Posts Tagged ‘angles’

FILLERS AND CEMENTS
Fillers and cements arc used for the repair of china, glass, wood and occasionally metal. Adhesives are also used as fillers and cements, with the addition of a little colouring matter or powder to give them colour, body or both.
Plastic Padding. Described in the section on adhesives, this makes a useful filler for metalwork because of its colour, and it needs no further additives for this work. It is not usually used for china restoration work.
Wood fillers. There are several makes of plastic wood which are used as fillers for small holes in woodwork.
Wood filling compounds of various kinds and in various colours can be bought, in proprietary brands, and these are tenacious and excellent. When dry, fillers can be sanded to a smooth finish. Epoxy resin fillers such as Araldite, suitably coloured with dry powder pigments or oil paints, can be used as fillers for rebuilding small missing sections of woodwork. The slow drying of sonic types
makes them rather difficult to use, and care must be taken that, in larger repairs, shrinkage does not leave hair cracks between the new pieces and the old.
Various compounds are used for filling, and making casts and pressed moulds, and for modelling new pieces where it is not possible to make moulds.
Bondapaste. This is an excellent adhesive filler which can be built up on itself in layers, and when hard can be worked with files and gravers. It is a good filler and cement for china restoration needing no additive. It dries quickly so any moulding or modelling must be done fast.
Isopon. This is a paste filler which is mixed with a hardener. It dries quickly and doesn’t shrink under heat, and it needs no parting agent to separate it from the mould. It can be fined and abraded with glass paper and other abrasives. It sticks to itself so it can be used in layers, but it does not stick to china, so after hardening and removal of the mould, it must be stuck to the china with Araldite, exactly as if it were an ordinary broken piece. It can only be worked for about ten minutes before it becomes too tacky, but this is an advantage when you are fairly practised and it can be used for quite large pieces without internal support as it sets fast, so will not sag so readily as a slower setting filler. The fact that it will not adhere to plasticine also allows props and pads of plasticine to be used to support it while it is drying.
Plaster of Paris. Widely used for the making of moulds, it is quick drying and easy to handle, but it is not suitable by itself as a filler, being too soft and porous.
Seccotine with dental plaster. A hard setting adhesive mixture which is very useful for small repairs to gesso where the object is never going to come into contact with water.
Cascantite with dental plaster. Another good mixture, which can be cut and shaped with woodworking tools, provided it has not dried out completely (see Adhesives for details of Cascamite). It has the disadvantage that it must be stuck into place as it is not self-adhesive. It is most useful for filling Alabaster which it matches perfectly.
Araldite. The two tube epoxy resin adhesive described in the section on Adhesives is the most versatile filler, having but two disadvantages. It is rather sticky to use, and it dries very slowly so cannot be used for large unsupported pieces. However, it sticks so well to the object being mended, and, when set, it approaches so closely the appearance of biscuit china, that many restorers prefer it to the quicker setting compounds. It can be mixed with whitening, or kaolin or titanium dioxide to make a filler for china. Mixed with these same materials, it is also an excellent cement for use when dowelling.
Sawdust, stone powder, metallic powder, colouring pigments, either dry powder or oil paint, will all mix with Araldite to simulate almost anything you like to name.
will
It blend and adhere to the whole piece and strengthen it enormously. In the old days, plaster of Paris was used for this kind of building and restoration, but it was not strong or waterproof, whereas epoxy resins are both. Ali example mentioned in the section oil Aniis and Armour is the building up of an old worm-eaten gunstock with epoxy resins coloured to match. It can be injected by hypodermic syringe into wooden holes or cracks where it will strengthen and preserve. Unfortunately it will not take a very high Polish which may limit its use.
Fillers for Glasswork. Modern acrylic resins, which are usually powders with which a liquid is mixed, are ideal for glass restoration and repair, as if mixed with care so that there are no air bubbles present, they set to a trans- parent, very slightly yellow material which is as near to glass as you can get. Acrylic resins call be coloured with dry powder pigments to simulate coloured glass or china, and sonic can be bought already coloured.
Tensol Cement No. 7 and Aertilite Cold Curing Resin are two excellent products in this range. his is another versatile acrylic resin mentioned several times in this book. It can be used, mixed fairly thinly, to coat things made from cane or wickerwork to strengthen or preserve them, and to mend glass or certain types of china. With care it can be mixed with dry powder pigments to simulate jasper (`Wedgwood’) ware. Acrylics are not particularly difficult to handle, and in fact they are great fun to experiment with. They make excellent solid `glass cases’ for small objects which you wish to preserve. The technique for doing this is not within the scope of this book, but it is easy enough to work out for yourself, bearing in mind normal casting techniques!
Use acrylics according to makers’ instructions in so far as mixing etc. is concerned.
Gilder’s Coinpo. Invented by the Adam brothers, it has ever since been used for all kinds of moulding work instead of woodcarving, and is still a most excellent material for repairing moulded picture frames or some types of nioulding on furniture and fittings.
