DIY Rocking Chair

My daughter was given a family heirloom, this old light oak wooden chair that had 1970's blue rough fabric. She asked me if I would stain it to match the cherry furniture for the baby's bedroom. Of course I agreed to help her out. Below are the steps I went through to make the transformation. 

• Decide on your stain. I went to the local Home Depot with a photo of the baby room furniture (here is an image of the stain I used)
• Grab a package of soft package of   (LINK)  steel wool to buff and prepare the chair to accept the new stain.   
• A package of foam paint brushes and old clothes to paint rub the stain onto chair
• Cardboard box or tarp to cover your garage floor and have plenty of ventilation!
• Figure out and research your fabric you would love on the chair. I measured and reused the pillows on the chair and just recovered with new fabric. (no I did not take off the old fabric).  I taught my daughter how to sew the fabric , stuff the pillows into the openings and close up the opening. She did a pretty good job! 
• About the staining.  It will take you about a week to get all of the chair painted with one coat, you will have to give it another coat or two after letting it dry for a full day in between coats.  When it was dry I would buff with a clean clothe to see any imperfections. One small note. Try to go with the grain in noticeable areas such as the arm rest. Also, be prepared to turn the chair sideways to get in the small places. 
• Tell me your thoughts and ideas.  Find an old chair or table to  stain. This is really easy to do but does take some time. NO machines were used on this project. Just me and my little hands and time! 
• Please share your comments and creativity on the "comments" tab. Thanks so much! 

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