The new springlike weather has us trying to grab every dry and warm moment to spiffy up all the outdoor furniture. I still have some more sandblasting to do, and some additional coats of paint on other pieces….but that’s what happens when every single piece you own is scavenged and worn.
I hope I don’t regret this, but I decided to hit my faux Salterini hoop chairs with a splash of orange. All the other pieces are getting painted a dark bronze, and these needed something special.
Speaking of hoop chairs….On the copycat front….The new CB2 Igloo is certainly more affordable than those Acapulco chairs I’ve been wanting. While certainly not as groovy, these could work. Has anyone sat in them yet? What’s the verdict? No CB2 store in Nashvegas, so no test drive available for me. $149 v. $400.
Big weekend for ModFruGal. I attended the Nashville Lawn and Garden Show, scored at the first decent estate sale in months, AND had nice weather, so the outdoor furniture painting extravaganza has begun.
First up was this pair of chairs I picked up for the booth. They needed the lipstick.. some light peeling paint, but no rust and no sandblasting required…YAY. Recovered the seats with a staple gun and this project was done in a couple of hours.
I needed an injection of spring into the booth and I think these will do the trick.
Well, after surfing and polling some wise peeps, I gained a renewed hope for ditching the remaining rust spots on the chrome of my flea market stools. Cola applied with wadded up aluminum foil is the choice of car enthusiasts on the net..so I figure, why not give it a whirl?
People, can I just TELL you how thrilling, yet horrifying this was? It works. I mean really works. I knew I should give up my once daily diet soda, but I don’t think that will be a problem now. I can’t believe I’ve been ingesting RUST DISSOLVER. Not cool. At all.
There were a couple of areas I knew were beyond saving since it had penetrated the chrome, but all the other spots I couldn’t get with the Noxon? WOW. Check it out.
before and after
and another before and after
You can see where the chrome is pitted here…but still WAY better than before.
Then, I went back and polished up all over with the Noxon again and…Tah Dah!!!!!
one of the good spots…
It took a lot longer than I expected, but it was well worth it. They aren’t perfect, but they are miles ahead of where they were, and I lurv them.
So, I tried a new strategy this month and decided the hit the flea market Friday morning instead of Saturday morning. Supposedly, they set up Thursday night, but since the weather was cold and wet, a lot of vendors were not set up yet or were in the process of unloading. I didn’t bring my camera so it wouldn’t get wet in the drizzle.
I picked up another project from one of the dudes ready to deal. Why is it I NEVER find anything that doesn’t need work? Sigh. Anyway… stopped off at the hardware store on the way home and got busy.
I have to research chroming/chrome plating…that would be valuable info for me and the stuff I’ve got. Body shops?
I got a lot of the crud off, but some of the rust is there to stay…but, I’m OK with that for now..the pleather was in great shape…onward! Have a great weekend..
UPDATE: I’ve conducted a poll of friends and the Interwebs:Â Coca Cola and tin foil is the choice of many for those pesky rust spots…will try in morning and let you know…
No, not Singapore’s solution to misdemeanors..I’m talking basket weaving cane. Â Remember the new bookshelf? Â I managed to find the cane to re-wrap the damaged areas….a decent sized roll for $30…bringing my bookshelf total up to $130. Â I’m quite pleased since I couldn’t even get the CB2 Hancock bookcase I had considered for that much.
Not knowing jack about weaving or caning…a little research turns up a few tips and we’re on our way. The CC took the lead on this one…he thought it looked like a lot more fun than organizing the workshop in below freezing temps, so I stepped back to simply document the process.
First, we soak the cane for 4 hours in warm water…while it was soaking, he removed the old torn bits and scraped off the old glue. Â He saved the tacks so we could re-use them…and then it was wrapping time. We were out of Gorilla Glue, which we love, so he decided to use plain old white glue. Tack the end and start wrapping until you finish the strip, Tack and repeat. Â Linseed oil or tung oil should be rubbed on it to prevent cracking etc.. so if you have dry cane on anything..a little oiling can save it…so say the wise weavers of the net.
There is a color variation between the new and old cane, but not too bad. Â My hope is that with repeated applications of the linseed oil, the color will even out. Â All in all, I think it was a success, and I have enough cane leftover to do something else down the line.
I found this coffee table in Fairview for $30 and just knew, despite its problems, I could make it work. It was covered in rings from drink glasses and had what appeared to be some ink in the wood as well. It didn’t have to be perfect since I needed it for the playroom…and it would get treated harshly. From Uno to Lego, this table would provide what we lacked so now…how to get it cleaned up? I somehow sensed that sanding alone would not solve my problems (and it didn’t) so I turned to the net for answers.
Oxalic acid is what I needed….4 out of 5 DIY dorks like me seemed to think that this stuff can take the stains out of almost any wood. I could order it online….but was determined to find it locally. I head out to Lowes and start reading labels…I was about to give up when I spotted the deck cleaning section and, lo and behold…Deck cleaner is primarily composed of…..oh yeah, oxalic acid. I grab a gallon and rush home with unrealistic visions of having it finished by nightfall.
Having already sanded it the day before, all I had to do was:
1) apply an acid/water solution to the stains
2) let sit for 30 minutes
3) then rinse, and seal once the wood dried back out.
Well, in the end I treated the stains with 4 different solutions of acid to water, strengthening it each time until I finally just put the deck cleaner on the stains neat. THAT finally did the trick..but to be cautious, I’d spent hours getting to that realization. To seal the table, I had bought both tung oil and linseed oil and decided to go with the linseed in the end. The wood looks great and I’m probably going to put another coat of linseed oil on in a few days after the other coats truly soak in. Well worth the effort…I think the Playmobil knights and pirates agree.
sandingmore sandingone of many marks still showing post-sandingready to rumblesecret weaponswaiting