Recipe I.
i lb. Scotch glue 2 lbs. resin
i gill real turpentine T pint linseed oil whiting
Dissolve die glue in a gallon of water. Boil the resin, the turpentine and the oil together, and then add to the glue and water. Boil the whole lot together until the liquid has reduced a little, so that the mixture is not too runny. Add this to the whiting powder in a bucket, stirring constantly until the whole has the consistency of dough.Boil all the ingredients together for half an hour, and then add to a bucket containing whiting, rather as one adds milk and eggs to a bowl of flour when making batter. Mix until the compo has the consistency of dough.
FLY MARKS
Fly marks call be scratched offmany objects with a sharp knife or even with the point of a needle. Chalk mixed with a little ammonia will remove fly blows from a hard surface such as stone. Fly blows on glass or any surface which will
can
not be damaged by it ca be removed by washing with a five per cent solution of caustic soda, followed by rinsing. Solvents such as petrol or benzine will remove fly marks, but will also remove varnish, so be careful.
Fly marks on prints call sometimes be removed by alternate baths of ]lot and cold water in that order, and then drying out between pieces of blotting paper.
FRAMES
Painting and Texturing. Picture frames come in all shapes and sizes, complicated and simple, and there are just as many techniques for restoring and renovating them. They can be cleaned and painted with varnish or matching paint, gilded, given two-tone or antique finishes, textured or spattered. It depends a great deal on the type of frame which of these methods is used, and also oil the picture, which could well be killed by all over-weight frame or one coloured incorrectly. The frame should never be lighter in colour than the lightest part of the painting. Don’t put a white frame round a picture which does not contain white. If the frame is too glossy, the highlights distract the eye from the picture itself. Frames can also be made into trays, by adding a suitable centre, or into mirrors. Frames for watercolours, pastels, or photographs, which have glasses, should be as simple as possible so as not to overpower the picture.
First clean the frame thoroughly. Oil a simple wooden one, detergent, water and sandpaper all carefully used should remove old grease and grime. While the frame is drying, the type of repainting or decoration ion can be decided upon. If it is a plain frame in good condition, a light rub down with a fine grade of sandpaper will probably be all that is needed before a new coat of varnish is applied. Of course the varnish call be taken off, and the frame left in its natural wood state and just lightly rubbed with wax Polish, but if the old surface is stained or badly scratched, the new coat must be opaque, and some kind of paint is the answer. Ordinary household paint or plastic emulsion in a suitable colour looks quite well, but with a little more trouble, really exciting finishes call be obtained, and in most cases a broken finish definitely  looks best.
Polymer colour water based paints made either by Rowney under the trade name of Cryla, or by Reeves under the name of Polymer colours, are particularly useful, as they can be applied very thinly producing a pickled effect over stained wood, or else thick as squeezed from the tube, and then figured, or used for two-tone work. Polymer paints contain water and should be water thinned to the required consistency, not with turps or white spirit. They dry very rapidly, but if you want to slow down the process, use the special retarder. The colours, which conic ili the full range of artist’s oil paint colours, mix very well, and when dry will have a slight sheen, which is excellent for frames. A gloss medium is obtainable, or, although it is not really necessary as the paint is quite waterproof when dry, it can be overpainted with a polymer varnish to keep the frame in first class condition for years. Any tools or brushes used to apply the polymer paints should be washed thoroughly in water before they dry out, but if this is forgotten, a soaking overnight iii methylated spirit will the trick. Acetone will also dissolve these colours.
Texturing with polymer colours is not too difficult. The paint should have the consistency of thick cream. It should be painted on to the frame fairly thickly and, while it is still sticky, textured with a comb, toothbrush, an old wire brush, or anything else you caii think of that would scrape interesting patterns in the paint. A little practice on an odd scrap of wood painted with polymer, will give you some idea of texturing. Another method is to put oil different coloured layers of polymer, letting each one dry before adding rile next, and cut through these with varying pressures to get the colours showing through at different levels. Diagonal, cross, mitre or lengthwise strokes can be used, and if you get really ambitious, all sorts of curved lines and squiggles. Another way of texturing is to paint the frame with polymer, and then while it is still sticky, sprinkle on a little sand, or rice, or any other small hard grained substance, shake off the surplus, and when dry overpaint with another thinner layer of polymer, and then finish with polymer varnish. A small sponge gently pressed into sticky paint will also give an interesting finish, especially if the two-tone effect is desired, using a double layer of paint. Spattering gives a nice spotty effect and should be applied over the plain basic colour oil the frame by gently tapping a water paint brush loaded with the colour you want to apply. To make large spots hold the brush near the surface, and with a little experimentation the size of the spots can easily be adjusted.
