New Limbert rocker. The chair has a loss of stain and color on arms, rails, a few other spots. The chair's back has good color in the front and rear but needs blending in a spot or two. I don't think it was fumed as it has bleached color and remnants of original color shows that darker brown Limberts used. Unfortunately with these pice they don't show the real color loss. The condition of the wood is nice and smooth, no cracking or splitting. Seat opition are leather- dark brown or a burgundy pad seat. Opinions? Thanks!
One thing about pictures trying to show true colours is that outside in good daylight works best - inside a garage with a flash, not so hot. As a result, looking at these I would think it looks pretty good as is - just clean and wax. If however a significant amount of finish is gone, which sounds like it, then maybe a little stain and a little skim coat will help, but honestly you have to be the judge of how much. As with any top tier maker, doing nothing to an original finish is often the best option because then the chair can ALWAYS be described as original finish. The trick in my mind would be to do as little as possible and do it so good that it fools an expert OR that an expert can see it was done by another expert.
In this case if you want to add stain I would say go with a water based stain (or alchohol based, depending on the product) for three reasons. One - it mimics more or less exactly what was used back then (meaning no oil based stains widely available in 1910, not like todays oil based...well maybe other than linseed oil maybe tinted somehow); Two - you can do it super carefully a little at a time literally with one finger under a rag and just dob it on, and it won't run or bleed like oil might; Three - if it looks wrong you can maybe try to bleach it back out a bit, very very carefully - much easier to bleach water/alchohol based than oil based. Then a thin thin (1 lb cut or so) quick wipe of shellac, then wax.
SC, I would have loved to take an outdoor picture, but we have not had sunshine in about week again, rain-rain-rain, feels more like the Northwest rather than the Northeast! I will take a few pics in the sun if and when it comes out again, hopefully before the 4th of July! Indeed, I do want to keep it as close to original, I don't even want to sand or strip anything- just put a little color back into it to show the grain. In the interim, I am hunting for a hide and some horse hair to replace the seat pad and cover. We have this old horse in town, think she'd missed her tail? They grow back right!
Horse hair is pretty neat stuff - saw some Victorian chairs with horse hair seats a couple auctions ago - excellent cover if done right and if it never gets caught on anything but as soon as it starts to unravel its toast.
In general I think its perfectly acceptable to use modern padding for seats - this is the one thing that doesn't hurt the piece if the original is long gone (and most are) - using a traditional padding versus modern doesn't add to the value, but using a leather cover is of course the correct thing to do and will always be better than cloth.
i used to get a product from lee velley called amalgamator, a blend of solvents and resins that would soften old alligatored finishes. i learned by using it that you can accomplish the same thing with laquer or shellac. i would just wrap a rag around one finger and apply small amounts using a method similar to french polishing as stonecat described in kens' harden rocker thread. original finish can be blended with new to even out places where no original finish remains. once you get a feel for it you can put on what looks to be a hand rubbed finish without too much gloss and higflight areas of wear with more gloss. it even tends to build up in the corners preserving patina. i find it is the best first approach, much more satisfying than stripping and if you don't get what you want more drastic measures can be taken. if i owned that chair that is how i would proceed.
MRM, You might try a little Murphy's Soap and water first. Mix some in some water and work up a suds and then dip your rag into only the bubbles and work it into the dirtiest part to see what happens and wipe off with paper towels. Give the soap a chance to loosen the built up dirt and just keep working till you get it looking alike all over as maybe all the chair needs is just a good cleaning.
Ralph I do clean most of my chiars with that mix, it works wonders to remove that built up grime and dirt residue. Unfortunatley too much color has faded or has bleached out due to the chair sitting outside and in the sun. I think the approach I am going to take is the small area testing with a darker stain to mimic the original color that is on the top back rail which is the best place showing color. If I can color and blend the lightened areas, not enough to look refinished but rejuvenated, I love that word, I think I can achieve a look that is pleasing and can bring life back in the grain, especially the faded color parts. There still is plenty of life and color in the back slats, front and rear, as well as the stretchers and rails to keep those original and compliment the arms and rails where the majority of the fading has occured. I am learning a bunch about colorizing and tinting with all the input from memebers here! I have one nice chair to learn on and I think it's going to look pretty nice once done. The biggest problem with refinishing and restoration is knowing when to stop- it's that last attempt to get that result you think you want and wham! you went too far and now stuck having to reverse what you should have left alone. Been there a thousand times before and will be there a thousand times again.
That is definately the classic porch rocker look. I like your plan. Preserve the good original colour/finish and give it life where the sun and the elements have taken it away. I don't think there's any question with this one re keeping it original finish because so much has been lost (which is actually a contradiction of terms isn't it - no 100 year old chair can be called 'original'). Suggestion - maybe try to still leave some colour bleach look to the arms and centre of the back because these are the natural areas of wear and tear, and help tell the history of the chair, but its your call.
Other than lightly sanding some gummy stuff off one arm and not much else, here is what it looks like now. Used Minwax Golden Oak stain and literally buffed the whole chair to even out any color and shading. I think it looks very nice now.
If I were just wax it using a brown wax or amber color and not shellac or shiny it up is that cool? I don't want it to look to refinished.
Next comes the loose joint issues- waiting for my refernce book to arrive then I tackle that.
Hello MRM, When it comes to old furniture with loose spreaders and joints I am a firm believer in Hide glue as in some cases you don't even need to clamp the piece to make it work well but the tenons and mortises must be clean of the old glue to get a good fit.
Originally posted by mrm: If I were just wax it using a brown wax or amber color and not shellac or shiny it up is that cool? I don't want it to look to refinished.
Yes you can wax over it, without shellac. Remember that the Minwax has a little bit of a sealer in it anyways. I would judge how much shellac still exists in the original finish locations and base whether or not a spit coat in the other areas is needed. I don't think original Limbert pieces went very thick with shellac and even if you do a spit coat and it looks a little shiny, you could lightly buff it down with superfine (0000) steel wool. You can also adjust the look with the way you rub out the wax, less rub = duller, more rub = more gloss.
I fixed one of your pictures that wasn't coming up.
