Use a Broken Chair

 Hello Readers. Sometimes in this life, things break. Lots of things break, I found a broken chair and thought it shouldn't be thrown out. Do I know how to fix it properly? No. But that's OK. Let's use that chair. I have so many ideas!

 Yes, that is me taking my neighbor's trash. But this chair was really sturdy and still had a lot of life left in it. I wanted to save it from the landfill.

I took this brown chair and let it sit in my garage until I was ready to do something with it. You can see the seat is missing. It seemed to be missing some kind of seat that must have worn out. It sat in the garage until I was ready, I never take anything like this in the house until I can clean it. 

 

The seat of the brown chair was missing but it probably looked something like this. There must have been a cushion or seat of some kind originally. It could be replaced but I can still use this chair even if I don't fix or replace this seat.

 

I used various brushes to clean this chair. I wanted to really get in the nooks and crannies and make sure all the dust and dirt was gone. This is important for the next step. I don't think it matters what kind of brush you use, but I found that the toothbrush worked best me. 

I went it my utility room and searched for something I could use to wipe the chair down and refresh the finish and hide some of the little scratches, roughed up and faded areas. 

 

I grabbed this one because it was thin and watery. It was also clear. I just wanted to freshen up the finish, not re-stain it. This stuff smells bad, make sure you have good ventilation if you use it. 
 

I wiped the entire chair down with a sponge and I added a little more refinish liquid as needed. I didn't want the sponge dripping but it needed to be wet enough to cover the surface of the wood. 

 

The wood looks so much better when it is wiped down and refreshed. It almost looks like it was moisturized. This wood was not smooth, it had a bit of a rough finish. That was just the way they stained/finished it. It was pretty but a thick furniture polish might have gotten stuck in the rough surface. I thought this watery kind of wood refresher would work best. 

 

I was thinking of this chair as a side table instead of a chair. A large book can sit over the missing seat and it can work as a small bookshelf. Large thin books can even fit under the seat in between the legs of the chair. 

 

A large tray can create a side table that can hold small items at the front door like keys, wallets and glasses. The chair and tray could even be a small night stand by the bed. 

 

Need a plant stand? A medium plant can sit in the open seat. Check the sizes carefully to get a good match. This plant fit well and was large enough that it rested in the open seat and did not fall to the floor and make a mess. 

 

This chair/table can hold a large plant too. Check the sizes carefully so your plant will be secure. This plant sits well on the chair and it gets it up off the floor. I love all the different uses of this chair. I'm sure you can think of a few of your own. 

Thanks for reading along, now go make something fun for yourself.