One very useful process for finishing off plain frames or parts of ornamental ones is to rub on colour. This gives a nice soft finish and it is particularly good for insets, which can look far too hard and glaring against a light toned picture. Any oil based paint call be used and a handkerchief should be lightly smeared with this, and then the surplus paint rubbed off on an old piece of newspaper. The lightly charged cloth is rubbed gently 01, the frame, and the pressure increased until the right effect is obtained. The cloth should be recharged as necessary, but never too much as the more sparingly paint is applied tile softer tile finish will look, and it is not necessary to work it in too evenly. Burnt sienna is a particularly good colour for insets. If you want a simple gilded effect a paste made by Reeves called Restoration or an American product called Treasure Wax Gilt do an excellent job. They come in many roues of gold, bronze or silver, and are very easily applied with a cloth or finger oil to tile cleaned surface. If a bright finish is required, it should be put on fairly thickly and allowed to dry completely before being rubbed down with a soft cloth. This method is by far the best way to touch up any old gilding as the application of gold leaf is really an expert’s job (see Gilding).
heavy piece of chain, are common enough practices with disreputable dealers, but any old frame bought in a junk shop will probably have enough natural blemishes to make this unnecessary, and it all sounds rather too violent. Applications of different paints can make almost any frame look a lot older mid more interesting than it really is. Coats of paint are rubbed oil in, irregular patches and then smoothed down lightly with fine sandpaper. Deep depressions can be left dark, and bright colours should be put on sparingly. Yellow ochre, chrome yellow, raw uniber, venetian red and bumf sienlia, are all suitable colours, and when they have dried out and been sanded down, a thin coat of burnt sienna diluted with turpentine is overpainted, and later spots of gold or silver Restoration or Treasure Gilt call be rubbed oil in small areas, or tile whole frame spattered. The effect of old gold leaf call be obtained by painting the frame with a thick layer of venetian red, and then repainting with a good quality bronze paint such as Treasure Gold Liquid Leaf When it is dry, it should be rubbed with steel wool until the red shows through in places. Restoration wax call be used instead of the bronze paint, just put on rather unevenly, but it must be remembered that genuine gold leaf gets rubbed off in natural wear and tear on the raised surfaces, while tile depressions will keep the gold, and it is not so easy to get a natural finish without any rubbing off.
Mending. Old picture frames get pretty knocked about in junk shops, especially when tile pictures have been removed and tile glass broken. Usually it is the corners which go, the whole frame wringing in all directions. Corners can be strengthened quite easily (see Fig. 17)_ If the glue and the tacks which secure the frame have gone, take the frame to pieces, and remove the remains of the tacks and clean off  Sand the faces of the comers down to the natural wood, so that you have a clean surface to work on, and then put an impact adhesive, on both faces of the comers and leave it for the time specified by its makers before bringing the two faces together. In order to get good right-angled corners, use a comer cramp. These c.-ui be bought at hardware stores and arc so useful that I really do suggest that you get one and do not try to square the comer any other way, although it can be done. One method is to work with the frame on its face. Put the two faces together and square the comer using a try square to measure it and then tack a thin piece of wood diagonally across, so that the frame is held rigid until the join has set. This will hold the corners accurately, but will not put any tension on the join. To hold the comer, in addition to the adhesive, drive tacks in diagonally across the join, making sure that you don’t use tacks so long that they come right and also try to get them into the through the other side, and
thickest section of the frame. Small holes can be drilled across the corner, and a woodc’, peg inserted. If you mean to do this, it is best to drill the hole with the frame held tight in the corner cramp, before putting on the glue.
If it is not possible to mend the frame iri this way, or if you do not want to dismantle it entirely, the corners can be dowelled, or a plate can be screwed on to the corners, at the back. Depending on how big and heavy the frame is, put in a strip or triangular corner plate (see Fig. 17). If a strip is used, sink it into the frame by cutting right across the corner to the depth of the strip with a tenon saw, and then chipping out the piece with a chisel. Wooden strips and plates are better than metal ones, and plywood is fine for the job.
If you wish to make a frame smaller, this can be done without separating all the covers. Measure opposite sides to the correct lengths, at opposite ends, then cut through the two corners using a mitre box, and rejoin (see Fig. 18). When measuring frames, always remember that the edge of the frame overlaps the glass and the picture, and that you must allow for this when measuring. It is easier to measure your picture and/or glass, and then measure the frame at the inside edge of the rebate which takes the picture.
Mending Mouldhnq. If the plaster moulding of a picture franc is really badly damaged, you can always strip it all off and just use the basic wooden frame. A power drill with a rough sanding disc will take off a lot of the old plaster quickly, but some of the awkward angles will have to be done with a hand scraper.
