Antique Bench Trash To Treasure Showpiece

Antique Loveseat After

Antique Loveseat Before

Everyone has heard the term “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure.” This is one example of it. Our customer had told us his wife had found this bench on the side of the road. Evidently someone had tossed it out, with the trash. Luckily she saw the beauty hidden beneath a century of grime, dirt and stains. It had been in his workshop for a while so he decided to surprise her for Christmas and get it refinished.

This loveseat had a strong structure. Nothing was broken, just old and stained out fabric. This was going to be a challenge both of us would welcome. Little did we know just how gorgeous the wood beneath would become and present us with a showpiece.

After Jim removed the old fabric and springs, he began the tedious task of stripping the old finish. He discovered that this bench had never been re-upholstered, all was original, hence the stains and saggy seat. The underside of the bench had a vertical support board in the center on which a spring was mounted that was much higher than the other springs. This caused it to lift up past the rest of the springs. More likely the case was that the spring that was installed was a bit too large for that area and a smaller spring should have been used since it would have a different tension than the springs which were attached to the webbing. This wouldn’t be a problem because my plan was to use webbing with foam and cotton batting instead of springs. 

Jim was rather unsure of how the wood would accept the stain once he had the old finish completely stripped and sanded. He discovered the wood was quite “splotchy” and he thought it would maintain that look after it was stained. I realized that I’d seen this before, this type of reddish splotchy look in a couple of chairs I’d done before. They were made of bloodwood, which has this type of appearance. Bloodwood can be found in southern Africa. It is very unique because once the tree is cut, it “bleeds” with a reddish sap. This tree has medicinal qualities that can be used for healing. If you’d like to read more about bloodwood, check out this link: https://www.amusingplanet.com/2014/05/the-bloodwood-tree.html

We mixed two stains to create the perfect mix for this bench and wow! The color was perfect for the look we’d envisioned! The splotchy appearance was no longer visible. The stain flowed and covered the wood beautifully and we were very happy with the results. After Jim worked his magic with the stain and polyurethane, I could work mine. We chose the perfect fabric, a lovely gold threaded diamond pattern on a burgundy background. This is traditional fabric which we both agreed would be perfect for our customer’s décor. I used time and true upholstery techniques and lined the bottom with new webbing. (My pneumatic stapler is my favorite new tool!) 

Once the webbing was in place, I secured burlap over the top to strengthen the seat and maintain the tension. I had a 2” section of high density foam which was cut to size and placed on top of the burlap. Followed by Dacron, which was securely stapled around the perimeter. This added thickness and a firm seat. This was followed up with layered poly batting, creating a “crown” so the center of the bench curved with nice, rounded lines. Once everything was secured, I was able to install the beautiful fabric. We we right, it worked great. The last and final step was stapling the dust cover to the bottom to cover the webbing and finish off the bench. 

This was truly a gorgeous piece of furniture. And to think, someone tossed it out with the trash. Now it’ll become someones treasure for another century. Long after I’m gone, this bench will be gracing the home of future generations. I’m thrilled to be a part of it! This was definitely one of our favorites, a showpiece.

To see the other bloodwood furniture, check out this link: http://finalefurniture.blogspot.com/search?q=bloodwood+chair

Six Chairs Get New Seat

Chair After

Chair Before

This was one of a set of six oak chairs. The chairs were a bit wobbly, but overall in good condition. At one time these chairs had caned seats, but the caning was long gone and replaced with a thin board and covered with vinyl. That was also a long time ago and the vinyl then needed to be replaced. In addition to replacing the seat, we tightened up the loose joints and gave each chair a good cleaning. The customer chose a dark brown vinyl, which was much like the old covering. She’d wanted to keep the same look.

Sometimes jobs are tough and other times they’re fairly simple. This was was a combination of both. The tightening of loose joints can be time consuming because in addition to gluing up the joints, the correct way to repair them is to glue and clamp them, usually overnight. It’s essential to use the right glue (you’d be surprised how many chairs we get with the wrong glue!) Wood glue is preferred, but you can use other glue, as long as it can be used for wood in addition to other surfaces.

This is called a “ladder back” chair. It has curvy horizontal back support with simple spindles on the bottom four sides. These chairs are one of many styles we have worked on over the years. We try to keep each chair as original as possible, when it’s what the customer wants. 

Very Old Rocking Chair Gets a “Boost"

Rocking Chair Before
Saggy seat!

This rocking chair was estimated to be about 150 years old. My customer’s grandmother had installed the pink fabric (seen on the photo on the left) in the 1930’s, so it definitely had seen a lot of wear since then, which was over 80 years ago. Unbelievably, the fabric had maintained its overall condition, with no rips or other damage, but the seating itself had sunken in the center. Sagging happens over time, no matter how the chair had been originally constructed. And this one was reupholstered over 80 years ago, so sagging was not unusual. The upholstery work was done very well with unseen nails and tiny stitches. Quality lasts.

Rocking Chair after
Higher padding in the seat

Since my customer had wanted the chair refinished in addition to replacing the worn, outdated fabric, the first step was to remove the old fabric and all the padding, webbing and dust cover that’s beneath the seat. Once the fabric and padding, etc. was removed, the tedious task of stripping was the next step.

