FEDERAL
FURNITURE
Michael Dunbar
ITI
The Taunton Press
Cover and text photos by Andrcw Edgar. except wh crc note...
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FEDERAL
FURNITURE
Michael Dunbar
ITI
The Taunton Press
Cover and text photos by Andrcw Edgar. except wh crc noted . Photos. pp, 8 and 10. by John Co rco ra n .
" 1986 by The Ta u nton Press. In c , All righ ts rese rved
First printing: ~I a y 198 6 Int ern a tio nal Sta nda rd Boo k Number: 0 ·918804·48·5 Library of Co ngress Catalog Ca rd Nu mbe r: 85 ·52239 Printed in Denmark
A FIl>E WOODWORKI NG Book FIl>E WOODWORKIl>G"' is a tra dem ark o f Thc Ta unto n Press, Inc .• regist er ed in th e U.S . Pat e nt and Trade ma rk Office , The Ta u nto n Press. Inc . 63 South Ma in St ree t Box 355 Newtown. Co nnec tic ut 06 4 70
Acknowledgments
~I y
wife , Carol. and I dedicate thi s bo ok to o u r good friend Dr. Doro thy Va ug ha n, During World War I, wh en s he was a tee nager, Dorothy began her lifelon g lov e affair with Po rtsmou th, New Hampshire , Th rough out mo st o f this cent ury, wh en few o the rs ca red o r were able to understand wh y, she struggle d to prot ect thi s old c ity b y th e se a from the wrecke r's ba ll. The spec ial cha rac te r a nd a rc hi tec tu ra l heri tage tha t Portsm outh ha s o nly latel y learned to c he rish we re in la rge pa rt sa ve d for us all by Do rothy. She sta nds as a b ridge betwe en Portsmouth 's pa st a nd its future. She has read a nd co mm itted to memory th e c ity's written h istory. And bef ore each re cent generation o f olde r ci tize ns slip pe d a way, s he befri ended them , keeping a live in the process two c enturi es o f o ra l hi st ory for this ge ne ra tio n. Doro thy sha res her kn owledge lib erally. She ha s alw ay s willin gly helped me with my research, and in so doing sh e has also sha re d her uniqu e gift with you, the readers o f thi s book . I would also lik e to acknowl ed ge th e c o ntrib u tio n to this book o f And y Edg a r, wh ose pati en ce a nd good hum or hel ped us bo th s u rv ive many hours o f ph o to graph y. J ack an d Dia ne ~l c G e e ' s ge ne rosity b rought th e Lord bo x hom e . Fe llo w c ra ftsme n a nd woodworkers Pat Edwa rds. Al Breed a nd To m Hin ckl e y co ntrib u te d th eir s pe c ia l knowl ed ge and inf o rmati on . ~I uch o f th e wo od used in th e p rojec ts fell to Ed dy Tr embla y's c ha insa w. Th rough Cha rlie LeBlanc at th e Portsm outh Public Library, resourc es were o nly a ph on e call away . And since this book co nta ins no index , Ed Hyder ha s y ie lded hi s plac e .
Contents
AN INTROHUCTIO N TO FEHERAL nJRNITlJRE THE PARLOR 1 c a,« T a ble
S
10
Project : String in lay 2 Xl irror Project : Ro pe turning
20
.l Sofa
.10
Project: Reeding by hand
4 C a n illes ta n d
.1S
Project : Sliding dovetails
5 Lord Bo .'-Proj e c t: .Jo in te d lid and "matched " veneers
6 Tip -T op Tal)le
50
Proj ect: IIinge block
7 Sec re ta ry Pro j e c t:
58
~ Iunti ns
THE IHNI N(; ROOM 8 Tncy
,-
-'}
74
Project: Edge band ing
9 l lep ple snh ite C lu cir
so
Project : Angled mortise-and-tenons
10 Gcctcleg T a b le
90
Project : Wooden h inge
11 Fa ncy C h a i r
100
Project: Reeding with a pla ne
12 Bello w s
lOS
Project : Front-hoard decorat io n
TilE KITCHE N l.l Willds o r C Ila i r
1 l(, 1 IS
Project: S hap ing the sea t
14 Display 8 1,e U' Project: Stop dadoes
15 Ca n d le Bo s:
l.12
Project: Sliding lid
16 Desk
O il
F ru llI e
l.1 8
Project : Simulated four- way m it e r joi n ts
THE HEIH{OOM 17 l l igh -Po«: Bcd
14() 14 8
Project: Roping the fra me
18 Pembroke Table
15h
Project : Rul e jo ints
19 Brueket-Bas e Blanket C hes t Project: Ra bbeted lid mol d in gs
20 C hes t of Dru seers
170
Project: Si mu lated coc k bead ing
AI»I»ENHICES SOI/n.' es of S l/ p p ly G loss a ry HibliogmpllY
179 180
I S .l
AN INTRODUCTION TO FEDERAL FURNITURE
T,
waning yea" of the 18th century marked a n exhilarating period in Arne ricar history. With the end of the Revolu-
tionary War in 1781 and the ratification of the U.S. Constitution in 1788 , Americans embarked on one of the most radical political experiments in history. The produet of their struggle was the Federal Republie-an achievement of which they were acutely proud. At the same time they were also unknowingly laying the groundwork in America for what would begin in England and spread elsewhere as another of history's greatest changes: the Industrial Revolution . The arts of America bear the influence of this exciting era , and many innovations in style heralded the new republic 's birth . In furniture the emerging style in America was known as Federaland was produced roughly from around 1790 to 1820. A large, well-established middle class dominated the populace of Federal -period America. This population was well e d ucated, and politically, technologically and artistically sophisticated . While Hollywood has thoroughly familiarized us with the pioneers who settled the American frontier, we remain largely unaware that our Colonial and Federal forebears also created wealthy, cosmopolitan centers like Philadelphia, Boston and New York. The social conditions of these Federal-period cities and the new republic 's established commercial network made possible a high level of accomplishment in the arts and in manufacturing, arenas that converged in the woodworking trades of architecture and furniturernakin g. During the 17th and early 18th centuries, England had provided the major influence on American architecture, furniture and decorative arts . In the mid-18th century, England, like the rest of Europe , became fascinated with the archaeological discoveries at classical Greek and Roman sites. The decorative objects and the paintings of daily life yielded by sites like Pompeii gave rise to an enthusiastic revival of interest in the classical world . In reaction to the excess of the Gothic and rococo styles from the Chippendale period in the mid-18th century, the neoclassical movement produced a reinterpretation of Greco-Roman antiquity that emphasized simplicity , geometric forms and classical ornament. With the end of the Revolu tionary War and the normalization of relations and commerce between England and America, neoclassicism spread to the new republic . For Federal -period Americans, the similarities of their own political experiment and the democratic experiences of the classical world added significance to their embrace of the neoclassical movement that went far beyond the desire to copy the most up-to-date European fashion . -1-
The new Fed eral furniture was light and delicate in appe arance . Fav oring simpl e . geom etric lines, it observed rigid sy nunc t rv in it s o ve ra ll design and borrowed e n th usi as tic a lly from classical decorative motifs. Among th ese m otifs were vases . urns, plum e s. swag s. b ow s and re eding: patriotic cl em ents lik e the e ag le found th eir way in to many Fed eral pi e c e s a s well . In a dd itio n to classical o rn a me nt. Federa l furnitur e also made frequent use o f s t ring and pictorial inlay and ven e ering. Th e c ha rac te ris tic delicacy o f Federal furniture is also th e feature th at m o st o b vio us ly di stingui sh es it from th e larger. more robu st Ch ip p e nd a le furniture that immedi ately preceded it and th e heavier Em p ire styl e th at foll owed . Federal furniture 's apparent daintin ess. however. wa s largely an illu si on. created by removing from the indi vidual c le m e n ts o f a piece all wood unnecessary to th e s t ruc tu ra l integrity of the whole . Som etim es thi s delicacy was achi eved b y sc ali ng down th e pi ece . so that whil e ad equ at ely s ize d for its function . it wa s ge ne ra lly smaller th an a co m pa ra b le Ch ip pe nd a le o r Empire e xa m ple . Yet d espit e it s a ppea ra nc e . Federal furniture wa s by no mean s fragile . O n th e co n t ra ry. th e pi e c e s pres ented in thi s b ook - all o f whi ch are from th e collec tio n of Fed eral fu rn itu re m y wif e . Ca ro l. and I own-arc an av erage o f 17S yea rs o ld , and all s till remain s ta b le a nd in daily use. Th e int rodu cti on o f ne o cla ssi ci sm in Am erica wa s ha st en ed b y th e importation from England o f pattern . or drawing. b ook s publi shed in th e late 18th c entury b y indi vid ua l c a b ine t m a ke rs or o t he rs in th e furniture trade . Co m pa ra ble to what today would b e a cross b etwe en a mod ern furnitur e c a ta log a nd a hom e -and-garden IlJ aga zin e . th e se d rawing books illustrated th e lat est fashion in furniture and interior d ec orating and provided pattern s for cabinetmakers working o u ts ide London wh o
needed to accomm odate th eir custom ers' requ es ts for th e mo st up-to -date designs . The engra vings in th e drawing books frequently presented both what th e lates t fu rn itu re was to look like and how it wa s to b e accesso rized . arranged and us ed in the hom e . Alth ou gh numerou s pattern b o ok s were published . th e best kn own are Til e Ca bine t-Ma ke r and Unlio lstere r 's G u ide ( 1788) by Geo rge Heppl ewhite and Tile Ca binetMak er's and Un hols te re r 's Dra soing-Book ( 1791 -93) by Thomas Sh eraton . Th e e ngra ving s in these bo o ks , two o f whi ch are found o n th e facing pa ge , co nt ras t ma rke dly with the plans we us e today in building furnitu re. The y include very few measurements and u sually p resent o nly front vi ew s o f pieces. For th e u ser of o ne o f th e se b ook s. additi onal inf ormati on wa s unnecessary : a train ed cabinetmaker needed only a picture o f th e d es ired piece to proportion and construct it. l lc pple wh ite and Sh eraton u sually illu strate d fu rn itu re that wa s far more e la b o ra te than the actual pi ec es ins p ired by th eir bo oks . It is unlikely th at the y intended th e furniture to be so intensely d evel oped . but pro ba bly o vc rado rne d their e ng ra vings to give ca b ine tma kers a nd their cu s tomers a wid e se lec t io n o f o rna me nt from wh ich to ch oo se . It is o fte n thought that Hcpplcwhitc a nd She rato n designed th e furniture th at b e ars th eir name s. b u t ins tea d o f prom oting their o wn d esign s. b oth men merel y illu strated th e s ty le th en current in En gland . Ironic all y . neith er Hepplewhite nor Sh era ton left an y furn iture t hat can be attribut ed to th eir hands . Actually . th e traditi onal distinction b etween ll c pp le wh irc a nd Sh eraton furniture is m isleadi ng. s ince th e pi ece s illustrated in th eir patt ern b ook s were quite s im ilar. Thi s sys te m of classificati on arose in t he lat e 19th
~Iade aruuud 1770, the robu ..t Chippendale ..ide ehllir ..hown at left above feature ....quare Marlborou~h le~.. and a shaped and pierced "ribbon bacl•." The more deticarc, Federal-period Sherllton ..ide chair, center, ha.. a ..erpentfnc-sbaped ..cat, turned and tluted front leg", and II .. quure bucl. thut the milker undoubtudly copied from Sherlltoll'" ..eeond de .. i~1I ill the lower en~rll"in~ 011 the flleill~ page, The Empire ..ide ehuir, riAht, made around 1820, i" ha ..ed 011 the KIi ..mo" chair illu ..truted 011 ancient Gree lc ' ·II"e".