Clean all mouldings with a hog’s hair paint brush, a sponge mid methylated spirit. Never make a frame too wet or the plaster may dissolve.
plaster mouldings are all too often broken off in great lumps. Replace these quite simply by making a moulding from an identical, but unbroken section of the frame. This is done in the same way as pressed moulding for china (see Fig. rg). Make a mould with Plasticine for small sections, and then cast a piece by pouring plaster of Paris in the mould, or preferably for small sections by making a filler with Araldite mixed with kaolin powder (use a parting agent in this case), or Cascamite and dental plaster, and pressing this into the mould. The pressing is allowed to harden and then, before it is so hard that it will not stick, is carefully put in place on the break. A little straight Araldite adhesive on the face of the broken part will help adhesion. To make a mould of a large section, or one which has any undercutting which would hook round a plasticiric pressing, use dental impressioncompound (Paribar) and make a pressed mould with this, first greasing the moulding with vaseline. Paribar can be reused many times, and no parting agents are needed before putting in
the plaster of Paris filler.
Gilder’s Compo can be used (see Fillers) and this is recommended for extensive work. It has many other uses for moulding of all kinds and is the traditional material—superseded, but not necessarily improved upon, by plastics and resins.
The mouldings can also be made in Isopon or Bondapaste filler, which dries much more quickly than Aralditc. It is a matter of personal preference, really. All these materials make mouldings which when set can be cleaned tip with needle files and abraded with glass paper until they are satisfactorily smooth.
ruler with a bevel edge and a Stanley knife (see Tools), and cut the board with a bevel. Special mat trimmers can be bought from artists’ suppliers. The secret is to cut the bevel the same all the way round and to get the comers neat. The knife must be perfectly sharp. It is difficult to stop the ruler from slipping about, and a strip of very fine sandpaper stuck oil will the bottom of it wihelp. The bevel edge can be gilded if liked.
The mat is placed oil the picture, which in turn has been put on a mount which is bigger than the hole in the mat. Photographic mountant is excellent for this job, either the paste type, or, if there is no danger involved in heating your picture, the type which is painted on with a brush and then bonded by pressure with a warm iron.
Mounts arc just pieces of cart{    which the picture is stuck; the mount being big enough to fit the frame exactly.
Linings are rather more complex, and call be most effective, both for bringing a frame down in size, and for making a picture look better. A lining may be just a strip of gilded wood inside the main frame, or it may be a wider inner frame covered with material such as linen or velvet or sheet metal. The wood inner frame is made exactly to fit the rebates of the main frame, and is mitred at the corners. The covering material may be stuck or pinned to the lining. In order to make a neat job at the corners, it is usually best to cover the pieces before joining them.
One last word—always check wire, cord and screws used for hanging up pictures—more often than not the wire is rusted, the string is rotten, and screw rings are rusted or loose. It call be a little disappointing if two weeks later all your hard work oil painting, moulding and mending together with that expensive piece of glass end up in a shattered heap on the floor.

Chests, Chests of Drawers and Various Small Boxes
Origins of the chest—cofferers and arkwrights—the carpenter’s planked chest—chip-carving decoration—the panelled chest of the joiner—development of the mule chest—early enclosed chest of drawers—the chest in two stages—the joiner’s slide—veneered chests—chests on stands and tallboys—bachelor, dressing and linen chests with presses—commodes and military chests—later forms—drawer construction and dating by feet and handles—Bible and ruff boxes—knife and candle boxes—tea caddies, cellarets and portable liqueur cases—sewing boxes antique christening shell .
Chests belong to the very beginning of domestic furnishing antique drop leaf painted table 1800 . Blanket chests, hope chests, even treasure chests—they served as wardrobes, as safes, as seats and sometimes even as beds antique french campaign chair . A chest is probably one of the earliest pieces likely to come the way of anyone starting to collect antique furniture in a modest manner porcelain vases czechoslovakia . Those belonging to the early Stuart period are not difficult to find and may be had for under £10 everest patent for two-seater sofa . They are not always large and a length of 3 feet or very little more is fairly common antique porcelain and china clocks .
Very early chests, some of which may date from Saxon times, were primitive but served their purpose well antique occasional table pie crust top . Usually they were made from rough hewn logs which were sawn down the middle and hollowed out classism semicircular arc . Then the two parts were hinged together and encircled with strong iron bands to which locks could be attached small antique dresser with cabriole legs . The French word trove, meaning a collecting box, and the English trunk have the same origin and refer to this tree-bole type of chest china made in czechoslovakia . I have seen one in the church at Llan Eilean, near An-ilwch in Anglesey, with three locks furniture + finmar ltd . It was customary for the keys to be held by the priest and two churchwardens so that the chest could not be opened without all three being present chamber pot chair value .
Medieval chests for transporting money and valuables were known as coffers semichina blue ware . They were comparatively small and often covered with leather and studded with nails warm entree dish . The man who made them was known as a cofferer and another craftsman who made chests was called an arkwright antique bombe commode louis the xv with marble top . He made them with bevelled lids and wooden pins served as hinges mahogany gateleg table . These belong to the Gothic period and are very rare art deco game tables .
The early Tudor chests, made for the smaller household, were known as planked chests silver flatware wood handle . They were made by a carpenter and consisted of a number of boards or planks held together with nails or wooden pins creamware tureen neoclassical acanthus . Planked chests had thick iron wire or wrought-iron strap hinges and were often decorated with chip-carving or architectural motifs in low relief antique italian pottery marks . Some of these planked chests were quite small and make interesting acquisitions for those who like old oak antique drop leaf gateleg dining room table .
