I love sharing furniture makeovers because it is such a great symbol of hope! To see a cast-off piece become something beautiful and useful again is such an inspiration. This transformed little rocker is one of those stories.

It is hard to fully appreciate how ugly this child’s rocking chair truly was without zooming in on this pea-green and rust-orange speckled upholstery.

I had to walk by the poor thing three times before I convinced myself that there was potential under all that 70s yuck. In the end, it was the beautifully carved legs, sturdy build, and $12 price tag of this pint-sized rocker that won me over. I just hoped that my husband wouldn’t laugh in my face when he saw what I had brought home.

My instincts were proven right when—as I ripped through layers of fabric and wiped away the decades of dirt—a beauty began to emerge.

Michael had to help me get a few of the most stubborn upholstery nails out. Using his typically unconventional tactics, he freed the rocker of nails by way of a crowbar. Whatever gets the job done, right?

{Side note} This is what is usually going on in the background while the hubby and I are working on projects together. We are so blessed to have two princesses who love each other so much and can play together so sweetly! Hope that they remain best friends for life!

So after Michael went to work and the girls went down for their nap, I grabbed the baby monitor and my supplies and went out to the front yard to paint the rocking chair. You know you’re a Mama when you use diaper rash ointment for your Vasoline resist project—it works great! I simply rubbed a small amount of the ointment strategically over the piece and let it set 10 min before painting.

Next, I painted a simple vine motif on the backrest to help coordinate the grays with the grain sack I planned to upholster the seat with. Then, using a scrap of medium grade sandpaper I easily sluffed-off all the paint that the ointment kept from adhering to the chair. This created a heavily distressed look, which helped add an aged patina to the piece.

I love this vintage gain sack remnant which was part of a gift Michael gave me for my birthday. The nod to farming and the local reference makes this little seat super special to our family. I used the other half of this grain sack to make a cute pillow sham for my living room.

I thought about selling it, but Cami Grace loves it so much that we have to hang onto it for a while.

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