Finally

Well, it only took nine months but I have finally completed the redo on my Craig's List table and chairs!

Just as a refresher, here is what I started with ...

I painted the table back in May. That was the easy part ...

But, it was those chairs chairs that I kept putting off. You'll remember we fixed them so they were no longer wobbly, and we creatively came up with a new "topper" for the one that was missing. 

Well, three weekends ago, I set out to finish these chairs. The funniest thing is I thought I could get it done in one weekend. Ha! Not so much ...

First, I had to sand each chair down. When I sanded the table, it was easy, because I could use the electric sander. But the chairs needed to be done by hand because of the intricate details. Plus, as I started sanding, I realized a few chairs that needed a little more reinforcement to ensure their stability.

So, three hours later, the sanding and fixing was done. Next, it was time to wipe everything clean and start priming. 

I was clearly disillusioned with this entire process. I had no idea how long the priming would take. But, four hours later, I was done with one coat.

That was about all I had time for in one day. But, Sunday, after church, I started again with the first coat of paint. 

Four hours later, I had six of the eight chairs complete and was running out of daylight. I was realizing that the excitement of finding a table with eight chairs was no longer a good thing because it only meant more painting! 

At this point, I was pretty frustrated. Plus, I was sore from painting all day. I was really wanting to give up and spray paint the rest, but having hand painted the table, I didn't want the chairs to look different. So, I persevered.

The rest of the week, I rushed home from work to paint a chair or two before it got dark. By the next weekend, I was able to get the second coat and the sealant on, but it took all day Saturday and all day Sunday. 

So, with the chairs drying, it was time to tackle the cushions.

Landon's mom gave me a lot of good tips for this task. She suggested I starch the fabric before covering the chairs, so that's what I did first.

Then, I turned these ...

Into these ...

If you have never covered chairs, the key is to pull the fabric tight.

With the help of Landon screwing the cushions on the chairs, I'm proud to reveal the final product!

After nine months, I am so glad to have this project complete. Plus, Landon will let me move onto another project!