Chairs have a lot of surface area, therefore they take a long time to strip and refinish, because you must remove all the original stain prior to sanding and re-staining it. (See video at bottom). The detail in this chair with its dowels on the front arms and across the front crosspiece took the most amount of time, but the rockers themselves were also a challenge because they were harder to reach because of their location beneath the chair. I spent five long afternoons to remove all the finish, sand and re-stain the chair. Two coats of polyurethane applied over 24 hours was the final step prior to moving ahead with installing the new fabric. 

Unfinished 
Rocker

Prepping the chair for fabric is essential and involves replacing the original webbing with new webbing, making sure it’s nice and taut so the seat is built with a strong foundation. This chair had seat and back webbing, as well as front and back fabric on the backing. The seat area of the chair had some damage. It was broken on one side and the webbing had come apart, causing the sagging seat. I repaired the damage before installing the new webbing.

New Webbing
After Refinishing

After the webbing has been secured with staples on the folded edges, the next step is covering it with burlap. This strengthens the seat even further. (See photo on right). I then put a fitted piece of high density foam on the burlap, covered it with nice, thick cotton batting and finished it with Dacron, stapling everything in place. Last is the fabric. In this case, I was installing directional fabric. This means the fabric is installed in the “up” direction. Most fabric manufacturers have a line on the border side, with an arrow that points to the top of the fabric. This is vital, because the last thing you want is to get the fabric fitted perfectly only to find out it is upside-down!! Ugh!

The most difficult part of putting fabric on any chair with arms, is making sure you cut the fabric towards the arms with a “Y” cut. This gives you enough fabric to wrap it around each arm before folding and tucking the fabric securely next to either side of the arms prior to securing it with staples. It’s a long, labor-intensive process and should not be rushed. Installing the fabric properly requires concentration with no distractions so that you can focus on what you’re doing. If not, you may make costly mistakes. 

I got lucky with this chair, because the back of the arms had a screw and were removable, so that I could slide the fabric beneath it, which made the installation nice and clean with no cut lines required. Not all chairs have that option, in which case you have to make those tricky cuts, but sometimes you get lucky. After I finished the front, making sure the fabric was tightly wrapped and secured to the back, I adding the final piece of fabric, folding the edges and finished it with piping. 

Amish Oak Table and Chairs Painted and Stained

Dining Table Before
(without leaves)

 

Dining Table and Chairs
Painted w/Stained Top

This lovely oak table came with two leaves and six chairs. Our customer had wanted a different, updated look so we suggested painting combined with keeping the table top woodgrain, but staining it little darker. 

They had originally envisioned an antique white, but after reviewing their décor choices, settled on latté, which is exactly as it sounds, a coffee color with a generous amount of cream added for that perfect flavor, or in this case, color combination. 

Prepping furniture for paint, especially chairs, takes patience and time. Mainly because it is all done by hand. You can’t use a power sander for chairs (except minimally) and spend hours scuffing up all the surface area to prepare it for first primer then two coats of paint. You also can’t skimp on the prep work as it directly effects the outcome of the project. 

We stripped and stained the table top, which had minor scratches, a rich, dark walnut to bring out the beautiful wood tones. The table’s pedestal base was painted to match the chairs, all done in latté. While some people simply do not like to paint furniture, there are times when painting is a nice choice. But by no means are you limited to using only paint. The combination of using paint and stain marries two distinct styles into a well-blended upgrade to outdated furniture without sacrificing the original integrity. 

The chairs, having many spindles, take a great deal of time to prep for painting. Chairs, period, are one the most time-consuming of all furniture projects, because there's so much surface area on a chair. Plus, the more detail (hence, spindles), the longer it takes to prep them. It’s also why chairs can be costly to refinish (or paint). All those surfaces need the same amount of attention and prep time. Ultimately, you have many colors in both stain and paint to choose from for your perfect furniture project.

Antique Parlor Chair Gets New Caning

 

Cane Chair Before

Cane Chair After

When a knee ends up in the seat of a caned chair, well, you have a problem, but not to worry, because it is fixable. It simply needs to be replaced with new caning. This antique parlor chair (it was so cute) had a perfectly round seat with a broken caned center. Like many caned chairs, they are not designed for a sudden, rapid force, such as a knee pushed in the center or a child who jumps from the chair, using it as a launching pad. Cane breaking is not uncommon, especially in old chairs. Unfortunately there’s no quick way to “fix” them. The cane must be replaced.

This little gem had strand caning, which is the weaving that requires a hank of cane in a specified size that is woven directly onto the holes surrounding the perimeter of the seat. I actually prefer this caning to the “press in” spline caning, because the process is quite relaxing. I work on chairs in my lovely sunroom (lots of natural daylight) while trying to keep my cats away from their natural instinct of pulling at what I’m tugging, which is each strand of cane as I weave it through the chair! They indeed love playing. Sadie likes to “sneak” off with a section of cane then run away, feeling like she got away with it. 😂

This chair had spindles on the front legs and overall, the chair was in great shape. You can’t beat hardwood, especially in antiques. They made furniture to last back then. Therefore when people ask the question, “Is it worth restoring?” I always answer with “yes,” because you already have the value in the chair (or other furniture item) so why not get it refinished and keep it another 100 years. It’s something to pass down for future generations. Because once they’re gone, they’re gone. Preserving the past, a bit of history, is a great way to appreciate the artistry created by someone who may not be around anymore. Get it done and you won’t regret it.

Sadie, my “helper"