Furniture Fixer: Woven Chair Seats, Part Two

This is a guest post by Carolynne Reina.

When shopping for antique or vintage furniture you will occasionally come across a piece with a woven seat.  But just what is that material on the seat?  As we discussed in Part One of this post, there are many different types: cane, rush, seagrass, shaker tape, and Danish cord.  In part two of this series, we’re going to focus on machine cane.

The chair seat you see above is probably the most recognizable type of woven chair seat around today.  But don’t be fooled, there are two types of cane that make this pattern, and to replace one is quite a bit more expensive than the other.

What you see above is called machine cane (or machined cane).  Machine cane differs from its cousin, hand cane (or hand woven cane) for a few reasons.  Even though they look similar, machine cane is very affordable to replace should it become damaged.  The reason is that machine cane is pre-woven and sold in sheets.  Compare that to hand cane — made by the lengthy, arduous task of weaving long, thin strands of cane into that distinctive pattern.

But how can you tell the difference?  From a glance the two look virtually the same.  But if you find a small groove running around the edge of the seat with a thick, rounded piece of cane (also known as a “spline,” shown in the closeup picture) that is a dead giveaway: it’s machine cane,.  Another way to tell: flip the chair over and check for individual holes that the cane has been threaded through.  Hand cane is woven through holes in the frame, while machine cane is not.

Replacing the seat is relatively easy compared to other types of woven seats, but it is somewhat time consuming and you have to pay attention to the details.  (It is important that everything line up and be neatly attached for the best look.)  If you have not tried it before you may want to get extra cane and practice first. You can also have a professional do the work for not a lot of money.

Keep in mind that cane shown in the pictures was stained a color and then finished with clearcoat.  Cane is normally almost a pure white colour and must be finished to add colour and protection.

Cane is a beautiful material that adds a lot of interest and charm to furniture, but keep in mind it is delicate and prone to drying out.  So no standing on the chair to reach the top of the refrigerator, don’t keep cane in direct sunlight or near a heating vent, and it will provide you with many years of useful service!

Carolynne Reina is a Chicago-based, alley scouring, dumpster-diving, vintage furniture fanatic who writes about faux finishes, repair & restoration in her spare time. Read her blog at Madcap-Design.Blogspot.Com.

Furniture Fixer: Woven Chair Seats, Part One

This is a guest post by Carolynne Reina.

When shopping for antique or vintage furniture you will occasionally come across a piece with a woven seat.  But just what is that material on the seat?  There are many different types, including cane, rush, seagrass, shaker tape, and Danish cord.  In part one of this series, we’re going to focus on rush.

Weaving rush into a usable material is a very old process — it dates back as far as 4000 B.C. in Egypt!  Rush seating can be made in either natural cattail, bulrush, or a man-made paper fibre.  It is woven around the four dowels of the seat of the chair frame and makes a distinct pattern (as shown in the picture). Cattail and bulrush are not used as often nowadays as paper fibre, mostly due to the cost and availability of materials, but if you have an antique piece that you want to keep historically accurate, these would be the types to use.  Paper fibre is the more modern choice, as it is readily available, inexpensive, and looks great.  Plus it seems to be more durable than the other types, since it is made out of a heavy brown craft paper, which does not dry out and become brittle like the natural grasses can. You can then leave the seat as-is or coat with a clear lacquer for added protection. (Remember adding the lacquer makes a hard seat without any ”give”  like the uncoated version.)

The bad thing about rush is that if a segment is broken or split, it can’t be repaired – the whole seat must be rewoven.  The good thing is that you can hire someone to do the work and it’s not terribly expensive.  You can also opt to learn how to do it yourself, but it will require a lot of patience and practice.  Sure, it looks easy enough - but to get the weaving tight and straight is a lot of work! So next time you see a great chair in an antique store with a damaged seat – don’t pass it by, reweave it!

Carolynne Reina is a Chicago-based, alley scouring, dumpster-diving, vintage furniture fanatic who writes about faux finishes, repair & restoration in her spare time. Read her blog at Madcap-Design.Blogspot.Com.

Furniture Fixer: Why Upholster? Slipcover!

Please welcome new BackGarage guest poster Carolynne Reina. Carolynne will be writing and inspiring us on DIY fixes for your furnishings in her column Furniture Fixer.  You can read her full bio at the end of this post.

Have a chair that’s looking a little sad?  Maybe the cat got at it, or maybe Great Aunt Matilda bequeathed her prized chair to you – except her decorating scheme involved lots of mauve chintz with a giant rainbow-colored peony pattern?  Fear not: you can do something about it!

Except what to do?  Reupholstering can be expensive — to have a professional strip a frame and rebuild can cost you as much, if not more, than buying a new chair, especially if the chair wasn’t worth much to begin with.

Enter the savior of the decorating world: the slipcover.  Slipcovers are awesome for many reasons:

• You can rescue any chair if the frame of the chair is in good condition (not loose or saggy or uncomfortable to sit in) without the expense of reupholstering.
• They are easily removed for machine washing or dry cleaning (depends on the fabric selected, of course).
• You can do multiple looks with one piece of furniture. Want a summer look and a winter look in one room?  Use multiple slipcovers. You could even have one for each month! (Okay, maybe not – you don’t want to run the risk of having “theme furniture” like some people have “theme sweaters.”)

The chair above is a desk chair that a client did not want to invest in reupholstering.  But the frame was solid, so instead of discarding her chair she chose a fabric that matched her room and created a slipcover.  (Hot tip: By making a short skirt rather than one that skimmed the floor, we were able to paint the legs to match her desk AND we kept it from looking like a restaurant dining room chair.)

If you decide to rescue a piece of furniture with a slipcover, avoid those prepackaged covers you find for $50 in Target.  They’re generic — designed to wrap almost any sofa or chair design — so they end up looking sloppy, either with too much fabric around the arms or not enough around the back.

If you want a slipcover you should go one of two ways:

• Make it yourself.  If you are handy with a sewing machine, making fitted slipcovers are very much like dressmaking.  (So don’t attempt this route if you are a novice!)

• Hire someone.  Again, not every upholsterer can make a slipcover and make it look good.  Do research first: can they show you examples of past work or give references of past clients?  Look to see if stitching is sloppy or if the pattern matches at the seams or not.  Detail is key — don’t get overcharged for sloppy work.

If you’re interested in creating your own slipcovers and need to go from a beginner to a pro, consider classes at a place like The Needle Shop where you can learn basic sewing and upholstery techniques.  In the end you’ll save yourself money and some of your favorite furniture.

Good luck and happy slipcovering!

Carolynne Reina is a Chicago-based, alley scouring, dumpster-diving, vintage furniture fanatic who writes about faux finishes, repair & restoration in her spare time. Read her blog at Madcap-Design.Blogspot.Com.