-- 2 --
From Geor~e Hepplewhitc's pattern book, this sofa dcsi~n feutuees thc turned legs that arc usuallv associatcd with Sheraton furniture. (80th cngra,'ings courte!i~' of
Dover Puhtiearlnns.)
C \l A I R H .\ C K S .
, 1";' .
, j "/
6
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L.L-L_l -l-....L... ..J..........L...L....l..-L-J-..l.-.1...-...L-.L- ~ 1,:,lJ...~
I \
l'ttl/r..rltrll y Z'.JIJt'rfl !.'" A,~'1
/7{}'l
. 'rom Thomas Shcraton·s pattern bool" this cngra,'ing displa~'s a ,'arict~, of chair-back dcsigns lind thc minimal dimcnsions nccdcd for their rcproduction.
-
J -
a nd early 20th centuries when antique collectors and the museum world tried to organize and codify, somewhat arbitrarily, the various styles of furniture being collected. A Sheraton chair, for example , is generally perceived as having a square back. turned legs and feet. and often reedcd decoration on both turned and flat surfaces: yet it is possible to find examples of Hepplewhite chairs with one or severa l of these characteristics. By contrast. the traditio na l Hc p plcwh itc -style chair is characterized as having a curvilinear back (often in the shape of a shield). tapered legs and spade feet-all features that are occasionally fou nd on Sheraton furniture as well. And someti mes a feature designated as Sheraton or Ilepplewhite is actua lly an amalgam of designs from both pattern books.
.Just as Federa l-period cab ine tmakers found motifs and features intermingled in pattern books . they too borrowed free ly from various sources for their own designs. They occasionally incorporated an element th a t remained popular from an earlier period or style . Such an clement. called a surv ival feature . is more common on informal and country furniture than on formal. One of several examples of survival features found in this book is the thumbnail molding on the desk on frame on p . 138. a feature carried over from the Chippendale period. Late in the Federal period, cab inetmakers also borrowed from the newly emerging Empire style, ca lled Grecian by the men who made it. This style of furniture was heavily intluenced both by Greek class ica l forms and by arc haeologica l discoveries th e n be ing made in Egypt.
Thi" Hepplewhite engraving advised that furniture, when not in use, was to he symrneteiently di"tributed around the perimeter of the room. (Engraving eourtesy of Dover Publfearlons.}
-
4-
Cabinetmakers and their clients In the Federal period , almost every large city had numerous cabinetmaking shops where one could purchase rcady-made furniture or place a special order. Most major cities, among them Philadelphia. New York and Boston, also shipped Federal furniture as cargo to ports all along the East Coast, where it was usually purchased by furniture dealers , who were often cabinetmakers themselves. Any good-size town and many rural villages also had at least one cabinetmaker creating furniture for local use . The great variety of cabinetmakers and the differing needs of their customers produced several categories of Federal furniturc: formal. or high-style, furniture: informal furniture: and country furniture. Formal furniture was usually made in cities with an established cabinetmaking industry by craftsmen who had trained in traditional apprenticeships. Their work was fashioned after that in the pattern books and ornamented in varying degrees. Whatever the extent of its decoration. formal furniture was usually made of mahogany, though occasionally cabinetmakers worked with native woods like cherry or used a highly figured variety , like crotch-grain birch , for veneer. Informal furniture was made both by urban cabinetmakers-sometimes in the same shops that produced more expensive. formal pieces-and by rural artisans. This utilitarian furniture generally carried less ornament than did formal work and it was frequently painted. The wood used for informal furniture was usually a native species like cherry. birch. maple . pine , tulipwood . poplar or walnut. Country furniture was made by rural craftsmen. This furniture is often similar in appearance to informal furniture . and frequently it's impossible to distinguish between the two. While generally simple. country furniture could be ambitious in design . Yet even th e best country furniture usually indicates the maker's inexperience with high -style interpretations of Federal furniture. perhaps the result of a more informal apprenticeship. Country furniturernakers occasionally used mahogany in their work but more often employed locally available . native woods. These craftsmen seem to have frequently copied designs from memory and clearly felt free to express their individuality in interpreting a design, Their work varied widely in quality ; yet a piece like the candlestand on p. 38 displays how successful country furniture could be . Whether making formal. informal or country furniture. a Federal-period cabinetmaker knew how his work would be used by the client. As advocnrcd in the pattern books , most furniture, when not in usc, would be placed against a wall. essentially ringing the room (see the engraving on the facing page) . When needed, it would be moved to the center of the room. Most pieces therefore had to be portable. a requircmcnt made possible by the furniture 's delicate design and light weight. The custom of moving furniture about offered cabinetmakers an opportunity to enhance their designs, and they frequently fashioned pieces like the tip-top table on p. 50 that altered position-and thus character-for storage and use .
Often Federal furnituremakers designed pieces that also changed character in the varying light of day and evening. They knew that a piece would be seen in its entirety in the even, natural light of day ; and that, by contrast , in the oblique candlelight of evening, the piece would lose detail. and its proportions might become distorted amidst the shadows. To use these lighting conditions to advantage , these craftsmen created such intriguing designs as those for the card table on p. 10 and the bellows on p . 108. The cleverness and subtlety of Federal cabinetmakers ' designs displays considerable sophistication . Our Federal ancestors certainly developed and nurtured a keen visual sense, which we, I suspect, have lost from exposure to such passive forms of entertainment as television. Unlike the diversion we electronically pipe into our houses , visual entertainment was built into the Federal-period home itself. A Federal interior was a complex and well-planned composition. meant to be studied over time and enjoyed . Architecture and furniture together contributed to a harmonious whole that engaged and entertained the eye. Perhaps because Federal Americans created their own diversion, they lauded cleverness in conversation and in decor. For this reason , cabinetmakers incorporated delightful surprises and subtleties in their work . Such visual cleverness. for example, can be seen in the choice of veneers on the Lord box on p. 44 and the unusual design with which the maker of the secretary on p . 58 circumvented the rigid symmetry of Federal furniture . Because almost all Federal furniture , formal or informal, was made of wood, Federal cabinetmakers and their customers regarded wood differently than we do today. Though their formal furniture displays an appreciation for bold figure . they understood that furniture 's success did not always depend on seeing the wood itself. An opaque , painted finish was seen , on occasion , as a means of enhancing the success of a piece. Certainly the painted finish on a piece like the Windsor chair on p. 118 serves to unify it and elevate it from a study in grain to a sophisticated composition in line. From my study of Federal furniture , I found that even the most ordinary, functional furniture of this period was better designed and better constructed than modern massproduced furniture . (Only time will tell whether the work of contemporary custom furnituremakers is as enduring as Federal furniture.) Yet despite excellent workmanship , this furniture has inevitably suffered various degrees of damage during nearly two centuries of use, most of it due to wear and abuse . The cracking, warping and shrinking found in many pieccs , however, is the product of wood movement. In the environment for which it was createdhomes heated by fireplaces-this furniture remained relatively stable. Yet in the much drier environment produced by modern central heating, the wood has unavoidedly undergone change.
