Chapter VI.
Staining, Dyeing, Filling, Polishing. Designs Piano Or Organ Bench. Plant Stand. Magazine Stand. Music Cabinet. Hall Seat. Hat Tree. Dining Table. Chair. Morris Chair. Library Table.
HAND MADE FURNITURE AND HOW TO MAKE IT
Designed for the use of those seeking either a pleasant and profitable occupation or such furniture for their homes as shall express their own artistic taste, and stand for sturdy honesty of purpose, simple beauty, comfort and durability.
Albert G. Glidden
HAND MADE FURNITURE SHOP, Spokane, Wash.
Copywrited 1910 by A. G. Glidden.
GENERAL.
There is probably no home in which the comfort, convenience or artistic appearance could not be improved by the addition or replacing of some pieces of furniture. The reason is simple. They are furnished with store furniture, and store furniture is made to sell; the designs limited by the capabilities of the machines which make it; made of the cheapest materials; put together in the quickest, rather than the best way, and then finished up with the crudest varnish and stain to make a fine appearance. It is a depressing sight to see this furniture on moving day, piled on the sidewalk, scratched, broken, dingy, all its fine pretense of beauty gone forever. On the other hand, the chairs, tables, sideboards and other pieces that have come down to us through generations were all made by hand, put together by hand and finished by hand in the days when there was no machinery and the workman was an artist. The result is that instead of finding its way to the scrap heap this old furniture is as good today as ever, after two or three hundred years of wear and tear and removal from place to place half round the world. Hampered by no limitations of machinery these designers set the standard for the world for all times. Such furniture is worth while, and is an everlasting inspiration to the home-maker and worker.
Our new style, variously known as “Arts and Crafts,” “Mission,” “Craftsman,” etc., is especially adapted to hand work, and while differing from the rich old oak and mahogany of our fathers’ in form and finish, is like them in all the qualities of beauty and durability and is far more comfortable. A home furnished in this style not only expresses the artistic taste of its inmates but also exerts an influence of sturdy honesty of purpose, simplicity and absence of all gaudy pretense, which both its frank, straight lines and freedom from anything to hide or mar the natural beauty of the wood so forcibly express. It is a style of which we can never tire and of which no other can take the place. It will last for generations, for every part is as strong as the wood of which it is made. You can make it and make it better than you can buy in any store, for it is made in the most natural way, after the most natural design, of the most natural material.
Of course, it cannot be hoped that the mere reading of any book can make an expert cabinet maker of an inexperienced workman, but the instructions contained in this book will enable any one to make furniture. Handsome, comfortable, durable furniture. The length of time required on each of the exercises will, of course, vary with the individual workman and his aptitude for the work. All that can be said as to the number of times the exercises should be performed is simply to keep at each one until you are satisfied with the results, you can judge as well as any one when your work is good. Time spent in practice is time well spent, for you are learning to make something which will be with you for years to come.
[Illustration: Fig. I.]
Most people know more or less about the use of tools and to some it will seem that we are unnecessarily explicit about things which to them are matters of course, but as we are writing for those who have had no experience whatever in the use of tools, as well as others, we have begun with the rudiments and taken one after another in the order most likely to assure rapid progress. For the same reason we have avoided, in so far as possible, technical terms and trade names, though in some cases it has been necessary to use the customary terms, as no others will express the meaning. For instance, the use of the word “square,” as applied to our work, does not always mean rectangular but oftener means at right angles to adjoining surfaces. Thus, when we say “saw square” or “plane square” we mean to make your surface straight and true and at right angles with some other surface. The term “right angles” will be easily understood by reference to Fig. 1. Whenever two lines meet they form an angle, and having the direction of one line and the degree of the angle we know the direction of the other line. Thus in Fig. 1 all the lines meet at (a). Taking the line (a-b) as our base and wishing to find any other line of which we have the degree of angle we draw a circle around (a). The size of the circle does not make any difference. A circle is divided into 360 degrees, therefore, if we are given an angle of 90 degrees, we know that it is a quarter of the circle and drawing a line from (a) to the outer rim of the circle a quarter of the way around we have the line (a-c) which forms an angle of 90 degrees with the line (a-b). In the same way an angle of 30 degrees would be formed by a line drawn from (a) to the outer rim of the circle ¹⁄₁₂th of the way round from (b) (a-d). Forty-five degrees would be ⅛th of the way round (a-e), 60 degrees ⅙th of the way round (a-f), 180 degrees half way round, and so on. The angle of 90 degrees is spoken of as a right angle and in our work one line of the angle is said to be square to the other. We also use the term in speaking of angles 1 in 6, or 2 in 6, etc. You will understand this if you will take your steel square and place your rule diagonally across it and when, for instance, we say 1 in 6 we would mean to place your rule 6 in. from the corner of the square on one arm and 1 in. from the corner on the other arm of the square; 2 in 6 would mean keep the rule at 6 in. on one arm and move the other end of the rule 2 in. from the corner on the other arm. In other words, an angle may be said to give the degree of slant.
We have included in this book a few designs for pieces of furniture in order to show the method of assembling the parts and the most convenient way of laying out and beginning a piece of work. In this connection we wish to impress upon you the importance of laying out the whole of a piece of work before you begin to cut it at all. You will appreciate this as you proceed.
In our cuts we have made no attempt at fine drawing but have used the fewest possible lines for the sake of plainness and only so much shading as is necessary. Single lines usually designate the outline of solid parts. Dotted lines show the outlines of parts lying beneath the surface, or in other words, as if seen through the object, and are used merely to show the location of parts which would really be invisible. Wavy lines are generally used where only a part of a piece is shown and designate that the piece is really longer than drawn but the part beyond the wavy line is not necessary in the illustration. We have used shading to show end grain in some cases but more often to show where a part is cut away, as in the side of a tenon, etc. Dimensions are shown by arrow pointed lines. Where these lines point in opposite directions with the figures between them, or point toward each other with the figures at the end of one arrow, they give the distance in both cases between the arrow points.
The choice of wood depends largely on the purpose for which it is to be used and personal taste. You will probably have no occasion to use other woods than fir, oak and mahogany, with possibly some pine. Fir is soft and likely to splinter if not carefully handled, but is easy to work, the grain is wavy and beautiful and it can be finished to equal oak in beauty. Oak is harder but more durable and admits of a very high polish. It is much stronger and therefore, except where proportion requires size, the parts can be made much smaller than when using fir. As, for instance, in chair and table legs, braces, etc. Oak also bends better than fir but it is necessary to steam it for this purpose and unless you have proper steam box and clamps to hold it until dry, we do not advise attempting to bend the parts. Mahogany has been the most highly prized of these three woods until recently, and is the most expensive, but oak has largely taken its place in fine furniture of this style, as it is more in keeping with the straight lines. Pine is soft, light and not so likely to splinter as fir, but has little grain and is not used extensively except in concealed parts where strength is not essential. In most lumber, and especially that with much flake or grain, you will find that the grain does not lay flat on the surface, but comes up to the surface at an angle and in planing it is important to cut in the direction of this grain, not against it, as in the latter case it will chip up and leave nicks in the surface instead of cutting smooth. In using the scraper on fir you have to be careful or it will cut deeper in the soft grain of the wood than on the flake, and make a wavy surface instead of a flat one. This, however, can be avoided with a little care.
We trust that with these suggestions the following may be quite clear to you, but if there is any point on which you are not quite clear, or if there is any advice you would like we would be very glad to hear from you and to assist you in any way that our experience will permit.