Saturday, July 11, 2015

Porch Bench: tips for adding stain to an old chippy piece

I found this old bench at a yardsale, years ago.  The paint is original, it's sturdy, and was found back in a shed with a bunch of cobwebs. So~ yeah, a perfect find.  
*Lively Grace Tip:  Take your cobweb or dusty piece to a patch of grass and brush the parts you can against the grass before you load any creepy crawlies into your car.  Better yet, bring a truck!

I wanted a little more depth to the wood color, which will also help the paint stand out and create more contrast.
When you are working with a piece that has chippy paint, expect it to keep flaking, unless the piece has been sealed.  Knowing I wanted the wood stained darker, I knew I'd probably loose a little more paint in the process.
*Lively Grace Tip: Pour some stain into a separate container.  This will prevent any of those small paint flakes from making it into your can of stain, causing chaos on your next project.

This is what I was hoping for.  
I used the stain on the entire piece, with two coats over both the wood and paint. With a piece this chippy, there is no way to avoid putting stain on the paint as well.  I think in this case it actually gave a little umph to the weathered paint.
*Lively Grace Tip: Remember, a wet stain or paint will look a little different when it dries.

I didn't seal the bench, because our porch is covered. It does get some weather with blowing snow or rain, but is protected from sunlight.  If it was in the sun and weather all the time, I would have added a coat or two of polyurethane to protect not only the stain, but the paint.
Thanks for stopping by!
~ Jen

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