The joiner’s panelled chest appeared about 1550 and the
panels were usually decorated like the example shown in
Chapter 1 baltimore neoclassical sideboard . The panelled chest, in various sizes, was an
essential chattel in every Tudor household and the larger
establishments seem to have had a chest in every room japanese imari 18th .
Visitors to Haddon Hall in Derbyshire may care to count
the great number and variety of chests which are to be
seen there chiffonier 19th century . A type of chest, made about this time, which
is now very rare and really a collector’s piece, was one
constructed with fairly long legs, about table height soup turrene . It
was known as a counter and used by house stewards and
clerks for paying out or collecting money 17th century chairs . The modern
word counter, as in a shop, derives from this long obsolete
piece of furniture space saving rectangular drop leaf tables . In a slightly different form, with doors
opening at the front and with the top fastened down, the counter was known as a hutch 1920s draw leaf dining set turned legs . Further details of this are given in Chapter 6 small antique dressers from montgomery wards .
The ordinary planked or panelled chest had one great drawback in that only the contents at the top were readily accessible antique 19th century daybed and brass feet . To reach anything carefully tucked away at the bottom of the chest necessitated the removal of all the other things lying above how high above a sideboard should a mirror be hung . Early in the Stuart period, some ingenious joiner invented the mule chest 1930’s austrian furniture . This was a shallower type of panelled chest, under which were situated two or three drawers brass dolphin triple dining table base . This design was extremely popular and mule chests continued to be made in the country towns and villages until around the year 1800 indian antique tea kettles .
The mule chest proved to be a great improvement in its capacity for storage antique round oak dining table claw and ball feet . Not only were the bottom drawers available for the separation of items, but inside the chest itself it is not unusual to find a small box or till with a lid, situated at one end near the top myott son compagnie . This was used for keeping letters and documents and these little tills often repay a closer examination, for on several occasions I have found that the front of the box will slide upwards to reveal two or three secret drawers beneath antique chinese chamber pot . In some of the larger chests, intended for storing blankets or linen only, the till would be merely a shallow tray on which the good housewife could place a spray of lavender to sweeten her sheets and pillow slips clear glass trinket boxes or powder boxes .
To the student of woodwork history, the mule chest is particularly interesting because there can be little doubt that the chest of drawers developed from it finial silver flatware . This process was not a swift one and for a space of time, roughly between t620 and 1660, there was a type of chest of drawers in use which was really a cupboard full of trays or drawers, surmounted by one large deep drawer creamware bird on pedestal . The cupboard doors with one lock prevented unauthorised access to any of the lower drawers but this must have proved unworkable as this pattern new deco furniture . ceased to be made shortly after 1660 and the chest of drawers assumed the form by which it is known today 17th century trestle table with claw feet .
For ease of removal the first chests of drawers were made in two stages or sections english wedgewood . The upper stage of two small and one long drawer fitted on to four pegs on top of the lower section of two long drawers secretaire desk antique . These early chests in two stages also had drawers with grooves cut in the sides, known as joiner’s slides earliest tilt top tea table . They were designed mainly to prevent wear on the drawer bottoms and also to prevent the drawer from tipping downwards when more than half open inlaid silver black bone china antique . It was found, however, that the slide grooves required disproportionately thicker linings to the drawers so that the cabinet-maker, with his improved ideas of jointing and finer standard of craftsmanship, caused the joiner’s slide to become obsolete about the year 1690 dutch rococo cupboard . Any antique chest of drawers with joiner’s slides may be safely said to be earlier than this date although this ancient construction has been revived in the last few years for modern kitchen units and office furniture milanese ebonized antiques .
Cabinet-maker’s chests with their broad, flat surfaces provided suitable subjects for veneering antique glass top tea table bird . By the end of the Restoration period, chests with marquetry decoration were in fashion and it is not uncommon to find country-made oak chests of this time with panelled oak sides and the top and drawer fronts veneered scottish chest drawers . Smaller chests of drawers, of 3-feet width and under and covered with oystershell veneer, are scarce and in good condition might be worth up to £80 and more antique mahogany french bedside commode .
During the William and Mary period, the chest of drawers on a stand made its appearance and shortly after developed into a chest on a chest or tallboy what are japanese black laquer screen made screen . The chest on a stand did not last long as a furnishing piece but the tallboy remained popular throughout the greater part of the 18th century german antique romer drinking glasses . It is difficult to understand this, as access to the upper drawers of a tallboy is very awkward and necessitates standing on a chair or stool antique west indies console table . Perhaps, for this very reason, they were considered safer for the storage of valuables revolvong bookcase .
