Tuesday, September 2, 2014

Centrac Wing Chair - Green & Teal Paisley

Here we have a really wonderful wing chair made by Centrac. This was a particularly fun chair to work on, because of the story that came with it. The client saw it by the curb, and decided to take it home. Her husband thought she was crazy, but when she brought it here for Pierre to have a look at it, she was overjoyed to hear that Centrac is a top quality manufacturer. They are apparently still in business today, but only make furniture/chairs for hotels (commercial grade).

This particular chair was a bit dirty, and had a torn-up arm, but it was in otherwise great shape.





You can see how this particular chair is "layered". One layer of cotton, a foam, and another layer of cotton.



The original label:
It's hard to make out, but it reads: Meuble de distinction Centrac Fine Furniture, Toronto, Ontario.





Here is a typical "straight back" on an otherwise nice and curvy back frame. Scroll down to see how we treat the backs on this style of chair.



The original plan for this chair was much different. Originally our client wanted a large print black and white houndstooth, with the legs refinished in black. Something along the lines of this:



We weren't able to find any prints large enough from any of our suppliers, except for ONE, but it was 307$ per yard (YIKES!) and it was also discontinued. Instead, she looked at some other sample books, and decided on a nice green and teal paisley, and to go blonde with the legs.

As I was taking the panels off the chair, one of the original pull-straps had a selvage stamped with 1980, which gives us an approximate date for the chair.



Since one arm was shredded, both would need to be redone so that they match (feel/firmness, etc). Here is the new cotton and foam.



Followed by more cotton, and then a thin layer of Terylene.



Deck, inside arms, and inside wings done.



Outside wings, and inside back done.



And here's the finished chair. It turned out really well. I love the combination of blue-green with the blonde (refinished) legs. The seat foam was also replaced.









Here's the beautiful back, which now follows the curved edges of the frame. A little bit more work, but a lot nicer.





Repaired Eastlake Victorian Side Chair

This is a beautiful antique chair (Eastlake style) made of solid walnut with decorative veneer bands. It had been damaged, and the frame was coming apart. The seat vinyl was also badly cracked.

Before:







When Pierre was removing the torn vinyl cover, he found an identical cover underneath, which was in perfect shape, and matched the current cover on the back rest. Since there wasn't anything wrong with this cover, and we didn't need to find/match/order a matching vinyl, we left this one in place. We have NO IDEA why there was a doubled-up cover on this.



The chair was knocked-apart, cleaned/scraped, and reassembled.



After:





Rolled-Arm Lexington Home Brands Sofa - Redesign - Beige

Here is a rather nice rolled-arm sofa that was in need of a little help. It had been attacked by a family pet, and was also showing signs of wear from years of use.

Since the sofa was getting completely redone, the client also chose to have us change the design to a 3 pillow. She was also no longer a fan of the overstuffed "down" style pillows, and she wanted crisp/rectangular pillows.

Here's the before:







Note the mediocre pleating job on the rolled arm corners.









The sofa was reupholstered in a thick beige woven fabric, with new foam in all the cushions, and attached cushions on the back (the old ones were loose pillows). The wooden legs were also touched-up. I think the difference between the before and after photos on this one are pretty amazing.









I don't often show the backs on sofas (since it's awkward for photos), but here you can see how the backs/tops of the pillows are finished.

Wednesday, August 27, 2014

Antique Living Room Set (4 of 4) - Antique Sofa Chair - Beige/Cream Abstract

Here is the final piece in this set. This is the sofa chair that matches the previous sofa, and wing chair. The set is likely from the 1920s or 30s. The chair was completely stripped down (see wing), refinished, repaired, and put back together.

Before:









Here's the chair stripped down, refinished, and re-webbed. In the background, you can see the sofa frame being glued back together.



New spring ties (8 way hand tie):



New webbing on the back springs. These ties were still in excellent shape.



Bottom:



New burlap, with all the springs stitched.



Edge roll attached:



Here is a good photo that shows how the arms are stitched. As previously shown, the flat wooden arm tops are made round with the use of compressed straw. Over time, the burlap had gotten stretched and loose, and as a result, the arm couldn't maintain a nice shape. The arms were not originally stitched, but having them stitched this way will help keep the arms/stuffing in place longer. The straw is stitched in a triangular pattern (one row down the centre, and against the edge of the wood on either side).



Seat/deck stuffing before rough covers (original straw and cotton, with the addition of new cotton as needed).



Deck completed, and back in progress. Because of the way the back/arms are attached, the back panel had to go in before the arms (the same for the sofa, but the opposite of the wing).



And here's the finished chair!









I love the back on this style of rounded-top chair.



More soon.