--5--
Liv ing with Fede r a l furniturc
Using thi s book
Th e indi vidual pi e c e s o f furniture presented in this b ook have a gre a t dc al in co m mo n with one a no the r. Not o nly were th e y all mad e at a bo u t th e same tim e , th ey were a lso fas h ioned as middl e -cla ss furniture , that is , ne ither ove rly e la bo ra te nor e xceed ing ly simple . Yet th e se pieces ha ve so me th ing e lse in co m mon , too . Carol a nd I hav e asse m b le d th em al ong wi th o the r Fede ra l pi e ce s to furni sh o u r Fe de ra l-pe rio d h ouse , whi ch wa s built a ro u nd 18 0 0. Wh en we bought o u r home in 197 6 , it had changed so little o ve r it s lifetim e th at we decided to re st ore it e xac tly to it s o rigina l appearanc e , including duplicating th e o rigina l colo rs a nd wallpapers . As th e wall s, woodwork a nd tloo rs were re s tored , we ad ded to o ur growing collec tio n o f Federal -period furniture. A d ocum ent we have found vita l in furni shing o u r h om e is th e in ventory of th c c ontents o f thc hou se taken in 18 05 . Since co ns u me r goo ds we re very ex pe ns ive bef ore th e Ind us tria l Re volution and hou seh old furni sh in gs ge ne rally mad e up a s u bs ta n t ia l part of a personal estate , the judge of probate usu all y o rde re d a househ old inv ento ry taken upon so meo ne 's d eath. Th e 1805 inv ento ry to whi ch I refer is that o f th e es ta te o f master marin er .J ohn Seaward , .lr. . wh o built thi s h ou se so me time between 17 94 (wh e n h e b ought th e lo t) and 180.1 (whe n h e wr ot e a will leaving th e house to hi s wife , Hannah ) . In March 18 05 , Se award sa ile d o u t o f Boston as captain of th e sh ip Pet er and died while in Sava nna h, Geo rg ia . This in ventory . wh o se te xt is p rovided o n th e facing pa ge , gives a fas ci na ting lo oli at th e co nte n ts o f a typica l m iddl e -cl a ss. Fe de ra l-per io d h ou seh old . Am on g o the r things. th e modern reader will doubtl es s be impressed by th e number o f c h a irs listed-five d iffe rent se ts , to ta ling a s u rp ris ing 4 0 chairs in th e h ou se 's six com ple te d roo ms . (T ho ug h the inv entory lists four se ts in the kitch en, it 's unlikel y to ha ve h eld .10 c ha irs . Pr obably c ha irs from vari ous sets were in th e kitch en a nd th e inventory takers ask ed Mrs . Seaward h ow many of e ac h sh e had .) We haven 't adh ered slavish ly to th is in ventory in furn ishing thi s hou se , th ough we have bought some piec es becau se sim ila r item s were o nce part o f th e house 's furnish ing s. We have a r ra nged this furniture as it would have be en in a typical Federal house , o fte n placing piece s in locations s ugges te d by th e inv entory and , in sofar as possible , using th e se pi e c e s as o rigina lly intended . As a woodworker and Wind sor chairrnakcr since 1971 , as well as a n inv eterate s tu de nt o f Federal-period life , I wanted to address the s u bjec t o f Federal furniture both from the point o f view o f th e pe opl e wh o lived with this furniture a nd from the perspective o f th e c ra fts me n who mad e it. Unfo rt u n ate ly. schola rs s tu dy ing historical furniture a rc se ldo m concern ed with th e craftsman 's point o f view . and fe w a re them selv e s woodworkers. Fo r th ese rea sons, mu ch va lua b le inf ormati on ha s go ne und etect ed . and o u r und erst anding o f th e subjec t is incompl et e . I a m th erefore pleased in thi s b oo k to invite you into my hom e a nd to share with yo u m y findin gs abo u t Fe de ral fu rn itu re and Fede ra l-period life.
This book consis ts of 20 chapt ers, ea c h d ev o ted to o ne piece of furnit ure and all arranged in four se cti on s by room . Every chapter contains a ge ne ra l di scussi on o f th e de sign and co ns tru c tio n of the piece , as well as a proj ect se c tio n o n a particular a spect of constru cti o n o r o rna me nt that is e ithe r typ ic ally Federal o r unusu al to mod ern woodworkers-for e xa m ple , h ow to produ c e the sim u lated cock beading o n a drawer front . Th e p roj e ct sec tio n contains s te p -by-ste p in struction s, d e tailed d rawings a nd process ph otographs ; and e a c h chapter concludes with a compl ete se t of mea sured drawings fo r th e full piece. Th e 20 pi eces included in thi s b ook were ca refu lly sel ect ed from the larger c o lle c t io n of Fed e ral fu rn itu re with which we liv e. Firs t and foremost. I c h ose th e se pieces because th ey are good exa m p les o f Fede ra l-pe rio d d esi gn and workmanship. The y a re not ne cc ssaril y what th e antiqu e market would d eem the most " importa nt" piec es in th e coll ection. but th ey represent th e broad s pe c tru m o f Fe de ra l st yle . I hope th ey will ap pea l to differing taste s and add to th e furni shings o f man y different ho mes . If you , to o , are a wo odworker, you will b e inte res te d in what can b e learned from Fed eral -p eriod ca b ine tmake rs . Th ey used som e woodworking techniqu e s th a t a re no lon ger wid el y known . They also used hand tools, so me of which , though s till ava ilable , are not well kn own ei ther. Since l a wn few machine s and usuall y work with h and to ols , I have chosen to s ho w in this bo ok how to do the proj ects with th ese traditional to ol s. O fte n, h ow e ver, I su ggest alternative e lec trica l tool s that can b e used fo r a particular job , and wh en using an unu sual anti qu e to ol. I have o ffe red advice o n how to adapt a no the r com monly available to ol. Som e o f the pi ece s presented in thi s b ook co uld be interpreted differently from th e o rig ina l o r co uld b e sc a le d up o r d own in size . In b oth c ases. I ha ve men t ion ed th e po ssibl e changes, but I urge you to think th rough each change th oroughly b efore b e ginning work on a p roj e ct , since limited s pace obv iously prevented in cluding all th e inf ormation needed for s u c h changes . Also I o fte n mention th e fini sh used o n th e o rigina l pi ece. In so me very humid o r ve ry dry clima tes , th e original fini sh mi ght not work we ll. For thi s re ason , ke ep loca l conditions in mind wh en ch oo sing a fini sh . I h ope yo u find the furniture in this b ook as interes tin g as I do and that you will decide to make so me o f th e p ieces , e ithe r for yo u rse lf or for your custom e rs. II' yo u do , please send me a slide o f your work .
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To Capt. Edw ard Sargent, M. Daniel Smith and M. Samuel Drowne, all of Portsmouth in said County
By the Hon, Nat hl Rogers, Rocklngham-s-s«, Judge of the Probate of Will s &e. for said County.
Gre eti ng. You are her eby a u t horit<ed to ta ke at. Invento ry of th e Es ta te of John. Seaward, la te of said Po rtsmou th, mariner deceased w ho lately d ied testate to be s hewn un to yo u by Han nah Sea ward Execu trix of h is last Will & Te sta me n t a nd to make a just a nd im partial A p p ra issment th er eof accord ing to the best of yo ur Judgment, a nd to re tu m th e sa me under yo ur. o r a ny tw o of y o u r Hands . into t he Registr;}' of th e Co u rt of Probate fo r sa id Co u n ty , upon Oa t h, to y o ur Fide li ty, herein . a t or bef ore t he T h ir d Wed nes day of September next, togeth e r w it h this Wa rrent. Dat ed at Po rtsmou th th c 19th day of J u ne, Anno Do mini 1805 By O rde r of th e J udge W. Pa rke r Rc!\
1 la rge J apan 'd Tea Tra y $4 . Ca nd le Stand SO cts 1 small Gilt framed looking Glass 1 Viole n 1 map le 4 feet table with lea ves 23 Framed pi c ture s different sizes 1 .la pa ned Tea Tray 2 Small Tru nks 13 Volumes , Boo ks 1 Small Shavi ng Glass 2 large , Floo r ca rpe ts Bed Furniture 1 Birch h igh po st Bedstea d, Bed , an d Furnitu re an d wind ow Cu rtains 1 Fea the r bed, Bols te r and pillo ws
In vento ry o f the Estate of John Seaward, late of Portsmouth, Marincr deceased, taken by us the undersigned, and app raiscdPursuant to the anne xed Warrent-
Viz. 1 Mahogany Bureau 2-di cto-Ca rd Tables 2 Oval Gilt Framed Looking Glasses 1 large easy Cha ir & Covering 8 mah ogany moha ir bottom 'd chai rs and two a rmed-ditto1 high post birch Bedstead, wi th Bed and furniture 1 pair brass Front Andirons , Shovel, Tongs & ho ok s, & 1 pair Bellows 2 pictures 2 small pieces wax work, Glass & Framed 1 pa ir brass Candlesticks, Tray & Snuffers a Quantity of China, glass, & Ea rthern wa re in a closet 1 hearth brush , Carpe nters Hammer, & glass Lan tern 1 large Bib le 1 pair Iron dogs , 2 Iron po ts, Shovel To ngs & Sad Iro ns 1 Tub , 1 pail, 1 bi rc h Square Ta ble , with leaves 2 Sm all pieces, Home mad e Ca rpeti ng 3 Japa ned waite rs , 1 Toile t Table 1 Co rded Bedstead 1 Dozn green, & 6 ye llow Windsor Cha irs 6 Ma pl e c arved , back Flag Botto me d Chairs 6 Common Chairs Amount Inventory, Sum brot forwd, Dollars 1 Large Spinning Wheel, 1 Foot-di tto1 Bread Trough, Bowle , Tray, & 2 measures '1 Tin Roasting Kitchen & Sp it a Quantity o ld Ti n ware Iro n ware 1 Case 15 Two Q ua rt Empty bo ttles a Q uanti ty , Old ea rt hern wa re 1 Brass warming pan Salt mo rtar, & Sieve 1 ma hogany 4 fee t, (old), Table so me old Empty Casks 2 la rge Gilt Framed looking Glasses 1 Mahogany Desk 1 Birch 4 Feet Table & cove ri ng 1-ditto-3 feet tab le , with leaves 1 Cloa thes Ho rse 1 brass fire set sma ll size 1 Pembroke, Mah ogan y ta bl e
1118. 24. 12. 16 . 40. 90 . 15 .