Bachelor chests and dressing chests were brought into use during the first half of the 18th century 19th century commode with chamber pot . These were intended primarily for bedrooms, the former having a folding top which opened outwards on lopers, or pull-out supports vintage mahogany drop leaf table 1940 . Sometimes, instead of the folding top, a pullout slide for brushing clothes was included in the construction turkish sofa design . The dressing chest had a top drawer fitted with a toilet set and further reference will be made to it in Chapter 9 antique french drawleaf table .
Another type, adapted for a special purpose, was the linen chest with a press 17th century marquetry bombe commode . It was usually about 3 feet long and had several small drawers near the top art deco writers . Its particular feature was a wooden screw-press, mounted on the top for the purpose of compressing the linen before putting it away in the drawers french 17th century cabinent makers . On several occasions I have come across these chests, with rectangular pieces of wood let into the top at each end to fill the spaces left where the screw-press uprights had been removed antique chippendale display cabinet .
Two other varieties belong to the Chippendale and Sheraton periods 1930s frankart lamps . One was the commode, a very elaborate chest of drawers which was raised on shaped legs engliosh design consoles furniture . It often had a convex or bombe front and later types were embellished with ormolu mounts in the French style value of 18th century dressing table . The other was the military chest, used during the campaigns of the Napoleonic wars in the early 19th century 17th century dining tables . It was made in two stages for ease of transport and is easily recognised by the clean-cut rectangular shape, the addition of brass corner pieces and the sunk handles on the drawers japanese art nouveau desk . A design usually associated with Sheraton was the bow-fronted chest and these continued to be made well into Victorian times portois fix .
Certain details of drawer construction, handle design and feet are invaluable in dating a chest of drawers antiques marks on furniture . Dovetailing of a rather crude nature had been used for the corners of boxes and small chests before the Restoration kidney shaped antique furniture . During the years between 1660 and 1750 the technique of making fine dovetail joints was brought to a high degree of craftsmanship latter carving on pembroke table . Large tails and widely spaced pins are indicative of early or country production roccoccoware . Herring-bone stringing, set in walnut veneer, was used for drawer front decoration during the Queen Anne period but became obsolete soon after 1720 spanish marquetry dining table .
Oak chests of drawers, belonging to the second half of the 17th century and the early years of the 18th, are sometimes found with the corner joints lapped and nailed world market carved brass charger plate . This is, of course, the mark of a poorly made piece georgian sideboards and serving tables . I believe the idea of nailing drawer fronts was adapted from cheap, imported furniture and the practice was undoubtedly followed by our own country joiners, of whom a few were prepared to produce shoddy furniture, even in those days 1940’s decco furniture .
Until the time of Hepplewhite, drawer bottoms consisted of thin boards, fitted into a rebate on the inside of the drawer front and nailed along the under edge of the back lining earth driven electrical clock bentleys . About 1775, a new method of securing the bottom appeared whereby a centre batten running from the front to the back of the drawer held the bottom boards in grooves whilst the boards, instead of being placed from front to back, now ran parallel to the drawer front meissen porcelain blumen design .
Bun feet were the normal means of support for chests until around 1700 when bracket feet were introduced art deco kneeling dancer lamp . At first, bracket feet were high and appeared out of proportion but by 1750 they were made lower and continued so until the end of the century early imperial ming porcelain . Cabinet-makers during the Chippendale era used bracket feet of an ogee shape on the better class of work, but these lent a heavy, baroque appearance to the chest amphora czechoslovakia . A lighter type of foot, known as the French foot and associated with Sheraton furniture, is usually found on the earlier bow-fronted chests antique cabnit barley twist legs . After the Regency, this design was displaced by an uglier, turned foot which remained in use until the mid-Victorian period wooden cylinder pedestal .
The first chests of drawers had brass, drop handles which were pear shaped or flat with split ends 19th century ceramic wooden clock . These handles were fixed to the drawer by means of a split pin, which passed through the drawer front and was then opened out on the inside and the ends driven into the wood louis 16th sofas . Small wooden knobs were also in use at this time but these became obsolete and did not reappear until they were adopted by Hepplewhite for his mahogany chests about 1775 antique paper mache card table . Drop handles were succeeded by a ring type around 1700 and these are sometimes referred to as Dutch drops inlaid wood chinese duncan phyfe occasional table . From these developed loop handles with brass back plates which were first seen from about 1710 meissen porcelain marking . To begin with, back plates were simple butterfly shapes but by 1730 had become very elaborate, in a variety of fretted and saw-pierced patterns art deco lamp globe . By 1750, the back plates to drawer handles had disappeared, being replaced by small circular discs behind the handle mounts antique card table 1920 fold over top . Towards the end of the century knobs of cast brass or wood superseded the loop type of handle and were in use well into the Victorian period regency day bed . Back plates, either round or octagonal in shape and with longer loop handles attached, were revived during the time of the Regency repair antique dresser drawers .
