How to Paint the Perfect Ladder Back Chair the Easy Way

How to Paint a Perfect Ladder Back Chair with rush seating the Easy Way

Giving a vintage ladder back chair a makeover has never been so easy. With a little sanding, tape, and paint we can give this ladder back chair with woven seat a classic new look.

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Painted Ladder Back Chair in Distressed Black

The Unfinished Vintage Ladder Back Chair

This curvy ladder back chair was dropped off by my customer. It has a woven rush seat and great curves. A little paint will bring this chair back to life.

My customer has a gorgeous distressed black hutch and wants her chair to compliment her favorite piece. Can you blame her?  That hutch is amazing!

The Project – Painting a Ladder Back Chair

If you are looking for ideas for painting ladder back chairs then this may be the best one of them all. The first step is to tape off the woven seat area because we are leaving the rush in its original natural condition. The rush seat is pulled away from the legs of the chair as much as possible.

Now that your rush seat is taped, make sure to sand and clean the rest of the chair. This is how I Prep Painted Furniture. Next, the seat is flipped over to paint the underside first. 

We chose a pure black paint, using Kristi Kuehl Pure Home Paint Derby. I also covered the woven seat to protect it from any paint splatter, because I actually am quite messy when I work. 

Black Distressed Painted Chair

The chair is painted and then lightly sanded, using flexible sandpaper to achieve a smooth finish all around.  The flexible sandpaper works especially well with all the curves of the chair. You can find the flexible sandpaper (HERE). 

In addition to sanding the entire surface of the chair, the edges are also distressed to reveal bits of the original wood color underneath.

To protect the black painted ladder back chair, the chair is sealed for protection using both Jett protective wood stain (a black protective finish) mixed with our clear matte protective finish. 

Perfectly Painted Ladder Back Chair with Rush Seats

How easy was that?

Love ladder back chairs but prefer not to DIY? Click here for available ladder back chairs for sale (here)

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