4.50 5 .50 2. 3. 15 . 2. 2. 10 . .30 SO. 46 . 90. 30.
1.
.50
amount earricd forward -Dollars
8697.30
1.
70 . 2. 4.50 2 .50 4. 2. 2. 1.50 12. 4. 2.
5 Ta ble Clo thes , sundry To wels . na pkins & p illow ca ses 2 Chests & 3 Tru nks 1 lookin g Glass & small Ova l ta ble Co p pe r ladl e & Skimme r some Kitc he n Ute ns ils & sundry p ieces. old carpets 1 Po rtmantea u 1 sma ll pla ted Tea Pot, Six large S ilve r spoo ns, 12-ditto- Tea spoo ns, & a pai r of Sugar To ngs Sund rie Eart hern pick le pots 2 Fire Buc kets 1 Ha dle ys Qua dran t, & Spy Glass 1 Cha ise & Harn ess co mplete 1 Gol d Watch 1145 , 1 Sil ve r Wat ch 11 15 1 Du tc h, Liqu or Case, & Bottles Brass, Top Sho ve l & To ngs Wea ring Ap pa re l of sai d dec e ased
8324. 112 . 2. 2. 50 1.
wholc amount Personal Estate
5 .50 2.50
2. 6. 10 . 150. 60. 5. 1. 30.
Dollars SI061.30
Real Esta te a Lot of land in Po rts mou th , situa te by th e no rt h war dly, side of Maud lin Lane with th e dw elling Ho use , out ho us es & and all bu ildings th ereon , and all a ppu rte nances , th ereto , be lo nging 82800.
1.
2.5 0 .50 4. 2. 40. 18 . 8. 2.50
whole Amount of Inventory dollars Portsmouth July 2, 1805
1.
10 . 8.
83861.30
Edwa rd Sa rge nt Danl Sm it h Sa m l Oro wne
Ro ckingham ss, G re en la nd, A ug us t 3 1st 1805. T hen Mr s . Hannah S caw a rd . Executrix of th e la st Will of th e w ithin named J ohn Se aw a rd d eceased, made solemn Oath that sh e had s he w n a ll th e Es ta te of he r late husband, the sa id John Seaw a rd, that has come to her hands agreeable to th e foregoing Inventory, & that if any oth er Es ta te of sa id d eceased s ho u ld hereafter come to her hands sh e would exh ibit th e same to the Judge of Probate for said Co u n ty of Ro ckingham in the A dd ition a l Inventory. sworn to before Enoch Cla rk, Ju st : Pe ac e
State of New Hampshire Rockingham ss Po rts m outh A ugus t 6 t h, 1805 , th en Messrs . Edw a rd Sargent. Daniel S m it h & Sa m u el Drowne abov e named per sonally appeared and mad e So le m Oa th that they ha v e faithfully and impartially appraised a ll the Es ta te of th e said John Seaw a rd de eeas'd that was s hewn them by th e Execu trix of his la st Will agreeable to t he foregoing Inventory, by th em severa lly s igne d according to th eir best sk ills and Judgment. swo rn before Issac Rindge, Just: Peace
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$25 . 15 . 2. 1.50 8. 3 .50 45.
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THE PARLOR
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Fe de ra l-pe rio d home . th e parl or was usually th e be " and m ost formal mom, b ut it wa s
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of the mos t
co mfortable roo ms in th e h ou se. It wa s t he he art o f so c ia l and famil y life . a nd m ost e nte rtai ni ng was done here . This was an inviting place to ta ke tea . or to dine al on e or in g ro u ps to o sm a ll to wa rr ant se tt ing u p th e d ining roo m . It was a lso t h e us u al s po t to re c eive guests . as th e man y ca lling ca rds found b ehind o u r parlor m antl e ind ica te . The ea rly 19th- century p lay ing ca rds a lso fo u nd the re sugges t that in o u r parlor th e previ ou s o wne rs o f th e house a nd th eir gues ts pa rtook of this m ost popul ar of pa s tim es . probably o n th e pair o f mahogany ca rd table s list ed in th e 18 0 5 inve ntory of th e h o u se . Ou r parl or re flec ts its formal purpose . Th e woodwork is both m ore abundant a nd m ore co m ple te ly d e vel o p ed th an that in a ny oth er room in th e hou se . The mantl e and th e a b u tting c h ina -close t d oor make th e fireplace wall th e focus of th e roo m. Th e mantl e. which is 5 ft. 7 in . hi gh and has a shelf 6 ft. 4 in . long, contains a n ela bo rate cornic e m ad e up of a c ro wn m olding a nd a denti culated b ed m o lding. The mantle 's fri eze is 13 1;2 in. hi gh a nd e nds o n e ithe r s ide with a pron ounc ed S -sh a ped cyr n a curve . Ca lle d a lyre- sh aped fri ez e . this wa s a comm on d e tail o n mantl es in th e Po rt sm ou th a rea during t he e a rly Fed eral peri od. The fir eplace jambs arc surrounded by a tw o-step architra ve , id enti cal to th ose fo und aro u nd th e doorways . The 18 05 inve nto ry sho ws that wh en Ca p t. and Mrs, Seaward . th e builders o f th e house . fu rn ished it. th ey pl a c e d mos t of th e formal a nd e xpe nsi ve objec ts in th eir parl o r. Co nti nu ing th e t radi tion , we also ke ep our fines t fu rn it u re in this roo m . S ince mo st formal Fed eral furn iture wa s ma de of mah ogany , many of th e mah ogan y pi ec es included in this book will a p pea r in thi s sec tio n . Th e expe nse in th e Fe de ra l period of the mahogany furni shings an d th e fabrics in the parl o r res ulted in anoth e r cu sto m o f the d a y th a t. to us. see ms unu su al. Si nce th e ultravi ol et ra ys in direct s u nlig h t ca n b leach da rk wo ods. d am age shellac fin ish e s a nd de te rio ra te fabr ic s. famili es se q ues te re d th emsel ves du rin g th e da y beh ind d rawn sh u tters o r ve ne tia n blinds in th e dimly lit parlor. At ni ght th e s h u tte rs aff orded privac y . In th e su m me r e lim ina t ing dire ct s u nlig h t from th e roo m a lso helped keep it cool. and in th e winter th e drawn shu tt e rs reduced drafts. Eac h of o ur parl o r wind ow s th erefore has a n interior sh u tte r. whi ch s lides into a sp e cial ca sing built into the wall. Like th e h ou se 's previ ous o wne rs, we too ke ep th e se sh u tte rs drawn during th e da y. If we want to usc the ro om . we open th e sh u tt e rs partwa y, a nd c lose th em aga in wh en we lea ve . - - ') -
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A card ruble was a standard fixture in the Federal-period household and WIIS often the most elaborate piece of furniture a fllmil}' owned. (I·ro.jeet: Strin~ inilly, p, 14.)
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Card Table Chapter 1
t no o t h e r t im e in o u r h is tory were America n s m ore fasc ina te d with c a rd p la ying than durin g th e Fe de ra l period . With out televi si on o r m o v ie s. p e ople amused th emselve s b y soc ia lizing with fri ends. Ca rd playing was an id e al p a stim e in th at it gave the participants a reason to gat her a n d e ng age in co n ve rsat io n whil e al so o ffe r ing th em a m use me n t a nd divers io n. So much tim e was d e vote d to c a rd pl a y in g th at a s pec ia l pi e c e o f furn itu re wa s c rea te d for just thi s purpo se . Th e woode n ca rd tabl e . with o ne hinged leaf th at c lose d b ookfa shi on . wa s d e vel oped in th e ea rly 18th ce nt u ry . Altho ugh th e se tabl e s were m a d e until th e mid -1 9th ce nt u ry . th e fo r m was ne ver b ef ore o r after as p opular as it wa s d u ri ng t he Federa l p eri od . A h o u sehold th at did not o w n a t le a st one ca rd ta bl e wa s as unu su al as a m odern h ou seh old w it ho ut a tel e vi si on . O f all th e furnitur e th at h a s su rv ived fro m th e Fe de ra l peri od , o n ly c ha irs arc m ore a b u nda n t t ha n ca rd ta b les . O u r tec h no logy a n d n e w m ateri al s have gi ven us a h om el y ca rd ta b le w it h a ca rd boa rd to p a nd folding le gs . whic h we sto re in a c lose t wh en we ' re not us in g it. During th e Fe de ra l p eriod . ca rd ta b les were not h idden b ecau se t hey w e r e n ot u g ly . Cab ine t ma ke rs la vi sh ed th eir skill s o n c a rd ta bl e s. p roducing wh at we re o fte n the m o s t e la b o ra te pi e c e s of furnitu re a famil y o wned . Wh en no t in use. th e se ta bl c s w ere prom inc n tly d ispl ay cd in thc front hall wa y o r th e form al parl or. ofte n aga ins t a pi er (the wall are a b etwe en tw o windows or d o orways ). T he cl osed table mad e a goo d su rfacc o n whi ch t o d ispl a y a flow er a r ra nge me n t o r a t reas u re d o bjec t. The ca re a n d e ffort required to m ake thi s tabl e is evi de nce o f th e s tat us g iv e n c ard tabl e s b y Fe de ra l-pe ri o d c ab ine tma ke rs a n d th eir c us to me rs . T he table h a s a vi sual int en s it y unu sual fo r s uc h a c ompac t pi e c e of furnitur e , whi ch is cre a ted by th e s t r in g inl a y o n e ve ry visibl e s u rface exce pt th e to p a nd th e in s id e s of th c lcgs.