Among the more diminutive chests and boxes which were made during the 17th century was one type, about 20 inches long and 14 inches wide 16th century antique refectory tables . It was used for storing the large, black letter family Bible or for documents antique calamander . Another box, not quite so long and narrower, was used for keeping lace and neck-ruffs victorian cedar drop leaf table . It was really an early form of collar box dinning table carved like an animal . These boxes were usually made in oak with hasp locks and were decorated with chip-carving and gouge-cuts meissen cris de paris . These small chests should not be confused with the sloping topped table desk which will be dealt with in the chapter on desks and bureaux antique octagonal tilt top tea table .
Candle and salt boxes were in everyday use in the kitchens during the 17th and 18th centuries, those for candles being long and comparatively narrow to accommodate tapers as well as candles antique monks chair . Later examples were often made in oak with mahogany cross-banded edges scottish dresser .
Table knives, particularly those with silver handles, were carefully safeguarded in the dining room furniture ornaments ny . In the Chippendale period, beautifully veneered and inlaid knife-boxes were made to stand on the sideboard, while similar boxes were provided for spoons and forks 1930 art deco french armchairs . Servants of the 18th century must have been notoriously dishonest or masters and mistresses of an equally suspicious nature, for it was the practice never to allow the cutlery and silver to be removed from the dining room gate leg table english oak antique . After a meal the knives, forks and spoons would be washed at the sideboard and the butler would then count and lock them away in their respective boxes english ironstone pottery .
Tea was an expensive commodity between 1700 and 1800 and here again a special little box or coffer, which could be kept locked, was used to hold the precious leaves rectangular drop-leaf table . Tea was always made at the tea table and the mistress of the house would keep the key of the tea caddy among the other housewifely belongings which hung on the chatelaine from her waist victorian dome revolving re serving dishes .
Tea caddies usually had two compartments, lined with lead foil to preserve the tea, but those dating from the early years of the 19th century are sometimes found with a cut-glass sugar bowl of Irish glass, situated between the compartments antique draw leaf dining table . A collection of wooden tea caddies is an admirable way of getting together, in a small space, examples of all the different types of wood and the decorative processes used by the cabinet-makers of the 18th century 19th century mechanical desks .
Reference must be made to the wine cellarets and portable liqueur cases, which were in general use between 1775 and 1830 gabriel viardot . The cellaret was a heavy, strongly made coffer about 2 feet square and lined with lead antique pemproke tables . It stood on feet and was placed beneath a side-table in the dining room andrea baccetti . Cellarets were nearly always made of mahogany with large brass ring handles at the sides barocan roll furniture .
The portable liqueur case was essentially a travelling companion and contained four or six square shaped decanters whose contents would fortify the traveller on the long coach journeys of those days sideboards . It was often finely veneered in walnut or mahogany and strengthened, like the military chest, with engraved brass corner pieces enterprise porcelain italy . These, in the finer examples, were sometimes of chased silver northern song dynasty ru ware . I have seen these little chests made in oak, shaped like a trunk and reinforced with wrought-iron bands antique table from a monastery in europe . As these oak types usually contain Liege glass decanters I think they must be of French or Flemish origin 1620 plate british cobalt blue .
Ladies’ sewing and needlework boxes, particularly those of the first half of the 19th century, can still be purchased for a pound or two chenghua foot rims . They are usually veneered in walnut or mahogany with ebony or brass inlay or with rosewood inlaid with ivory carlo zen furniture . A popular form of decoration at this time consisted of a very fine parquetry in various coloured woods, known as Tunbridge ware tables with chamber pots . These work boxes can be included, to advantage, with a collection of tea caddies and other small boxes chippendale drum table 2 drawers .

Stands and racks
The term “stand” is used in a wide-ranging sense and implies any kind of support. Although the word can be used for a piece joined to another item of furniture, such as a cabinet stand, this section looks at stands complete in themselves. Such stands were specifically designed to be both highly practical and easily portable. Although they were often embellished with the fashionable decorative qualities of the day, the common feature of these pieces was that function always prevailed over style.
FOLIO AND READING STANDS
The folio stand allowed the reader to store a heavy book temporarily, to browse through at leisure, rather than having to keep taking it down from a library shelf and replacing it. Folio stands were usually adjustable, often with hinged or ratchet actions, to allow for different thicknesses of books or to hold several at once. Before
the 20th century it was common practice to read standing up, but books were heavy to hold. A reading stand, designed for resting the book on, provided the solution. Some reading stands were also intended to hold Music scores, while others were more robustly constructed to take the greater weight of a book. Like folio stands, reading stands could be adjusted so that the reader was able to place the book at different heights and angles.
CANTERBURIES
Thomas Sheraton (1751-1806) referred to two types of canterbury in The Cabinet Dictionary (1803): the music stand and the
supper tray. He described the first as “a small music stand”, or open-topped rack, with slatted partitions for the storage of loose sheets of music and bound music books. It generally had four short legs on casters, so that it could be moved or kicked away easily, and was short enough to be stored inconspicuously beneath the piano. Commonly used for the storage of magazines today, it was first introduced in Britain in the 1780s. It is thought that the canterbury was named after an Archbishop of Canterbury, for whom the first example was made. Two such stands were illustrated in A Collection of Designs for Household Furniture and Interior Decoration (1808) by George Smith (active c.1786-1826). He wrote that “they are intended for holding such music books as are in constant use and may be manufactured in mahogany, rosewood, or bronzed and gilt”.
