Throwback to free Wicker chairs I gave a bold red makeover

My throwback this month was my score of these adorable little wicker chairs. I enjoyed them for several years after this makeover but, unfortunately, they didn’t last forever. It was my fault at least a little for leaving them outside one winter – wicker in northern Minnesota just isn’t going to make it for very long. I loved them when I had them though! They were surprisingly comfortable and I think they turned out so cute!

Here is the Original post from May 2016

Last summer I spotted my aunt giving away a couple of wicker chairs on her Facebook page on a “first come first serve basis” I jumped on them! They were so darned cute I couldn’t help myself!

They were a bit beat up and needed a good bath but I really thought that they would clean up just fine. I don’t have ANY experience with wicker furniture but these two were on my list to get done as early this spring as I could.

So, I stopped by Ace hardware after I left work one Friday and picked up three cans of outdoor tinted primer, three cans of outdoor red spray paint and two cans of spray-on outdoor sealant. Then, I covered my garage floor with a tarp on Saturday morning and got to work!

You see here where the worst of the wicker damage was. After some debating I realized there wouldn’t be any “real” fixing it for me that morning but I thought I could at least support the wicker enough so no more damage would happen and, also, down play the damage as much as I could. I grabbed some wire from the barn and just started strapping it all down and together as best as I could.

I also flipped both of the chairs over and put a cross of wire under the seats just for a little added support. All in these wicker chairs were certainly sturdy enough but I wanted to help them out and prolong their lives as long as I possibly could.

I used a tinted primer and put it on HEAVY. These were probably the easiest pieces of outdoor furniture I’ve ever painted in the sense that they were so dry and desperate that it was impossible to make a drip lol. However, painting wicker is not easy, I hit it from every side and angle I possibly could and I still sit down in these chairs and notice places where you can see a hint of blue still showing through. After doing two heavy coats of primer I then put two heavy coats of red paint on them as well. Over the course of the entire day I finally put on one heavy coat of spray on outdoor sealant and tucked them away in a safe spot in the garage to dry for 24 hours.

All in I am pretty excited for how these little wicker chairs turned out!

I had one last outdoor table cloth left over from my Goose hunting chairs to sun loungers project that I simply wrapped those big cushions in and tied them underneath with baling twine. These little wicker chairs are amazingly comfortable! Granted my husband tells me they’re a little low to the ground for him, well I’m not a very big or tall person so they’re about right for me. You kind of fall and “sink” into them – these are some real relaxation chairs right here!

Sorry for the wet photos guys! I knew I should have taken the after pictures yesterday afternoon when it was sunny out. We’re getting just pounded with storms right now, which is good because we really need to the rain, but maybe not so good for after pictures of red wicker chairs!

Anyway, thanks for stopping by guys!