New Dining Room Chairs

There's something so romantic to me about big solid dining room tables. I always imagine families and friends gathered there for hours, after the children have run off to play, enjoying wine by candlelight and sharing stories and laughter. Our family is in the growing stage; husbands, grandchildren, girl friends, etc. When we're all together for holidays and family dinners, there's twelve of us now.

Our upholstered dining room chairs are one of the few things we purchased new. We bought six of them a few years ago and within no time, we didn't have enough. So when I spotted these six cane-back chairs on Craig's list for $125, I was thrilled. And it doesn't hurt that they are very French Country.

They echo the lines of our china cabinet and even the mirror that I recently put across the room, which I will share soon.

The lovely couple that was selling them live about an hour away and when I showed up at their house, they were so kind. The husband insisted on putting every chair in the back of my vehicle for me and the sweet wife and I shared our faith in Christ.

She told me that the chairs had belonged to her mother and were about sixty years old.  They are so well made and sturdy and were in almost perfect condition. I was so happy that when I brought them home that the height and scale of these chairs worked so well with our existing chairs.

I painted them with chalk paint. I have two paint colors that I mixed several months ago for our furniture. After I mixed them to get the color I want, I took them to Lowe's and had them match them. I add chalk paint additive to them that I purchased through Amazon. It's a lot cheaper this way and means I have chalk paint in whatever color I want, when I want it.

I first put a coat of the darker shade on them and then brushed the lighter shade over that here and there, to get an uneven finish.  Then I lightly sanded them and added a coat of chalk paint wax that I purchased at Lowe's.  I recovered the chair pads in drop cloths, since we have little grandchildren.

I'm using our old dining room chairs at the head and foot of the table and now there's room for all six of the new chairs on the sides. I usually have slipcovers on these chairs but I took them off for these photos. I'm thinking about making some new ones.

I put the rest of our old chairs around the game table in the basement and it's easy to bring up any extras when we need them for big dinners.

My husband built our dining room table a few years ago. To our family, it's a treasure. He signed the bottom and dated it. Someday, I imagine it will be a family heirloom.

I got these two ginger jars at HomeGoods a few weeks ago.

I just never seem to get tired of blue and white.

You may have noticed that the shutters and wood finish seem lighter. They are! And I've got lots more changes coming up! Don't ya just love paint!

love and blessings~

"Behold, I will set your stones in turquoise, and your foundations I will lay in sapphires. I will make your summits of rubies and your gates of crystal, and your entire wall of precious stones."

Isaiah 54:11,12

Sources:

New dining room chairs - second hand

Dining room table - my husband made it

Dining room chairs at head and foot - Ebay

China cabinet - second hand

Blue and white - HomeGoods and HobbyLobby

Large white vase - Joss&Main

French sign - Joss&Main

French demijohn - One Kings Lane

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handmade-hangout-97
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