victorian chair restoration
Posted: Thu Feb 27, 2020 4:57 pm
I started working on this chair. It's sort of a slow motion restoration because other stuff keeps taking priority but I thought I'd take a pic once in a while to show progress.
the webbing had sagged a lot. then they had put a second layer of webbing under the chair to help support the springs, that had stretched too.
I took it apart to the frame, first removed upholstery for the seat, then the "pancake" which is the muslin , the burlap containing horsehair and some cotton, it was sewn near the front edge to create a rolled edge.
under the pancake was more burlap sitting on top of the springs and the springs were tied to the burlap on top. I took all that off.
I flipped it over and took all the webbing and nails out. wow this thing had lots of nails in it. the springs were tied with thick hemp cord to the rail on the underside as well , to keep them spaced evenly and also sewn to the webbing itself. I removed all that.
I was about to put the webbing back and decided maybe I better fix the holes up. I dont want a situation where the new nails come out because they went into an existing hole so I cut a tapered scrap of wood, took a chisel and made a pile of toothpick shapes sticks. you can see my wedge near the hammer and a "toothpick" Then I started dipping them in glue and sticking them in the nail holes , driving each in with a hammer as if they were wooden nails. That's time consuming but I can plug all the holes before I get further and cover things up. then I wont have issues with nails going into existing holes. I didn't use filler for that because it wouldn't be as solid. the rails have plenty of strength.
It has holes in the legs , so maybe it had wheels but it is hard to say if wheels were original. I guess they could be added at any time later. I'm wondering if I should fill the holes and re-drill them.
The inside sides of the chair are still covered. and the back is mostly intact. I'll keep all that for now and try to focus on getting the seat to the point where it is covered in muslin and shaped best I can. I dont want to go so far that I forget how it all was.
I got some muslin , some burlap, some tacks, needles and a bit of polyester stuffing. Ive got work to do before I need the upholstery fabric. the supplier won't sell upholstery to the public. Ill need some cord to tie the springs and I;d like to find some that is suitable, whatever it is hemp or
similar. I didnt really want o buy a giant roll of it but maybe I need to. shoelaces could work I guess. Ill check an art supply store since the upholstery place is hard to get to.
I've been reading that I can wash and re-use the horsehair. Ill leave my pancake intact so I can try to copy how it was made up. Making that all right is where a lot of the skill is and I might get help when I get to that stage. I have an upholsterer that's a neighbor so Ill ask him once I get further. I didn't want to involve him in the wood restoration or some of these easy but time consuming parts. mostly he does newer stuff and antique chairs aren't what I usually see him working on. He might know a lot about it though.
I have a whole roll of webbing , it's pretty old but the real thing. Its also about twice as wide but I dont think it will matter much.
there is a tool used to stretch the webbing so it is "drum tight" I'll try to make my own tool up.
I replaced my fluorescent tubes with LED tubes over the bench. It required removing the ballasts, then you just connect them so the bulbs see 110 volts, easy , and I like the light better. the photos come out better too.
the webbing had sagged a lot. then they had put a second layer of webbing under the chair to help support the springs, that had stretched too.
I took it apart to the frame, first removed upholstery for the seat, then the "pancake" which is the muslin , the burlap containing horsehair and some cotton, it was sewn near the front edge to create a rolled edge.
under the pancake was more burlap sitting on top of the springs and the springs were tied to the burlap on top. I took all that off.
I flipped it over and took all the webbing and nails out. wow this thing had lots of nails in it. the springs were tied with thick hemp cord to the rail on the underside as well , to keep them spaced evenly and also sewn to the webbing itself. I removed all that.
I was about to put the webbing back and decided maybe I better fix the holes up. I dont want a situation where the new nails come out because they went into an existing hole so I cut a tapered scrap of wood, took a chisel and made a pile of toothpick shapes sticks. you can see my wedge near the hammer and a "toothpick" Then I started dipping them in glue and sticking them in the nail holes , driving each in with a hammer as if they were wooden nails. That's time consuming but I can plug all the holes before I get further and cover things up. then I wont have issues with nails going into existing holes. I didn't use filler for that because it wouldn't be as solid. the rails have plenty of strength.
It has holes in the legs , so maybe it had wheels but it is hard to say if wheels were original. I guess they could be added at any time later. I'm wondering if I should fill the holes and re-drill them.
The inside sides of the chair are still covered. and the back is mostly intact. I'll keep all that for now and try to focus on getting the seat to the point where it is covered in muslin and shaped best I can. I dont want to go so far that I forget how it all was.
I got some muslin , some burlap, some tacks, needles and a bit of polyester stuffing. Ive got work to do before I need the upholstery fabric. the supplier won't sell upholstery to the public. Ill need some cord to tie the springs and I;d like to find some that is suitable, whatever it is hemp or
similar. I didnt really want o buy a giant roll of it but maybe I need to. shoelaces could work I guess. Ill check an art supply store since the upholstery place is hard to get to.
I've been reading that I can wash and re-use the horsehair. Ill leave my pancake intact so I can try to copy how it was made up. Making that all right is where a lot of the skill is and I might get help when I get to that stage. I have an upholsterer that's a neighbor so Ill ask him once I get further. I didn't want to involve him in the wood restoration or some of these easy but time consuming parts. mostly he does newer stuff and antique chairs aren't what I usually see him working on. He might know a lot about it though.
I have a whole roll of webbing , it's pretty old but the real thing. Its also about twice as wide but I dont think it will matter much.
there is a tool used to stretch the webbing so it is "drum tight" I'll try to make my own tool up.
I replaced my fluorescent tubes with LED tubes over the bench. It required removing the ballasts, then you just connect them so the bulbs see 110 volts, easy , and I like the light better. the photos come out better too.