A Wicker Glazed Transformation

It has been a while since I featured anything out of our weaving department, so I thought I would rectify that now.   We had these two nice pieces come in a short time ago, and while they did not arrive looking like a set, they left in perfect complement to each other.

They both needed repairs to the wicker on the backs and arms, and they both needed new seats.  The backs and arms required hand weaving repairs, while the seats used the application of a machine woven panel.

In addition to the wicker repairs, they also needed to be stripped.  The rocking chair had an old, worn out finish that was removed, while the bench had a bright green paint.  Bright green is definitely an interesting decorating choice, but not to our current customer's taste.

Instead she had us apply to the bare wicker a 'basil' colored milk paint.  You can see the result of this color in both of the 'before & mid' pictures.  It gives the pieces a soft milky green hue.  Milk paint has no sheen however and without something to seal it, the paint is naturally dusty and prone to stains.  Prior to applying a finish to seal it, we took one extra step.  We used a dark brown dye toner over the milk paint.  This gives a very interesting, and one-of-a-kind appearance to the set which you can see below.  The chairs, while still green, have a transparent wash of brown which settles in the crevices and enhances the curves on these pieces.  Lastly, our finisher sealed the chairs with a Satin sheen finish.  The set is now ready to grace some wrap around porch somewhere, host lemonade parties and watch the sun set.