A Quick Chair Makeover with Stain!

A very easy, yet very dramatic chair makeover using stain!

I recently had the opportunity to join a new blogging group called Furniture Refresh! Each month, we get to take an old piece of furniture and breath new life into it using different products and techniques! This month, our mission was to stain a piece of furniture.

This is my first project with the Furniture Refresh group, so I’m really excited to share it with you all!

Here we go…

A very easy, yet very dramatic chair makeover using stain!

I ended up finding this beautiful little chair at one of the vintage shops back in my hometown. Even though it’s a little on the small side, it will actually fit perfect in our upstairs bathroom, so I’ll have somewhere comfy to sit while I’m bathing the girls!

A very easy, yet very dramatic chair makeover using stain!

I have to admit that this chair was pretty darn cute looking already, but I thought it would be just perfect for this project!

A very easy, yet very dramatic chair makeover using stain!

Oh, and here is my little helper, Miss Lacee Grace… She’s pretty darn cute too!

A very easy, yet very dramatic chair makeover using stain!

I’d never actually used Paint Stripper before, so I was actually really excited to try it! I usually just use my Palm Sander and give everything a nice clean sanding, but I’d lent it out to a friend, so this was the perfect opportunity to give paint stripper a try!

The paint stripper that I chose was in a gel form, which I actually found very easy to work with. The gel was easy to spread and didn’t just drip off of the chair. Note that I also bought a pair of Rubber Gloves to wear while using this paint stripper, since it can be harmful to your skin.

A very easy, yet very dramatic chair makeover using stain!

I used an old Paint Brush to apply the product to my chair, and then let it sit for a few minutes. The paint stripper will kind of eat up/deform your paint brush, so make sure that you don’t use your good one! I also tried using a Foam Brush, but it didn’t last very long at all.

A very easy, yet very dramatic chair makeover using stain!

A lot of the old paint bubbled up and peeled right off with the first application.

I used my trusty Scraper to scrape off the bubbled up paint.

A very easy, yet very dramatic chair makeover using stain!

After using my scraper, I added more paint stripper to any of the areas where the paint did not come off easily.

A very easy, yet very dramatic chair makeover using stain!

After this second application, most of the larger areas of paint was easily removed.

A very easy, yet very dramatic chair makeover using stain!

After getting everything off that I could with the paint thinner, I used some medium grit Sandpaper to take anything that was left off, and I still had to use my scraper to get the old paint out of the corners, cracks, and crevices.

A very easy, yet very dramatic chair makeover using stain!

But seriously though… Check out all of that gorgeous wood that was just hiding out under all of that paint! This is definitely a good solid chair!

A very easy, yet very dramatic chair makeover using stain!

The stain that I chose to use for this project is the stain that I use for all of my projects… Minwax Special Walnut. I always like to use a rag to apply my stain, rather than a brush. I just find that it goes on smoother and can be easily rubbed into the wood.

A very easy, yet very dramatic chair makeover using stain!

Here’s a sneak peek! Half stained, half not!

A very easy, yet very dramatic chair makeover using stain!

And here is the whole thing finished!

A very easy, yet very dramatic chair makeover using stain!

I’m so happy with how it turned out, and it fits just perfect in the bathroom, so I can easily sit while I’m keeping an eye on the girls!

A very easy, yet very dramatic chair makeover using stain!


Here are some other posts that you may also enjoy:

Hutch Make-Over with Chalk Paint!

Chalk Paint Tried & Tested (I finally did it!)

Why I’m Obsessed with Flea Markets, and Why You Should Be Too! (Check out the newest additions to The Project Pile!)

Another Chair Refresh from my friend Candace over at The Candie Corner

A very easy, yet very dramatic chair makeover using stain!

*This post may contain affiliate links.

10 thoughts on “A Quick Chair Makeover with Stain!

  1. I am so impressed!! The chair turned out so beautifully! I love the color and your photos are so beautiful. And your helper? Well, she’s the most adorable of all!! 😉

    • Thank you so much! I’m actually really impressed with the gorgeous wood that was hiding out under there!

  2. That looks beautiful! Any tips for translating this method to painted stairs that will (obviously) get some foot traffic after it’s all done?

    • Thank you Michelle! I would say to use a lot of lacquer! You could also do a runner down the center, so you could still see wood on the ends… if you are open to options, lol!

    • Thanks so much, Jessica! I was really impressed with how well the paint stripper worked!

  3. This project is so great! I have one similar waiting for me to get to it, thanks for the motivation! Yours looks amazing!

Comments are closed.