Some stands had sides of wire latticework, and in these examples the slatted partitions were usually omitted. Others, for example some made for the International Exhibition of 1862 in London, were constructed of wood but decorated with mother-of-pearl inlay on papier-mache, which was then overpainted with gilt and coloured varnishes.
The second type of canterbury to which Sheraton referred was “a supper tray, made to stand by a table at supper, with a circular end, and three partitions cross-wise, to hold knives, forks, and plates, at that end, which is made circular on purpose”. Much taller than the music-stand type of canterbury, the supper tray resembles a small table. It was used, like the dumb waiter, when service in the dining-room was dispensed with, especially particularly at informal parties. It too stood on casters so that it was easy to move around, and often had splayed legs which provided greater stability.
DUMB WAITERS
First invented and used in
Britain c.1725, the dumb waiter consisted of a central shaft with
circular trays, which often revolved. The trays increased in size from top to bottom, and
terminated in a tripod foot. In The Cabinet
Dictionary, Sheraton described it as “a useful piece of furniture, to serve in some respects the place of a waiter, whence it is so named”. The absence of a human attendant helped confidential dining, and the dumb
waiter was generally placed at the corner of the dining-table for diners to help themselves to
additional plates, knives and forks, pudding, and cheese. After dinner, bottles of drink and glasses were placed on the trays of the stand.
Toward the end of the 18th century, the use of the dumb waiter had spread to France and Germany in differing forms. At that time in Britain, the dumb waiter was elaborated, and new varieties were introduced. Plain elegance was eschewed in favour of such decoration as Gothic fretwork, leaf moulding, and curves. Quadruped supports often supplanted the traditional tripod base. In 1803 Sheraton gave two new designs in his Dictionary: the first was “partly from the French taste”, and on the top was a thin layer of marble “which not only keeps cleaner and looks neater than mahogany, but also tends to keep the wine cool when a bottle for present use is placed upon it”. There were knife trays, shelves for plates, and holes, lined with tin, for bottles and decanters. Sheraton’s second design had two levels, not three, although there were drawers underneath the lower for cutlery or dirty plates, and it rested on a quadruped, spider-legged stand.
In the early 19th century in Britain a Classical air, which had no prototype in antiquity, was imparted to many types of furniture, including dumb waiters. Grecian motifs such as lyres provided novelty, and by the Victorian era designs for dumb waiters were as eclectic as those for any other piece of furniture.
WHATNOTS
This type of stand was intended to display a variety of objets d’art, ornaments, curiosities, books, and papers. Generally rectangular in shape, with three shelves, and possibly one or two drawers beneath them, they were supported by turned columns at the angles. The first published reference to the whatnot occurred in 1808 in the Correspondence of Sarah, Lady Lyttleton, but it is also mentioned in the cost books of the firm of
Gillow (est. c.1730) of Lancaster eight years earlier. Whatnots were extremely popular throughout the 19th century. They were usually made of mahogany or rosewood, and were sometimes embellished with ormolu
mounts. In addition, the shelves of some pieces were
edged with pierced brass galleries.
ETAGERES
The French etagere, meaning “stand”, combined the qualities of the English dumb waiter and the whatnot. A two- or sometimes three-tiered table, it was intended either for displaying objects or for serving food. In some cases the top tier could be removed and used as a tray. Casters and handles on the lower tier enabled the piece to be pulled around a room. French etageres were more highly decorated and sinuous than their British counterparts. By the second half of the 19th
century there was an enormous variety of designs available, ranging from ones that recalled the Louis XIV and Boulle styles to those featuring ormolu mounts, gilding, naturalistic motifs, and exaggerated Rococo curves and scrolls.
MUSIC STANDS
While the Canterbury was for storing music, the music stand was designed for playing a score. Music stands were purely functional before c.1770. Professional musicians provided their own, utilitarian, stands and in any case often played sitting down. The development of the music stand as a decorative item marks the fashion in the late 18th century for private recitals, at which works by composers of the chamber form, particularly Haydn, Mozart, and Schubert, were played. Even then, function took precedence over adornment.
• ALTERATIONS often polescreens have been converted into music stands; ensure that all the platforms on dumb waiters match, and that a three-tier waiter has not been converted into a two-tier one: look carefully at the size of the tier, and the balance and proportions.
• COLLECTING canterburies arc generally very popular with collectors because of their small size, particularly Regency examples, which because of their delicate form have often had one or more of their divisions replaced; small whatnots with hinged tops are very commercial and are generally made in mahogany; the tiers of some dumb waiters were hinged at either side with two drop flaps so that they could be discreetly stored away; good-quality waiters have galleried tiers.