Outdated wicker furniture can provide many more years of service if it receives a fresh new look. If the pieces are in excellent structural condition, like the ones shown here, they have plenty of potential.
Trash to Treasure. This set just needed some updated colors and a few minor repairs. With some paint, fabric, and a product called “paper wicker,” we revived this once-garish set.
Although the furniture that we found for this project suffered a ‘70s-era redo, it was in great shape. When you’re shopping for your own vintage furniture pieces, take the time to evaluate whether any damage is structural or cosmetic. It’s best to avoid pieces with frames that are broken or warped, have dry rot, or just feel flimsy.
We used paper wicker to repair a few areas on the chair legs where the original material was missing. To do a similar repair on your own furniture, coat the leg with glue, and wind the paper snugly around it.
This chair’s moldy old chair cushions needed to be replaced. We cut new ones from 4” high-density foam and re-covered them with durable indoor-outdoor fabric. Then we secured the new 2” foam and matching fabric to the front and back of the chairs using upholstery tacks.
