Eighteenth Century Music Chair Reupholstered

Music Chair
Before

Music Chair
Before

This was one of the oldest projects I had ever worked on, an eighteenth century music chair. It had a unique swivel seat that raised and lowered with each rotation. The original decal was still intact and considering its age, was quite amazing. The back of the chair had a "harp like" shape, perfect for the music theme it portrayed. However, it had definitely seen better days and needed a new seat as the one that was on there had worn off and was torn. 

Once I removed the top fabric I saw that there was yet another fabric beneath it, which I believed was the original material. After two centuries, the material was quite brittle and practically fell apart while I removed it. Once the material was gone, I removed the rest of the seat which had webbing which had lost its stretch and was bowed in the center. Lots of tiny nails to remove which was time consuming. 

I replaced the old webbing with brand new 3" webbing for a secure, strong seat that would support an individual sitting on it. I added a layer of burlap to cover the webbing. This adds more stability to the seat. Then it was time to carefully cover the burlap with raw cotton, which comes on a roll. It was not necessary to use a large amount due to the small size of the seat, but it was plush and soft which served the purpose well. A thin layer of foam and covered with muslin was the last step before I secured the new fabric, which matched the decor of the chair perfectly. I finished the edges with gimp and secure it with bronze upholstery tacks that matched the color of the chair. The chair was once again pretty and ready for future generations to enjoy.

Antique Rocking Chair Cane Replacement

Rocking Chair
After

Rocking Chair
Before

This was a lovely antique rocking chair with a damaged cane seat in need of replacement. The old cane was quite brittle, so easily breakable. It is not uncommon for these chairs to become broken as they age by simply sitting on them improperly or putting a knee on the seat which usually results in breakage. I estimated this chair was about one hundred years old, so it's not too surprising that it was broken. 

This style of chair was a strand cane, which means each strand is woven individually, one at a time and threaded throughout the chair front to back, left to right then diagonally in a series of steps that weave the caning so it makes a new, secure seat. For this chair I used 2.5 mm cane which is considered fine.

First the old cane must be removed by snipping away the center seat then carefully removing the binding, which holds the edges together and is a final step in the caning process. This type of caning is very tedious and takes several days from start to finish. It is rewarding work, but requires a lot of dedication and patience. With proper care and use, this chair's cane could last another hundred years or more.