Chairs

This is my epic chair project. Yes, epic.

After

Before. Umm, yeah. I'm not in love with that weird stain color.

Remember, these came in a set of 5 for $1 each. So awesome! Here are all of them together. Although, don't you think #6 is out there somewhere all alone and ugly? I wish I had it, being a lover of even numbers, but five will do.These, as most of my projects are, were a learning experience. I should have done things differently the first time, or the second, instead of having to redo them over and over. I can't even count how many different times I "went out to work on the chairs". But now I know for the next time I try to sand, prime, spray paint, stain, and polyurethane five chairs. Let's just say each step could have been done better. But now I know.

Oh, and the numbers? I originally cut out a stencil with an exact-o knife and painted them on, but they kind of bled. So I painted over them and cut out some vinyl numbers on my friend's Cricut (some day I'll have one). People keep asking why I wanted to put numbers on my chairs. Why not? I think it gives them just the right amount of quirkiness while still looking nice (as in, Jared still approves). Besides, if one of them gets lost or stolen, I'll know which one it is.

Okay, so remember our table before? This picture is trying to make it look nice to sell on Craigslist, but I never loved it. And it was getting a little small. I ended up giving it to one of my friends and then buying the new one for $100.
Here's another shot of the before.Here's the new table. Since there are only 5 chairs, I'm still trying to figure out how to configure everything. This is Option One. Put the 5 on the sides and have different chairs at the head and foot (not necessarily these--cloth isn't exactly kid friendly at our table).

Option Two. Put the five around the table and fill in the space with the high chair, which we use anyway--it's just not quite as stylish, ya know? Also, we got a new light fixture and, drum roll, Jared moved it so that it is actually over our table. Mucho mejor.
Option Three. Put three chairs on one side and build (or refinish) a bench on the other side that matches the white and stain. This was kind of my original idea, but looking at it now looks weird. Of course there's no bench there yet either.
And this is Option Four. Stagger the new chairs with the kitchen chairs and paint them white to match... or possibly another color. When I told Jared my new plan he just said that he already knew I was crazy. I think I like this option the best, or I hope I will once I repaint those chairs. But remember, I already learned all my lessons so they shouldn't take that long.Also shown in this picture is the back of one of the purple upholstered chairs missing. Why? Oh, a certain 2 year old colored all over it with BLACK crayon. It came out in the wash, but it also shrunk. I have another piece so it'll be good as new. Good grief, though. Marissa has been drawing on everything! It's driving me crazy. She colored with purple marker on the white/black pillows I made, she has drawn on the wall many, many times, and the tables, and doors, and floor, and the other day I found tic-tac-toe pen marks on every single one of my couch cushions. When I asked her why she did it she replied, "Because I'm a rascal." As if to say that she has no control over the matter, she's a rascal. I guess that's just what rascals do.

What's so frustrating is that Erin and Alex absolutely love to draw and color--I don't think they could go a day without doing it--so trying to remove all writing instruments from our home would be impossible. I keep thinking the phase will be over soon, but still I find Marissa's art all over the place. Oh well, I still love her.