look like ladders with X's in between the rungs. The top is like a railroad track but the rungs are closer...every few inches. You can see the back of the arbor in the picture below. You can also see the X design in the obelisk. I promise to pull out my camera soon! Happy gardening! Kirk P.S. I can't wait to make a chair like yours!!!! (Whenever our little one starts sleeping! LOL)...See MoreSewing rocker?
Comments (38)Posted by lindac (My Page) on Tue, Mar 25, 08 at 19:00 "That's not what I know a a slipper chair....that's more like a sweing rocker. Slipper chairs were not rockers, but a small low chair that one sat on to put on one's slippers. Usually upholstered and mostly found in the bedroom. So many problems happen when someone trying to sell something in the web invents a romanticized term for a piece....and then others who where never acquainted with that item before adopt it." Lindac, In early America, low armless rockers were often called "slipper chairs" or "nursing chairs". Using a low rocker with no arms made it easier for a pregnant woman (and an elderly woman with hip, knee, and/or back problems) to bend her leg back to one side and slide her slipper on since it would be difficult for her to bend her knees to put the slippers on from the front. It was low to help them reach, the rockers allowed her to bend forward to slide her toes into the shoe... then rock back to set in the heel. They had wooden seats or cane or rush. In America, the upholstered chair came much later and was really a "parlor chair" which some used in their bedrooms as slipper chairs so eventually people started calling almost any small chair without arms slipper chairs. After the rocker was invented, many men added their own rockers to regular chairs, making their own "slipper/nursery chairs" and/or "sewing chairs". (even though they are hybrids, they are valuable antiques). Very early Americans were not known for making comfortable furniture and nothing was upholstered except the bed (stuffed with horse hair, sheep's wool, hay, etc.). They used stools and benches and brought out a pillow for the elderly or lame. So, an old low, armless, un-upholstered rocker can definitely be called a slipper chair....See Moreplease help semi-newbie paint her rocker
Comments (2)If the finish on the rocker is still smooth without a lot of peeling areas, then I personally would just lightly sand it and prime, then paint. I've painted 14 chairs, two night stands, and crackled one dining table and that procedure has worked for me every time. Don't have a digital camera so no pics. You just want to sand enough to "roughen" the existing finish. You could also wash it down with TSP, I think they still make it??, which essentially does the same thing. There is no reason to completely strip the finish off unless it is in really bad shape. I'd say start with 3 ought steel wool or medium grit sand paper. Then, depending, you can prime with Kilz which sticks to everything (brush it on). Or you could use a spray can primer and a spray can paint which is MUCH easier then painting with a brush. Chairs are a pain with a brush. Home Depot and Walmart both have a lovely selection of spray colors and finishes (some shiny some not). The only thing is if you wanted to do some designs or something, then you would have to buy oil based paint for that. You would not be able to use water based paint over the spray paint. Another option would be to rent or purchase a spray paint machine and use that for water based primers and paints... But, don't skip the primer!!...See MoreWhere to start with this sturdy, old rocking chair?
Comments (4)What a lovely chair! Unless there are some problems that are not evident in the photo, the finish looks like it has some life left in it. See the link below for a method of cleaning and refreshing. For the seat, I'd take it to an upholsterer who can re-web, re-spring, re-pad and re-cover the seat. You can decide if you want leather (which would be consistent with the style), or fabric (which was also used). Here is a link that might be useful: Saving the finish. This post was edited by bobsmyuncle on Thu, Oct 23, 14 at 17:53...See MoreRNmomof2 zone 5
2 months ago
ffpalms
2 months agolast modified: 2 months agoI saw Lone Fox revive an old coffee table using this product on a youtube video. The result was remarkable.
RNmomof2 zone 5 thanked ffpalms
Michael Hilber
2 months agoLooks to me the original finish may have been clear lacquer which is different than polyurethane.
You could spray it.
https://youtu.be/oKwEp7C3R2s?t=20
lascatx
2 months agolast modified: 2 months agoI have the Howard's Feed N Wax and it's a good product. It will help condition and give a wax finish to the worn portion, but it will wear off and what it will do to the finished portions will depend on what the finish is. You can try it, but if you put wax on it and need to do something else, you have to strip off that wax.
I've also used Howard's Restor A Finish. From what I understand, it's basically a solvent (the one I have used is tinted) that works to take existing finish and smooth it out. I've used it to get old paint and gunk off an old radio cabinet and touch up other furniture. It can me anything from a miracle to meh, depending on what you are working on.
Another product I really like if Odie's Oil. I used it on three projects last year. I did do some light sanding, but I didn't take of all the finish on any of them. Each one had wear that required a bit of attention -- splintering, deep scratches and the impression of embossed vinyl. Odie's isn't cheap, but iit goes a long way and I was really impressed with the results. This is the top of an old sewing machine cabinet that butterflies open. The foreground is with one light coat applied and the back is just lightly sanded (I don't know what the finish was, perhaps an old shellac, but the sanding made it look chalky). I had no idea that wood grain was there -- it just looked average old yellowy worn and scratched wood. Then Wowzers!
The Odie's brough out gorgeous wood grain in what would have been 3 throw away pieces. This cabinet and the working black Singer sewing machine inside came from a thrift shop for $25. The otthe cabinet had been stored in a Texas garage with an embossed vinyl seat stool upside down on it for years before I got it and the other was my mother's former office desk. My XBIL sold off the furniture from my dad's former office cheap -- and no one bought it. I couldn't stand to let it go when the property was sold, so I brought it home and made it my sewing table. I couldn't believe how great it looked after he couldn't give it away. My win! LOL I'll try to find a picture of each of those, but I was so pleased that I was considering working on my grandmother's mahogany dining room table with it this year. One thing to know -- the Odie's bonds with the wood --it doesn't just sit on top, so if it's something you will want to change the look of every few years, I wouldn't go that route. I'll try to post some other photos in the morning.
linda campbell