Craigslist Cane Back Barrel Chair

If there's anything I've discovered in the past year of DIY furniture projects, it's that I have a soft spot for certain things: nubby legs, solid wood, mid-century modern (MCM) pieces, details & curves, and cane-backing.

Literally every time I see something with one or more of those things, whoever I am with is subject to running into the back of me because I will just stop right then and there and lose all language skills, point, and then this (especially for the nubby legs and MCM pieces):

I feel bad for the people that choose to thrift shop with me, honestly (or those that get dragged with).

Oh, the cane backing. It's such a lost art, and I have had the good fortune of finding several pieces in stellar condition. I've never had to repair a single piece I've gotten. I never realized how many pieces of cane-backed furniture I had until Hannah made a joke at a thrift store when she found a shoulder bag that had cane-backing on each side.

Yeesh. Hideous. I can't believe I don't have a picture of it (and when I searched online for it, a lot of toads turned into coin purses showed up and that was just too disgusting to dig through).

But seriously. I have the rocking chair, the dining set, the arm chair, and now this barrel chair. I think I've gone overboard with the style. But I know what I like, at least.

So here's what I started out with:

A hideous mustard yellow, crustified velvet seat & a beautiful set of bones. I honestly would have left it this color had the past years not treated it so poorly. There were several intentional gouges (patterned), and nicks and dings galore, and the caning had some fading happening.

I'll spare you the details on how much I fought with this chair and the springs underneath, and how the cat was climbing all over me the entire time I was trying to paint and let the finished product speak for itself.

Check out this babe (and I don't mean the cat):

Ow ow! This chair is looking mighty fine- if I do say so myself. Pair this with a cream colored end table & a Jodi Picoult novel and, phew, you've got yourself the perfect reading nook.

Now unfortunately, I finished this project around 10:30 at night, so natural light wasn't an option. 

And clearly I didn't stage these pictures at all- they were taken as soon as the seat was back in place. So I apologize for the shotty pics (and the insane mess in the background), but you can still see how gorgeous this beauty turned out.

It's got detail (look at those legs!!). It's got curves (take a look at those arms!!). And you best bet that it still has that beautiful cane backing (*swoons*).

 And as usual, chunky has to test it out before anyone else has a fighting chance, like he does with every chair I finish.

 I think he approves.

I have a few spots I have to touch up (such as the fronts of the back legs that managed to go untouched somehow), but overall, this piece is finished! I plan on moving this upstairs into the second bedroom, so better pictures may be coming soon!

But a friendly reminder- this thing was really atrocious. Crusty, dirty, and atrocious.

What do you guys think? I need your input and assistance for my new shop (which you can go and "like" & share here)! I expect to have it up and running soon, but I'm having difficulty pricing my pieces. 

If you could comment on this post, or on the Facebook page, I'd really appreciate some intel. 

Simply let me know how much you think I should charge for this chair (which is not currently for sale- this is for education purposes only), and it'll help me price future items!

Thanks, guys- you're all rockstars!