A
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String inl ay . a lso ca lle d st r ingi ng. is a very th in stri p of wood. u su all y o f a co ntras ti ng colo r to t he s u rroun d ing wo od , th at is se t into a na r row groove, or in let. St r ing ing wa s com mo n ly use d in form al Federa l fu rn it u re. pc rha ps b ecause ca bi ne tma ke rs ap p reciate d its a bi lity to d raw t he viewer's e ye . O n thi s tab le. whi ch is p ri ma rily m ah o gan y , th e light-c ol ored inlay acts as a vis ua l fe nce . bou ndi ng each a rea and prev ent in g th e eye from m o ving eas ily fr o m o n e to the othe r. Fo r a brief m om e nt , t he v ie we r 's att enti on is trap p ed ins ide e ac h area . but it is n o t h el d immobile. T he eye sca ns th e perimeter seve ra l ti mes. then m o ve s o n to th e ne xt s u rface a nd is agai n h ric fly seized a nd s p u n a ro u n d th e o u tline of t he stri ng ing . Ea c h t ime I vie w th is tab le . my eye is draw n first to t hc sk irt . The re it m o ve s qu ickl y a rou nd t he long re c tan gl e , lik e a marbl e s pi n ni ng ins ide a tin ca n . The co ncave c orners e na b le m y eye to j u mp fro m a h o r izontal lin e to a verti c al to the othe r h ori zonta l. (O n le ss well-t houg ht-o u t tables , wh e re th e co rners of the st ri ng ing are squa re, t he eye will foll ow the h orizontal lin e s in to the corne rs . a nd the quick sca n ni ng m o ti o n is subve rted . T he effec t is like tryin g to s p in a m a rbl e in a box instead of a c a n .) Fro m th e s k irt. m y e ye us ua lly fa lls to a le g . wh ere t he s t r ing ing pulls it q uickl y do wn t he long taper to t he a n kle . a c ross th e ankl e b an d in g a nd b a ck up t he ot her s ide . After sca n n ing the le g se ve ra l ti mes, I a m al w a y s d rawn back to th e fo ur pa rall cl lin e s a roun d the edge 01 the folded top . It is a s if each pa ir o f lines ru ns in th e o p pos ite dire c ti o n from th e o the r pair: whi ch e ver way th e eye begins to travel, th e o the r pa ir o f lin e s a uto m a tica lly pull s it bac k the o t he r wa y. I h a ven 't yet fig u re d o ut wh y th is happ en s . and . as a result. I s pe nd m ore tim e lo oking a t the e dges of th e lea ve s tha n at t he skirt or le gs . I e njoy t h is m ystery a n d h ope th a t wh en I do fin all y und erst an d it. t he card tabl e will n ot lo se any of its interest. Th e family that orig ina lly owned this tab le wo u ld h a ve work ed a ll d a y. so m o st of the ti me spe nt wi t h t h is p ie c e -
would h ave bee n in th e eve nings, whe n th e room was illuminat ed b y ca nd le lig h t. Under th e so ft, dim light of ca nd les, the ta ble 's mah ogany loses mo st o f th e s u b tle shading that ma ke s up it s figu re , a nd th e wo od b ecomes a u n ifo rm re d-bro wn. This fa ct o bv io us ly affected th e maker's d eci si on to use s tr ing inlay to o ut line each of th e table's pa rts . With out th e s t ringi ng , th e table would read as a mildl y inte re sting geome tric form lurkin g in th e sha do ws o f th e roo m . Nea r th e botto m o f th e tape red legs. two ho ri zontal lines of light s tring ing flank a d ark , thicke r co re of ebo ny veneer to de fine th e an kles . If the stri ng ing si m ply ran ve rti c ally to the foo t, th e eye would travel do wn to th e tlo o r a nd not easi ly j um p fro m o ne e dge o f th e leg to th e o ther. Th e sa me triple b anding is used as a borde r to deline ate th e lowe r edge o f th e sk irt. Th e e ffect is s tro nges t und er ca nd le lig h t. Th e b andi ng c rea tes a sh a rply d efin ed lin e tha t prev ents th e e dge o f th e mah ogan y skirt from fadi ng in to th e s ha do ws under th e table. Th e skirt b anding se rves a fun ctio nal purpose as well. Its low er. light-col ored e dge h as b e en we ll worn by th e co u n tless le gs that h av e ru bbed aga ins t it ove r th e yea rs . If the mah ogany ve nee r had be en run o u t to th e edge o f th e sk irt, it would h av e b e en s ubjecte d to thi s we ar a nd wo uld certai nly ha ve c hi p pe d. pulled lo ose o r worn aw ay to ex pose th e pine seco ndary wood underne ath . From wh ate ver direction yo u view th e fold ed table , yo u see exac tly the sa me thing. Looking a t it he ad -on o r from ei the r side . yo u see an a rc of sk irt fra med by tw o legs. The venee r used o n th e sk irt is m ad e from thre e adjacen t, o r sis te r, c u ts tak en from the sa me flit ch , so th at each s u rface is as ne arl y identi c al to th e o the r tw o as wood ca n be. Fro m a fro nt vie w o f th e ta b le , yo u glim pse tw o blank s urfaces o n th e rear legs . It ma y seem odd th a t th e y ha ve no s tringi ng , but thi s would h a ve sc uttle d th e mak e r 's not ew orthy d esign. With inlay on ly o n the ex tre me left face o f th e left leg a nd rig h t face of the right leg. th e tabl e b rea ks int o a sy m me tr ical trip tyc h- th ree identical sectio ns made up o f two legs a nd a pan el . e ac h on e sha ri ng a leg with it s nei gh b or. Whe n the ta bl e is o pe n, th is ca reful arra nge me nt no lon ger ex is ts . The maker kn ew that partic ipants in a ca rd ga me co m mo nly d raped a gree n. flo or-len gth wo ol cl oth o ve r the table. almo s t co m p le te ly h iding it from vie w. Eve n if this were not th e c usto m . o ne is more lik el y to interac t vis u ally with th e p iece wh en it is folded and agai ns t th e wall th a n while playing ca rds o n it.
