Rocking chair restoration

Hello and Welcome to my Blog!

Today I'd like talk about the restoration of an old rocking chair that I found at the side of the road. But before I get into that too deeply, I want to share a few thoughts. Skip over the italics if you just want to see the chair.

While you may share in my way of thinking, or you may not, I believe the world has reached the definition of unsustainable. Everything nowadays is disposable: paper, furniture, vehicles, marriages, children and promises. We treat everything like it can be replaced any minute with something "new and improved" that serves us. Don't like your car? Finance a new one. Don't like your marriage? There's a drive-through for that somewhere.

But how did we get to be this way? Well.. that story is long and convoluted. Simply put: consumerism. We are driven to buy. It's all we do. Our society is built around shopping centers, stores, gift shops and cheap collectibles. We're told that no matter what our credit: bad, good, non-existent or imported from Mars; they will find a way to finance it for us. 

Do we ever consider where our old things go? At which point will we run out of trees, crude, iron, gold and platinum. At which point will we not afford new things due to a severe shortage of resources? And really - when we think about it - was buying something really worth it? If you have never dealt with buyer's remorse you are either incredibly wise or a sociopath.

Now, I'm not going to turn all hipster-vegan but I do wish to challenge you into trying to salvage some of our past. You might find it as rewarding as I do. Consider objects in a new light. Consider everything either an antique or raw material. How can you use it? What can you make out of it? How can you love it in a new light? How can you change it, or yourself, if you don't like it?

And this is where my story begins: Around 2010, driving home from work I found an old gliding rocking chair with a gliding foot rest. It was missing a cushion, the lacquer was peeling and it was quite old. I loaded it in my old pickup anyway.  Figured one day I'd do something with it. Well, I finally did.

Unfortunately I don't have any "before" pictures. I didn't think I'd ever need them. Three evenings of sanding, three evenings of painting and a day of sewing paid off. The caterpillar has turned into a butterfly. Costs were minimal compared with a new chair. It does sound tedious - but what do you really do after work? Watch TV and absorb the commercials that encourage you to spend? Why not try your hand at something new such as restoration, recycling or simply reading?

Here are the results of my evenings? What can you show for yours? What better way to learn a hands-on skill.

Thanks for coming by!

Dan.

PS> The material used for the cushions is from that Swedish store that sells a lot of furniture that needs to be assembled.