Ladder back Chair ladder tut

For those of you that follow my blog, you know that I have been remodeling my living room since back in the summer. I want a country/primitive decor. I have also been trying to decide on a grouping for my fireplace displaying some of my two daughter's memoires.

While searching blogs one night, I saw a ladder made out of 2 X 2's that I fell in love with. Sorry but I can't remember which blog is is or I would post a link. So I decided to make me one for my fireplace. Then it hit me that I have some old ladder back chairs that I bought at a rummage sale for $2.00 a piece. Some were completey in pieces and could not be put back together. So I decided to take the front legs and the support pieces and make me a ladder out of it. I just love the way it turned out so I decided to share a tut with everyone on how I did it. So here it is:

Materials needed

old ladderback chair

wood glue

sander

saw

paint of your choice

First take the support dowels out of your chair on one side. Then cut the one end of the supports off to the width that you want your ladder to be. On the end that you cut off, you will have to either sand that end down to be smaller so that it will fit in the chair hole or if you are lucky enough to have a lathe you can use this to narrow the end. This will leave three holes on two sides. One side of the holes have to be plugged so you will need to cut a dowel rod the length of the plug but do not put it in yet. I made the mistake of adding the plugs first and the supports would not go all the way in.

Next you sand the pieces smooth and paint them the color you want. Be sure and paint the plugs on one end to match your ladder. If you choose to leave it normal, skip this part. I chose to paint the first layer chocolate brown and this is what it looks like.

Next I painted it blue (this is to match my living room). Then sand the pieces down to give it that worn look. Then glue your supports into your ladder holes. After you have glued them in, glue your plugs into the remaining holes. Now take some oak stain and rub it on and then rub it right off to give it that darker look. After this dries, spray paint it with clear matte finish to protect it. This will be what your ladder looks like when finished.

Here it is on my fireplace. I haven't put my two daughters treasures on it yet but I will post a pic when I do. If you have any questions, feel free to ask. So what do you think of my ladder? Until next time...