This c a rd tabl e is a well -concei ved d e si gn . but it is no t a particularly co m ple x wo odworking project. Ben eath its mahogany vene er, th e curved sk irt is tw o la yers de ep a nd is brickla id a s a sing le long curve rath er th an as thre e di stinct sec tio ns . The mak er laid o u t th re e c u rved segme nts o f pin e as th e to p la yer of th e s kirt and glued o nto th ese a no the r la ye r co ns is ting o f tw o lo nger cu rved segme nts. probabl y ro ug h -c u t to sh a pe. O nce th e glue hard en ed, th e inner a nd o u te r s u rfaces of the segme nted sk irt were plan ed smoo th . Th e re are a bou t a d ozen nail h ol es in th e low er edge o f th e se pine se c tio ns . indi c ating that th e mating s u rfaces were glue d a nd th e pi e c e s nailed togeth er. Th e nails may hav e p revented th e sec tio ns from slip p ing when bei ng cl amped . or elim ina te d th e ne ed for cl am ps altoget he r. Eith er wa y, th e nail h e ad s were ne ver se t, a nd the na ils were ex trac te d a fter th e y h ad se rved th eir p u rpose . Bricklaid co ns truc tio n mak e s a s tro nge r sk irt tha n wo u ld thre e sing le pi ec es c ut from a plank. Th e sho rt length s of edge gra in that occ u r in a c u rve a re s tre ng then ed by th e o the r layer. A skirt com prised o f o ne lo ng, c urved . b ricklaid pi e ce a llo ws fo r so me j oine ry tec hniques that differ from th e s ta ndard mortise -and -tenon normall y use d to jo in a ta bl e 's legs to the ski r t. Th e two ce nter legs are joine d to th e ski rt with a m od ifie d bridl e j o int. The rear tenon of th e bridle is short a nd is h ou sed e nt irely withi n th e skir t. Whil e the morti se s are c ut in to th e ski rt. it re mai ns a sing le , co n tin uous p art. Si nce th e struc tu ra l integrity o f th c b ricklai d sk irt is re ta ined . th is aga in makes fo r a stro nge r co ns tructio n tha n wo ul d th ree se pa ra te , c u rved sec tio ns of ski rt. with a tenon o n each end. in serted in to mo rti se s cu t into th e legs. The rear legs a re trea te d d ifferentl y. T he righ t rear le g (as vie wed from th e table's front) is fixed a nd is joined to th e co rne r fo rm ed b y the end o f the c urved skirt and th e ba ck ra il. Sta nda rd mo rt ise -a nd -t enon co nstruc tio n is us ed . th e te nons bei ng cut o nto th e e nd of the sk irt a nd th c e nd o f th e rai l. Th e card table ope ns and c loses di ffe re n tly than do most o the r ta b les. It s mo vement require s tw o le aves hi nged toge the r a nd a swingi ng leg. c all ed a ga te leg, that is hinged to th e middle o f th e b a ck ra il. The b ottom lea f is fixed to th e sk irt , with th e movable to p le a f h in ged to it. Whc n th e table is cl o sed . th e tw o half-round lea ves lay toge th e r like a closed b ook . Wh en th e tabl e is used, th e hinged top le af is o pe ne d to form a ro u nd pl aying s u rfa ce a nd the ga te leg is swu ng o n it s h in ge to s u p po rt th e le af. Th e gareleg swi ng s o n a mo va bl e sec tio n o f th e ba ck rail a nd is a ttac he d to it with a mo rti se -and -tenon . So me marc int e res ting jo ine ry is requi red to e nab le th is leg to swi ng . The back ra il it self is two la yers th ick. The ou ter la yer is ma d e of tw o separate pieces, th e movable ra il a nd the fixe d rail , and these are conn ec te d in th e mi dd le by a series o f in te rloc k ing k nuckles that fo rm a woode n hinge . The me th od of making th is h in ge is ex plai ne d in th e p roj ec t sec tio n of th e ga te leg-table cha p te r o n p p . 9 4 -96. The two rea r legs . one fix ed a nd one mova ble , arc joine d to th e e nds of this o u ter laye r . The inner layer o f the back rail is j oi ne d to the r igh t-h and e nd
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of th e curved s kirt with a se ries of half-blind d ovetails . The le ft e nd o f t he back rail is lam in ated to the fix ed secti on of the o u te r la yer wi th glue and sc re ws , a nd is cut o ff tlush with th e in side o f th c sk irt. Som e tables, like th e ga te leg tabl e on p. 90 and th e Pembroke table o n p . 156, have rule joints, where the inside e dges of th e m ovabl e lea ves m eet the fixed top . One function of thi s rul e joint is to prevent th e e dges of the leaves from s hi ft ing ve rt ica lly. O n th is card table, h ow ev er. th e t wo e dges o f the top lea ve s m erel y butt to geth e r wh en th e table is open . A sho rt tongu e is se t into th e c enter o f th e rcar edge o f the fix ed leaf. a nd a mortise is made in the rear e dge o f the hinged leaf. When the top is o pe n , th e lo c a tor to ng ue fits into thi s mortise and keeps t he m ovabl e le af from sh ifting . Otherwise, all that s t re ng t h e ns thi s butt join t b etween th e leaves when th e to p is o pe n a re th e two card-tabl e hinge s . Ca rd-table hinge s are unique to card ta b les . A c ard -table hinge h as tw o long legs that o pe n lik e a pair of sc iss o rs rather than opening and c los ing in book-fa shion lik e table le af and butt hinge s d o . Both th e table -leaf and butt hinge s would have to b c se t into th e playing s u rfaces o f th e lea ves. which Fe de ra l-pe rio d cabin etmakers se emed relu c tant to do . In st ead , c a rd- ta b le hinges are set into th e o u ts ide edge s o f the leaves . Mad e o f b rass, and therefore d ec orati ve. th e se hinge s are a vail abl e from th e
reproduction -hardware su pplie rs listed in t he appendice s at the back of this b ook . During th e Federal p eri od , hinged , round ca rd tabl e s, often call ed derni-Iunes, were mad e in e ve ry cabinetmaking center in America . The interpretati ons that exist are nearly limitless , a nd yo u can find e xa m p les in the books listed in th e bibli ography . The us e o f s tring ing o n thi s table is masterful , but you c ould s u bst it u te pictorial inla y, which was also commonly us ed during the peri od . There are Federal-period card tables made e ntirely o f maple or birch , with the skirt cov ered with e it he r a curl y or flame -figure veneer, so yo u c a n reproduce th e tabl e in native woods, too. Use the dim ensi on s a nd co ns t r uc tio n details from this tabl e to make any oth er interpretation o f thi s sh ape that you lik e . When a card table is not in use , th e m o vabl e top le a f is usually cl osed. but it can be open ed halfwa y a nd re sted vertically aga ins t the wall. The se m ic irc u la r sh a pe make s the table look larger. and if yo u ha ve a light-c ol ored objec t (such as a pi ece o f porcelain) that yo u want to di splay , the leaf creates a good background . O f co u rse, the table do es not have to be merel y a surface used to s ho w o ff o t he r obj ects. It is s till well s u ite d to it s o rig ina l purpo se . O fte n on cold winter e venings my wif e and I ha ve fri ends o ve r , set up the card table near the fir eplace and e njoy a leisurely ga m e of Scrabbl e. \Vhen the card table i!i not in use, the movable top leaf can be either folded shut bookfa!ihion, or opened h a lfw ay lind r e s t e d verf ieulty 1I~lIin!it the Willi.
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Adjust nhle fence
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A JIlarldn A A,wAe can be ada pted for euttinA i n let» fo r st ri nA in l a ~·. "'i le or Arind 1111 old h un d su w blade to t he t b ie lmess of t he stringing til u sc us a c utter. S lide two YH- in . bolts t h rouAh h ol e s in t he shufr to seenre the cutter.
-
String inla y To make th e inlets for string inlay. th ere is an ad justa bl e to ol called an in lay c u tte r, available through s pec ialty tool ca ta log s. that will c u t straight lin e s. circles a nd ov als . Th is to ol is more complex than nece ssary to do th e str ing in!:ly o n thi s card table . th ough . I prefer to u se a couple o f to ol s that I c a n quickly make myself. I adapted an old m arking ga ug e to use as a scra tc h tool for making straight inl ets . Th e fence o n th e marking ga uge allow s m e to c u t a n inl et parallel to an edg e at a ny di stance up to 5 in . from that edge . It is intend ed for making s t ra igh t lin c s but will also work on a long rad iu s . su c h a s th e edg es o f th e leave s . I make the c u tte rs fo r thi s to ol from o ld handsaw blad es b y filin g awa y th e te eth and any additi onal m etal until I have a tooth Yio in. wide . Th is cutter will just sc ra tc h . rath er than cut. a flat -b o tt omed inl et with sq ua re s ides th e sa m e width as th e st ri ng ing (Yio in .). Th e marking-gauge s h a ft ha s a scrib e in o ne e nd and th e too t h m ounted in th e o p pos ite e nd . Use a do ve tail sa w to cut th e thin s lo t for th e to oth . Drill tw o \la -in . hol es across the sa wke rf, a b o u t -Y4 in . apart so that th e too th will fit b etwe en th em. Slid e tw o \Ia · in. b olts through th e h ol es. and place wa sh ers under th e h e ads to protect th e wo od . Insert th e c u tt e r into th e sawke rf and adjust th e se tting- t he c u tte r s ho u ld protrude ab out Yi o in . from th e b ottom o f th e mark in g-gauge sh a ft. Ti ghten th e bolts to prevent th e cutter from moving and se t th e fenc e to th e d esired distance . In di scu ssing th e proc edure for inl aying th e legs , I'll limit m y e xp la na t io n to how to do th e s tring ing o n th e low er leg. Th e proce ss is s im ila r for th e o the r s tring ing . Whil e th e leg s toc k is s till s q u a re, cut th e inlet for th e ankl e banding only o n th e front of th e le g. ( If you p ro c eed to c u t inlets for the ankle banding on the s ides and back of the untapered le g, th ey will o nly b e lost during th e tapering proces s .) With a mat knife scrib e tw o lin es for a Y.I -in .-wide inl et, using th e techniqu e for c u tt ing sto p dadoes sh o wn in the sh elf proj e ct on p. 12 8, and rem ov e the wood with a Y.I -in . chi sel. Aft er tapering th e s id es and back o f th e le g with a hand plane to th e dimensi ons give n o n p . 18, yo u can c ontinue the front ankle inl et a ro u nd to th e s ides , and from the sides a round to th e ba c k Next m easure 4 -Y4 in . from the top o f th e leg and draw a light pencil lin e across th e front s u rface o f th e leg . Th is is th e point wh ere th e tw o vertical lengths of stringing s to p and turn inward . Wh en you cut the ve rt ica l inlets, this lin e will tell yo u where to s to p . Hold the leg between benchdogs on th e workb ench a nd se t th e fence of the marking gauge against th e edge . Start the cutter in th e ankle inlet and draw th e marking ga uge up o ne e dge of th e leg. Th e to oth sh o uld sc ra tc h a cl e an , sq ua re- bo tto m ed groov e (it IWI )' be ne c essary to make m ore than o ne pass) . After scratching every 6 in . to 8 in .. lift th e to ol a nd remo ve th e chip that will have c logged th e to o th . You can make a cl ean s to p cut at th e upper e nd o f th e inl et by pushing th e cutter down o n th e p encil line that marks th e top of th e inl et and pulling th e to ol b a ck toward th e a nkle . Repeat this process to cut th e inl et o n th e o the r edge o f the le g. 14 -
Triple-layer inlay
St";lIgillg is eutfroin 11J r,-ill ,·tllick 'VC IlCC I·. w ll icll is g11l C11 ill inlets and tll cll plan ed .17 l1s11 seith sll,:f;ICC of leg. A J.4-i ll. -w itlc. triple-luyer sandsoicl: of fi gllt and tll;rk st";lIgillg rims ((mlilltl unkle and base of skirr.
