Painted Chairs: 25 Fresh and Fun Projects [Paperback]

Jennifer R. Ferguson (Author), Judith A. Skinner (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 2001 | Series: Pastimes

In the spirit of the current craze to transform trash to treasure, this playful collection of 20 painted chairs presents complete step-by-step instruction for recycling old, second-hand, or just plain humdrum chairs into colorful conversation pieces. From easy polka dots and checkerboards to flowers, fruits, bugs, and other whimsical motifs, these creative ideas will transform any chair into an eye-catching showpiece.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

These four books supply a multitude of projects for the do-it-yourselfer. The Paper Shade Book, for instance, illustrates various styles for all types of lamps, while Making Decorative Screens demonstrates how to make framed and solid-panel screens using various techniques such as decoupage, paint finishes, mosaic, and fabric; each give well-written and illustrated instructions for each project. Both Painted Chairs, which shows whimsical painted decorations for all types of chairs, and Floor Style, which employs techniques such as stenciling and staining for indoors and outdoors, show the finished product with well-written instructions but few illustrations, which makes these two books better suited to experienced crafters. Purchase for public libraries where there is an interest.
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About the Author

Jennifer R. Ferguson has made five guest appearances on HGTV's The Carol Duvall Show and has also appeared on Aleene's Creative Living. She owns a specialty stencil shop and art studio where she sells her own line of stencils called the Stencilled Garden. Judith A. Skinner, a dedicated "house stripper," enjoys recycling old windows, doors, and drawers, turning them into works of art which she sells through her company, Collectiques by JuBee.

Product Details

• Paperback: 96 pages
• Publisher: Martingale and Company (February 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 156477340X
• ISBN-13: 978-1564773401
• Product Dimensions: 10.9 x 8.4 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,074,610 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

25 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Pretty, but needs more explanations, December 17, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Painted Chairs: 25 Fresh and Fun Projects (Paperback)

I fell in love with the chair on the front cover, and knew that the designs would be right up my alley. I enjoyed the pictures inside, and found them charming and inspirational. The colors are beautiful, and the whimsical designs quite appealing. Every time I look at the pics, I get excited about painting. That, alone, is a thumbs up in my opinion!

However, on a closer inspection, many of the same stenciled motifs were used throughout the various projects pictured, which was disappointing. Granted, they weren't used the same way, but I would have liked to seen more originality or, at least with all the stencils on the market today, more variety.

I am a beginning painter, so I want to know the whys of the methods I'm using. I found the description of how to prepare a chair confusing. The basic prep steps include using primer for previously finished pieces, sealer for unfinished pieces, gesso for all pieces (multiple coats for previously finished pieces), and then the base coat (multiple coats for unfinished pieces) before you start the decorative painting. I'm not sure the necessity of the gesso...why not just go from the primer, to several base coats? Is there really an advantage to that extra step, or is this just the authors' preference? It seems applying several base coats on top of the primer and sanding between would give you opaque, smooth coverage. I would appreciate a bit more insight to the necessity of the gesso.

I also am unsure of what "priming" entails. On page 7 it defines wood sealer and primer. It says the wood sealer is applied to prevent warping and bleed-through of knotty areas, and then directly below it says primer is brushed on to help seal and prevent bleed-through. There isn't enough explanation about the difference between wood sealer and primer, so I'm not sure which I'm to use before applying the gesso. Or do I apply wood sealer, then primer, then gesso, all before the base coats?

It also says to use an oil-based primer on previously finished chairs if unsure of whether the previous finish was oil-based. But, it doesn't explain why. I've since read in other books that this is because the latex and acrylic paints won't stick and will start to peel off, which apparently you may not find out until you've gone all the way to the finishing step. That would be devastating, so I think an explanation of WHY oil primer is a necessity should be better emphasized here.

I bought some gesso, and am using it between the primer and base coats to see if there is a difference in the outcome. I can't tell whether my previous stuff is oil-based or not, so I'm using oil-based primer on all previously finished pieces as a precaution. If there is a way to determine this, that would be great info to include, too.

I also think that there wasn't enough explanation about how to finish the chairs in order to protect the painted design. There are many types of "finishes" on the market. Is a varnish the same as a polyurethane? And what about the description of those...when I go to the store there are amber, yellow, and clear products. Also, are sealers and finishes one and the same?

Since the book appears to target beginners, a better definition of these terms, and what to apply and why would be helpful. Maybe throw in some specific brand names for wood sealers, primers, finishes and varnishes, so I can piece together what I'm looking for when I go to the store.

I give the book a thumbs up for inspiration and for instructions of the individual projects portrayed. If you like decorative painting on furniture, you'll enjoy looking at the pics in this book. However, I have found myself looking at other books to get more concise explanations of what products to use and why.

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Great fun designs, but not for beginners, January 25, 2003

By 

Lisa (Littleton, CO United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Painted Chairs: 25 Fresh and Fun Projects (Paperback)

This book is full of really wonderful, creative designs which the reader can replicate or modify according to personal preference. However, I found the instructions somewhat confusing and inconsistent in places. I found myself going back and rechecking something that I thought I understood. In addition, many of the designs use a stencilling technique. While this technique is explained in general terms, the book does not provide instructions for specific stencilled designs which use multiple paint colors. For example, a chair with a stencilled beehive is accompanied by a listing of 7 paint colors for the hive. Which color do I use first? How do I create the color gradations?

The designs and inspiration value are worth the price of admission, but beginners will need to seek out additional advice.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Painted Chairs: 25 Fresh and Fun Projects, August 15, 2003

By 

Joyce Jordan "book lover" (Arkansas City, KS United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Painted Chairs: 25 Fresh and Fun Projects (Paperback)

Excellent book with wonderful ideas. Easy to understand and great illustrations.