DIY: Staining Patio Furniture

This was our beautiful new patio set. Shortly after placing it outside, a few birds did a fly over and sprinkled some mulberry droppings on the wooden top. I had to furiously scrub it down with vinegar water to keep the stain from setting into the porous wood.

Patio set before

I'd had enough. It was time to stain and seal the wood for longevity.

Some things to know before staining with a tinted sealant...

1. Put the items to be stained in a temperature controlled environment and allow it to settle for a day or so. Our garage worked great for this as it is temperature controlled. If your garage isn't temperature controlled, look for a non-humid, cool day (fall is a great time of year for this).
2. Paint multiple, thin layers of stain. Allow each layer to dry (shouldn't be tacky) before applying the next. The stain will gradually become darker with each layer.
3. If you want minimal mess, tape off the wooden areas before beginning the staining.
4. Find stain and supplies while your patio set becomes cool and controlled.

Prepped patio chairs and table before staining and sealing.

Up close of the taped off chair arms.

Who even knows where to begin when selecting the necessary products for sealing and staining? We went to the Home Depot and got the scoop from the paint staff there. You can use my advice, or seek theirs. Either way, here's what we gathered:

• First, see the previously stated bullets above.
• When choosing a sealant, consider whether you want it to double as a stain. If so, match it to other wooden items in the same area.
• The tricky part is knowing how much you'll use. This project (a table and 12 chair arms) required less than 1/5 of the quart of stain. Thankfully I didn't listen to my husband and buy the whole gallon! :/
• Choose a brush that is suitable for ALL PAINTS to use with a stain and sealant.
• Stir the stain with the wooden mixing stick before use.

Staining and sealing products.

The top arm is original. The bottom arm has been stained with one coat.

To seal and stain the table, I started on the bottom. I only did one layer here and didn't bother taping since nobody can see the bottom. Afterwards I quickly flipped it over to look for runs from the sealant on the top of the table. I was sure to brush those out before applying three full coats.

Table in progress.

With nearly 4/5 of stain remaining, I decided to also seal and stain this bench that my friend made me years ago for my birthday. Since they are both in our back yard space, they now match and seem more cohesive.

Staining the wooden bench that will also be in the back yard.

Stay tuned for the final product when I do a tutorial this spring on creating and decorating a patio space!

Thanks for stopping by the Humble Hammock, do come back!

Baby Shower Fiesta Invitations

Have you ever planned a fiesta themed baby shower? No, but you want to? Okay, good, you're at the right place.

My friend decided not only did she want to hold her baby shower in a private room to a Mexican restaurant, but she wanted invitations, snacks, drinks and games to match. Here is my journey in creating the the mailed invitations.

This is the end product. If you don't like this, stop reading. No, I mean, why put yourself through the rest of this agonizingly detailed post if you're not going to make one similar to it? (Deep down you're saying thank you).... and if you are hoping to making one like this... proceed.

First, determine how many of these invites you're going to make. I settled on 40 so these supplies accommodated that number.

Step 1: Obtain envelopes and determine your invitation size. I wish I didn’t have my heart set on these envelopes with the stringed back from Michaels. They got me into trouble in the mail house so do yourself a favor and resist! For those of you who are handing out invitations this may still be an option. They were roughly $4.99 each and contained 20 envelopes. So, $10 later I had enough for my 40 guests. You can view similar envelopes in the Recollections collection at Michaels here.

Step 2: Choose paper for the backing of the printed invitations. You don't want flimsy white 80# copy paper coming out of your envelopes. The first impression isn't a memorable one and they feel cheap. Splurge on the $.10 per sheet and make your guests feel like this invite is to a party they won't want to miss! 

Step 3: acquire appropriate colored ribbon. These spools came from the Dollar Tree and set me back $1 each. Since I knew the length of the invitation I was able to determine how many yards of ribbon I would need. I recommend taking a few minutes to do the math so that you’re not stuck with an excess of supplies. The half spool or so extra that I had did come in handy for some finishing touches on the day of the shower so I was able to part with it pretty quickly.

Best advice for this entire project? Do NOT forget to include the registry information on the invitation! If you do, you’ll need to use these handy tags to stick in your envelopes. Be advised that the ribbon on the invitation acts like octopus tentacles when the invitation is removed during opening. This may send the important registry information flying into tiny crevices in the recipient’s home or car.    

Thanks for stopping by the Humble Hammock! Do come back!