I-cg is attached to sk i r t usith a b ridle joint, sohos « 'h ,i ll .-t ll ick fro n t tCIlOII protrudes ill , from face of sk i r t . lnternul tCIIOIl is '!'fI ill. thiel« will about 2 ill . IOllg .
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String Inlay, II common ornament on Federal furniture, hoth guidcd the viewer's eye about the piece and, in the evening h)' eandletight, kept the tublc's lines from heing lost in the shadows,
Tripl c-Ia ycr ----.in lay
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Draw the marking glluge from the ankle i nlet to the top of the leg to make II clean, square-bottomed groove [above), After s co r ing ever)' 6 in. to 8 in., clean IIWll)' the chip that gllthers around the tool' s tooth (left).
" 'ith a square, IllY o u t the inlet for th e an Ide hllnding on the le g' s front (top). Score the edges with II m ilt I ~(
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SECTION H-8
(eontinucd) SECTION D-D
Scale :
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- - 29 - -
Unlikc most pleees of furniturc in this o~c of wood, this formal sofa is ,'isuoll}' dominotcd by on expanse of fabric, not wood. J)urin~ thc Federal pcriod, all fabric was handwoven and thereforc costly, mllkin~ a piccc likc this out of reach for most huusehnlds, (Projcct: Rccding by hand, p, 33.)
- - .10 --
Sofa Chapter J
h is sofa represents a departure fro m the ap proach to d esigning a nd building furniture see n in th e o the r pi ec es in thi s b ook . Those pi ece s use wood no t only fo r th e ir fram es and o the r un se en pa rts b u t also fo r mos t of th eir visible s urfaces . In this sofa, wood se rve s as a fra me for . th e upholstery b ut pl a ys a relatively minor vis ua l ro le . The so fa 's legs , arm po st s an d th e face s b ehind th ese post s arc it s o nly vis ib le woode n ele me nts . Th e p iec e co nfro nts th e viewe r with s uc h a vast ex pa nse of fab ric tha t th ese woode n are a s h elp es ta blis h th e sofa's identity as a pi e c e o f sea ti ng furn itu re, an d th is wood is intensel y worked with o rn a me nt of th e peri od . The reed ed arm posts a nd th e turn ed legs a re c ha rac te ristic of th e S herato n s tyle o f Fede ral fu rn iture , th o ugh it is unu su al to find a sofa wh ere th e arm p os ts a re re eded a nd th e legs are no t. Th is leg is a typical S heraton turn ing , with a maj or vase, rings, a cove and a n urn- sh aped foo t, com pressed into o nly l Oin. The re sult is o ne o f the most appealing turn in gs I have eve r e nco u n te re d, a nd perhap s th e ca b ine tma ke r used thi s de si gn in st e a d o f a rcede d leg be cau se he admired it to o. Since thi s is a n e lega n t pi e ce , d esign ed fo r a parl or o r o the r form al ro om . th e a rms a nd legs are mad e o f mahogany . Th e flat si des a nd fro nts of the sq ua re b lo c ks sc pa ra tmg th e legs a nd the arm post s arc ve nee re d with c ro tc h -gra in b irch pan el s s urro undcd by bi rch a nd e bo ny s tr ing ing and s t rips of mah ogany ve nee r. Th is motif, without th e co ntrasting st ri ng ing, is re pea te d in e lo nga te d form o n th e exposed fac e s behind th e a rm po st s . While th e so fa 's exposed wo od en e le me nts a re visua lly arresting, th e wo odwork th at is un se en is eq ua lly important. Th e birch fram e is th e foundation for the up ho lstery. It se rves th e sa me purpo se as a s ke le to n, s u p po rting and giving definition to a tle sh o f fabri c and s tu ffing . And just as a ske le to n determines th e ge n e ra l dimcnsions o f a b ody, th e fram e cre ate s th e sh a pe of th e
O
so fa . It is re spons ibl e for th e sligh tly a rc hed b ack a nd for th e echoing curve of th e front rail 's long, ge nt le bow. T he co ncave upper edge o f th e arm , slo p ing forward to the ex posed po st s, is al so a fun cti on o f th e fram e . The sh ape of th e so fa assoc ia tes it geogra p h ic a lly with Boston and the North Shore , th e latter a s tr ing o f port c ities and u rb a n cabinetmak ing ce n te rs s tre tc hi ng northward a long th e Ne w Eng la nd coast. Portsm outh , New Hampshire , wh ere we found th is sofa, is inc lu ded in thi s a rea. Alth ough th e frame determin es the so fa's size a nd ge ne ra l s ha pe . the personality o f this pi e c e is largel y a fun ction o f it s visibl e ex te rio r. Th e s kin ove r th e wo oden s ke le to n and padded flesh is th e cloth cover ing, whic h b ecom es th e so fa's mo st pr onoun ced feature . Thi s o u te r fa bric do es not ove rride th e importan c e o f s ize and s ha pe in th e so fa 's ove ra ll lo ok (the p ie ce wo u ld s t ill a p pea r o d d in a sma ll ro om) , but it d ominat es th e p ie c e a nd e na b les it to harmonize with th e room 's o the r fab rics , wallpaper a nd pa int. In thi s re spect , th e so fa is sim ila r to th e a rc h itec tura l piece s sho wn in thi s boo k- the mirror (p . 20) a nd th e secre ta ry (p . 5 8) . Th eir a rc h itec tu ra l e le me nts rel ate th em to th e woodwork o f th e room and to th e s u rro u nd ing furniture . The same is tru e o f th e c ol or a nd pattern o f the fabri c cove ring thi s pi e ce . Th e so fa is not merely in the room , but of the roo m . A so fa is a rath er intlexibl c pi e c e of furnitur e . It s cov ering closely links it to it s s u rro u nd ings and it s great siz e limits its portability. Its plac ement in a room and th e se le c tio n o f its cov ering are not ge ne ra lly isolated deci sions b ut ra th e r part o f a com p le x d e c orating sc h e me . Th e limitations created by th ese factors , howev er, are a lso a so fa 's strength s. More than most o the r pi ece s of furn iture, a sofa h elps create a d eeor.
--31 -
Federal -period Ame rica ns appreciated the complex contribution a sofa made to a room , but they admired this piece of furniture for o th er re a so ns as well. Theirs was an age o f wood , and upholstery wa s weleomed sinc e it produeed sofas and chairs that were both softer and , on a cold winter night, warmer than wooden ones. Bef ore the Industrial Revolution and the d ev el opm ent of textilemaking machinery , however, all c lo th wa s spun and wov en by hand. This made upho lstered furniture very costly , and ownership o f s uc h a pi ece th erefore indicated status. Cu r io usly, th e woodworking on a Federal -period sofa was its least expensive elem ent. But thi s did not mean that th e worksmanship o n th ese pieces was of poor quality. O n th e contrary , it was well conceived and e xe c u te d . Give n the great ex p e nse o f th e fabri c, it would have be en foolish to skim p o n th e fram e o r oth er wo oden parts. Many period cabinetmakers o ffe re d uph olstering as a se rvic e to their custom ers, and independent uph olsterers o fte n set up business near cabinetmaking s ho ps. Wheth er o r not the maker o f a fram e actuall y did th e uph olst ery , th ere wa s a collaboration b etwe en th e two c ra fts . As a re sult , th e uphol st erer understo od furnituremaking and d esi gn , and th e cabinetm ak er kn ew h ow to build a frame that, wh en uphol st ered , would re sult in th e de sired sh a pe . Thi s cl ose assoc ia tio n b etwe en mak er and uph olst erer is uncommon today. Thus a modern upholsterer ma y neith er sh a re nor understand an ea rl ie r c a b tne tma ke r's int ent , and may be unfamiliar with th e techniqu es ne eded to co rre c tly interpret a Fed eral-peri od so fa. When we bought thi s pi e c e , it had bee n fre shl y reupholst ered , but with re sults th at differed greatl y from th e way it look s now. The upholst erer had reli ed o n mod ern material s and te chniqu es . He used c oil ed sp ring s. for exampl e , un aware that th eir patent wa s not gra nt e d until 18 28 , two decad e s after this so fa wa s mad e . As a res ult, hi s reupholstered sea t h ad a d om e to it rath er than th e nice tight. flat surface p roduced b y o ur s u bs eq ue n t reupholstering, which more acc u ra te ly refl ects th e period. He also ove rs tu ffed th e so fa with foam ru bber. so that it look ed bl oated and th e e x posed wood en parts seemed s p indly. O u r reuphol st ering p rodu c ed in stead the lean . trim lin e s th e cahinetrnakcr intended and al so a comfortable firmn e ss . whi ch is ex tre mely different from th e mushine ss o f s p ring s a nd fo am rubb er. Having witnes sed the transformation o f th e so fa wh en correctly uph olst ered , I s ugges t th at, if yo u are unable to do th e uph olst ery yourself, yo u res ol ve to find an uph olsterer wh o ca n acco m plis h th e p roper e ffec t. To h e lp you se le c t a sk ille d upholsterer a nd kn ow ge ne rally what needs to b e don e . I will outline the s te ps in volved in Fede ra l-pe riod uphol st ery . For th ose interested in a more d etail ed description o f these uphol stery meth ods. I have inc lu d ed an 18.34 source in the bibli ography . Our fram e was upholstered b y Pat rick Ed wa rds . o f San Die go , Ca lifo rn ia , a wel l-kn own ex pe rt o n Ame rica n Em p ire furniture wh o al so spec ia lizes in ea rly upholst ery techniqu e s. He prefers to work with tacks and a hamm er. and refuses to use stapl es. He first builds up a la yer o f woven jute webbing a nd pull s it tau t. Thi s c re a tes a firm
foundation for the u ph ol s te ry and strength ens th e wooden frame . Next he s tre tc hes a layer of burlap and th en lay s o n th e stuffing. Instead of foam rubber. h e used s pe c ia lly treated ho rsehair that curls. This make s th e upholste ry spring y, so that it bounces back when sat on. Until World \Va r II. horsehair was a common s tu ffing for mattresses, which is where we found the quantity we necded for the sofa . Nowadays upholstery supply house s sto ck rubberized horsehair, a natural bristle coated with rubb e r. An other lay er of burlap is la id o ve r th e horsehair. and a sha rp. straight line is obtained by stitching th e two lay ers of burlap with a rolled edge . Th en the burlap- andh orsehair sa ndwic h is se w n together with twine to th e webbing, in quilting fashion , to pre vent th e s tuffing from ga the ring a nd th e cl oth from s h ift ing. Edwards the n sp re ads cotton batting ove r th e top lay er o f burlap and covers it with muslin. Th is h elps produce a smoo th. ti ght s u rfa ce and al so prevents th e stiff e nds o f th e h orsehai r from sticking th e sitter. The cove r is put o n last , a nd th e methods us ed for fitting it are sim ila r to modern pr actice s . The final touch in th e uphol stering is th e ad d itio n o f a c lo th tape to fini sh o ff th e work and produc e a smoo th lin e a ro u nd th e visibl e wo od s u rfa ces. On Federal p iec e s. this tape wa s so me t im es se cured with brass tacks . Knowing that th e outer fabri c we ch ose for o u r so fa would rel ate th e pi ece to the ro om and s u rro u ndi ng o bjec ts. we proce eded slo wly with th e se le ction. In fac t . we left th e so fa in it s mu slin c ov ering for a yea r whil e we restored th e parlor and planned our decorating sc he me. In th e e nd. we d ecid ed to return th e wo odwork an d wain scot in th e room to th eir o rig ina l painted colo rs , a light bei ge with a deep brown mopboa rd . We did not kn ow wh at th e o rigina l wallpaper had lo ok ed lik e . but foll ow e d th e exam ple of th e o rig ina l sa m p les in the front hall a nd th e bedchamber. Both o f th e se papers had as a b ack ground c olor a pal er sh ade o f th e co lo r us ed for th e wall s an d woodwork o f th e ro om in which th e y we re hung. Th is pr ecedent helped us fin all y se le c t a rep roductio n of a late l Sth -ce ntu ry French wallpap er. Th e result o f o ur wo rk is a tw o -tone b ei ge roo m with a s tro ng b ro wn lin e a ro u nd th e tlo or a nd. o n th e wall a bove th e wain sc ot. a bl ack . sing lescre en pattern o f tendrils and birds. Thi s is a very c alm e nv iro n me n t, whi ch we felt co u ld carry a large . livel y counterpoint. We therefore chose a cranb erry-red reproduction fabric for th e so fa, whi ch would pi ck up th e red of the pla st ered ch e eks and jamb o f th e fir eplace . as well as that in several o f the watercol or prints o n th e wall s and in the c ocksc omb that Ca ro l uses in dri ed fl ow er arrangements on th e mantel. \V e tried placing th e sofa in o th e r sp ots in th e ro om before concluding th at it works best und er th e two sy m me trica l window s, b etwe en whi ch th e archl tc ctural mirror hangs. Like th e sec re ta ry facing it o n th e o p posite wall. th e sofa is a dom in e ering pi ece . It is long a nd low . and take s up mo st o f its wall. I have alw ay s th ought that it would be nice to plac e th e so fa in th e center o f th e roo m facing th e fir eplace . a practice that became popular du ring the Em p ire p eriod . In o u r parl or. h ow ever, th e fire place is o ffse t and th e tloor s pace in front of it is a traffi c area .
--.32 -
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Reedin g by hand Among th e ne ocl assi cal o rna ment in spired by Gree k and Ro man a rc h itec t u re wa s flut in g. whi ch mimi ck ed th e m ulti ple. pa rall el co ncave groo ves found o n classi cal co lu m ns . Du ring th c Fe de ra l period , reeding. o r parall el co nve x m oldings. was in cre asingly used ins tea d . Re eding co m mo nly d ec orated She rato n-s tyle turned legs. bed posts. e ngaged colu m ns . a p plie d pateru e (s m all ro u nd o r ova l ca rve d orna me nts) a nd. as o n thi s so fa. ann post s. Peri od ca b ine t ma ke rs working in different regi ons d e vel oped va rio us . id entifiable s tyles o f re eding. The re a re tw o m ethods for makrng re eds o n turnings. The s im p lest. d one with a re eding plane call ed a c e n te r bead plan e . ca n b e worked o nly o n c ylinde rs o r ve ry gra d ua l tapers. Th at techniqu e is c xpla tnc d in th e chapter o n th e Fan c y c h a ir (p . 1(0) . Th e se co nd m ethod is used o n vusc -sh apcd turnings. s uc h as th e arm posts on this so fa . Becau s e the turning profil e c u rves as it changes diam et er. it wou ld b e impo ssible for a plan e to track al on g both th e co nve x a nd c onca ve su rfaces . Also . a plane can c u t o nly a re ed o f uniform width . and on this turning th e re eds narrow af ter th e y pass ove r th e swe lling o f th e vase s ha pe to fit th e d e crea sed di am et er of th e neck . Th eref ore t his typ e o f re eding mu st b e don e b y hand . Be fo re begin n ing th e re eding. turn th e so fa leg and arm po st to th e p rofil e sho wn in th e drawing at right. Th en . wi t h th e work s p inn ing in th e lath e . sc ribe a lin e a ro u nd the full est point o i th e va se o n th e post. This marks th e begi nni ng o i th e reeds. Do nothing more until yo u hav e pull ed the plug o n th e lathe mo tor to elimi na te th e poss ib ility o f an acci de nta l sta rt- u p. The re a rc 14 ind ivid ua l reeds o n thi s arm post. ea c h abo u t -Ys in . wid e a t th eir maximum . Wall, th em o ff o n th e sc ribed lin e with a pair o f dividers. Th e diam eter is small e no ugh that it is unlikely that th e 14 segme nts will b e perfectl y e ve n-s-the last reed will probably be s lig h tly s ma lle r o r la rge r th an th e o the rs, Whe n doing t he carving, yo u wil l b e a b le to s pace o u t thi s discrepancy over severa l reeds so t hat it will not be noticeabl e .
PATTER N "'O R REEDEI> ARM PO ST AN D L EG G rJid : u," 111. =!h in .
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Reed s (14 total )
Since the arm posts on this sofll are vase-shaped turnings, the reeding mu st be carved bJ' h a n d , rather than with a reeding plane, A fte r !'e r i b in~ II l i ne lIround t he w ide!'t pllrt of the va se, w af k off a n d m urh 14 equul !'e~me n t!' fo r t he reedin~ .
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Note : v,,-in.-d eep reeds on lig hten to ,'cry f inely cur r eed s ti t n eck .
Next re move th e turning from th e lathe and adj us t th e top edge of th e too l re st to th e e xac t c enterline betwe en th e d rive a nd ta il ce nters, as ex pla ine d in th e c ha p te r o n th e a rc hitec tu ra l mirror (p . 20). Remount th e turning and p lac e the re st ro ug hly parall el to it and a bo u t an inch a way. Now sha rpe n a so ft le ad pe ncil a nd set it on th e rest wit h its poin t o n th e sc ri bed lin e . Ro ta te th e turning until o ne of th e 14 m arks comes in to co n tac t with th e pen cil le ad . Holding th e pen cil o n th e rest a nd perfec tly pa rall el to the lath e bed , draw a lin e from th e mark down th e ne ck of the vase to th e ring a t th e bottom . (I n th e ph o to bel ow , I'm da rke ning th e lin e I' ve a lready d raw n.) This lin e sho uld be stra igh t , eve n tho ug h it follo ws the c urve o f th e arm post. You ca n c heck it with a sho rt, stra ight edge, suc h as th e bla de o f a try sq ua re. The n rota te the turn ing to the ne xt ma rk a nd trac e th e seco nd lin e . Repeat thi s process un til a ll 14 lin e s ha ve bee n mark ed . Now yo u a rc re ady to c a rve th e reed s. Lo ck the d rive shaft of th e la th e to ke e p it from turn ing. With a sma ll pa rt ing tool. start at o ne o f th e lin es an d ta ke a hea vy cu t , abo u t Va in . de ep, as yo u m ove ove r the vase . As you move down th e neck , ligh ten th e c u t; for the bottom 1 liz in ., it shou ld be qu ite fine . Ro tate th e turning so that th e next line is co mfo rta b ly po sition ed fo r yo u a nd ca rve it in the same ma nne r. Repe at thi s p ro c e ss fo r th e re mai n ing reed s, but begin pla n ni ng a head as you ap proach th e fin al reed if it is la rger o r sma lle r tha n th e rest. To di stri bute any d iscrepa ncy ove r th e last severa l reeds , sligh tly adjust th e positio n of th e pa rting tool o n th e pen cil lin e .
Cu tt ing th e V-grooves d istinguishe s th e ind ividua l re e ds, b ut th ey still ne ed to be uniformly ro u nded. