upgrading rocking chair for pegnant wife

barriejohn69

The Mrs has 4 weeks left until the baby is due and we would like to get her a suitable chair to feed from. I have looked around but they are quite expensive. My alternative is..... revamping a rocking chair which has been given to my parents.
Now, I'm not the best at DIY but I will have a go. The chair is stained quite dark whereas our "nursery" (ooh aren't we posh, not) is in lemon with pine furniture. What would be the easiest way to strip the chair if there is one and what kind of cushions would i need? I am stumped. I dont mind making the cushions as i will give anything a try but I just need a starting point. I think a pressie like this would be more personal. I vaguely mentioned it to the wife but she burst out laughing due to my lack of DIY knowledge. I really want to do this just to prove that I can. I dont mind buying the cushions as I'm not that tight but I don't know if I would just need one for the seat or one for the backrest aswell. Please help

windym_2

Hi Barriejohn

What a noble offer!

If you have varnish on top of the stain, you would have to remove that first with a stripper or sander. I would think that trying to re-stain lighter would be impossible so you may have to go for a painted chair. You could paint it white or lemon (or both) to match your nursery, depending on the stain you would probably be best using a semi gloss or gloss paint - as if you were painting your woodwork in the house.

As for the cushions, I would say a couple of small cushions (different shapes if possible) and a larger one, so that she can re-arrange them as she sits. Sitting feeding a baby can be a bit hard on the bum! I did a lot of fidgeting!

Maybe to add another touch, you could print her up a 'pink ticket'. My OH and I used these as a sign we needed 'time out/a rest'. You could print up something humorous along the lines that if she needs a night off, the pink ticket would mean that she could rest and you would take over at the drop of a hat. Its just a bit of a laugh to lighten a sometimes stressful job.

:xmassign: and saviour the next few weeks as life changes FOREVER after that :snow_laug

trinnylilac

They do have this in case you do want to go ahead and buy one. £99

I would imagine that if you want to keep the one you have I would personally paint it in white. Use a satinwood paint as will be tough but not too shiny.You will need to key the previous varnish by giving it a good sand all over. This can be quite fiddly so I would buy one of the spongey sandpaper pads so it moulds round all the spindles and small parts etc. You can get them from most places now even Tescos diy section.
If you can't be bothered to sand you can buy a special primer from DIY stores that means you don't have to sand . International paint do a version and there is also something called ESP.
Just a warning when you use this is although it dries as normal paint you have to be carefull with it for up to 2 weeks. It takes this long for it to toughen up.

I would just use a normal cushion for the back. Maybe get something in lemon and if she is breastfeeding buy one of those V shape cushions.They are a godsend, they are also good for pregnant women who find it imposible to get comfortable. Have a look here for one on Ebay. Mothercare sell them for £20. If you notice in the picture they have a white chair and a lemon gingham cushion.Looks good.

helenhugs

http://www.kiddicare.com/icat/nursingchairs
they have some nice ones on here aswell. If you are close to Peterborough you can get them a bit cheaper instore.
hope that helps
hugs
Helen