Adirondack Improvement

These Adirondack chairs have been on my back porch for the last three years. I gave them to my then-partner as a birthday gift. I thought they'd be a comfortable set of chairs for us to enjoy in our backyard for years to come.

When she de-camped, I kept the chairs. They started life as two bright cherry red chairs, but the paint faded to a dull yellowed red and then peeled because I left them outside for several winters. Not good.

The chairs are still quite sturdy and they certainly deserve better than that. So last weekend, I carried them out to the yard for a little renovation action. They were badly in need of a good scrubbing and that was the first step. I sanded the rough spots where the paint had peeled.

Next, I hosed them down to clean off the dust from sanding. Then I tipped them over to dry.

A conversation with the folks who made the chairs (Lands End) had yielded the advice that I use spray paint to fix them up and that's exactly what I did. I picked a darker color for the chairs; a high gloss version of the cranberry trim on my house. Three cans of spray paint later, the chairs were left to dry in the backyard.

And now they are back on the deck, looking most welcoming. They'll be outside for a few more months. Then, when winter comes I will carry them to the garage for storage away from the elements.

Though my spray paint can trigger finger was sore for the next two days, the project was mostly easily to manage. From start to finish it took just three hours to make the improvements on these chairs. Not bad.

Blogger and I are still working out our font issues.....and so far, Blogger is still winning.  Word Press is looking better and better.