Oak Swivel Chair Makeover

An oak swivel chair has always been on my wishlist. I admired the solid construction of vintage chairs because they don’t build ’em like they used to!  Every time we go to an antique market, I’d always point them out to Hubs. He knew I wanted one, so I was pleasantly surprised when Hubs showed up one day with one in-hand!

Makeover a vintage oak swivel chair with paint and stencil. Birdz of a Feather | chair makeover | stencil | painted chair | painted furniture | fusion paint | oak chair | #birdzofafeather.ca #birdzofafeather #fusionpaint #stencil #knottymommawoodworking #paintedfurniture #upcycled #upcycling #diy

Clean

We wiped it down well and removed the castors. Unfortunately they were cracked beyond repair.

This chair is probably around circa 1940 – 50’s. I love the molded seat, solid oak construction and base.

I asked Hubs to tilt it over for me so I could look for a maker’s mark. As I was looking for a mark, Hubs was more enthralled about the lift mechanism!

Makeover a vintage oak swivel chair with paint and stencil. Birdz of a Feather | chair makeover | stencil | painted chair | fusion paint #birdzofafeather.ca #birdzofafeather #fusionpaint #stencil #knottymommawoodworking

I was so excited to find it! The mark indicated that it was manufactured by H.Krug in Kitchener Ontario. It’s so rare to find something that’s actually made in Canada these days! You really can’t beat the quality of vintage Canadiana!

As is often the case with us, I already had so many projects on the go that this chair languished in our house for over a year and a half and it seemed like we’d never have time to make it over. Although Hubs brought it home for me, even he was getting tired of moving it around the house to avoid tripping over it.

A solution came when my niece started a little woodworking business specializing in children’s toys and furniture called Knotty Momma Woodworking. As a stay at home mom with a burgeoning sideline, Melissa was eager to learn the ropes so I asked her if she would like the chair to play with. I got a resounding ‘yes’!

Select Paint

Melissa chose two colours of Fusion Mineral paint for the chair: Little Lamb for the overall colour and Picket Fence as an accent. Fusion has zero VOCs so is absolutely safe to use indoors – especially with a little one around!

She covered the floor with a drop cloth and gave the chair a good sanding to give it some tooth. The maker of Fusion paint professes that prep isn’t necessary but I still think it’s always a good idea to sand and de-gloss the surface so paint will adhere better.

Makeover a vintage oak swivel chair with paint and stencil. Birdz of a Feather | chair makeover | stencil | painted chair | painted furniture | fusion paint | oak chair | #birdzofafeather.ca #birdzofafeather #fusionpaint #stencil #knottymommawoodworking #paintedfurniture #upcycled #upcycling #diy

Stencil

After priming. Melissa painted the entire chair with 2 coats of Little Lamb, brushing it on. Then out came this stencil:

DIY Home Bone Inlay Laser Stencil Set by ArtMinds

The stencil set includes six different motifs:

Makeover a vintage oak swivel chair with paint and stencil. Birdz of a Feather | chair makeover | stencil | painted chair | painted furniture | fusion paint | oak chair | #birdzofafeather.ca #birdzofafeather #fusionpaint #stencil #knottymommawoodworking #paintedfurniture #upcycled #upcycling #diy

Melissa selected the largest stencil for the seat and three of the smaller ones for the back of the chair. She secured each stencil to the chair using green painters tape. She also taped over areas of the stencil she didn’t want to accidentally paint!

Use a very dry brush when stencilling. When you load the paint onto the brush, you can use paper towels to dab off and reduce the amount of paint. Melissa uses a foam pouncer to pounce the accent colour through the stencil.

Makeover a vintage oak swivel chair with paint and stencil. Birdz of a Feather | chair makeover | stencil | painted chair | painted furniture | fusion paint | oak chair | #birdzofafeather.ca #birdzofafeather #fusionpaint #stencil #knottymommawoodworking #paintedfurniture #upcycled #upcycling #diy

I couldn’t believe how fast Melissa transformed the chair after she got it from us. I wish I had half as much energy!

The before and after is quite the transformation. I think Melissa did an awesome job! What do YOU think?

Makeover a vintage oak swivel chair with paint and stencil. Birdz of a Feather | chair makeover | stencil | painted chair | painted furniture | fusion paint | oak chair | #birdzofafeather.ca #birdzofafeather #fusionpaint #stencil #knottymommawoodworking #paintedfurniture #upcycled #upcycling #diy

Melissa will probably use the chair as her work chair. However, she’s been so busy being a mom and building commissions, I don’t know when she’ll ever have the chance to actually sit down!

Makeover a vintage oak swivel chair with paint and stencil. Birdz of a Feather | chair makeover | stencil | painted chair | painted furniture | fusion paint | oak chair | #birdzofafeather.ca #birdzofafeather #fusionpaint #stencil #knottymommawoodworking #paintedfurniture #upcycled #upcycling #diy

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Makeover a vintage oak swivel chair with paint and stencil. Birdz of a Feather | chair makeover | stencil | painted chair | painted furniture | fusion paint | oak chair | #birdzofafeather.ca #birdzofafeather #fusionpaint #stencil #knottymommawoodworking #paintedfurniture #upcycled #upcycling #diy

More About Knotty Momma Woodworking

Melissa’s located in Port Perry, Ontario. If you live around that area and are looking for custom built children’s toys and furniture, check out Melissa’s Knotty Momma Woodworking Facebook page! You’ll find her contact info there.

Makeover a vintage oak swivel chair with paint and stencil. Birdz of a Feather | chair makeover | stencil | painted chair | fusion paint #birdzofafeather.ca #birdzofafeather #fusionpaint #stencil #knottymommawoodworking

Makeover a vintage oak swivel chair with paint and stencil. Birdz of a Feather | chair makeover | stencil | painted chair | fusion paint #birdzofafeather.ca #birdzofafeather #fusionpaint #stencil #knottymommawoodworking

Be sure to check out Melissa’s China Cabinet Makeover too!

6 thoughts on “Oak Swivel Chair Makeover

  1. Oh my what a beautiful transformation. Melissa’s business is going to rock

    • Thanks Michelle I will pass that along! I think Melissa’s business is going to rock too; she is a real go-getter 🙂

  2. Sara, I saw your pretty chair go by on Instagram and thought, wow. I am so impressed with the makeover. I see a booming business in her future! And Little Lamb? Are you kidding me? Could there be a cuter name for paint…I don’t think so!

    • Thanks for stopping by to leave a comment Kim! I will pass that along to Melissa; she’ll be so pleased to hear that!

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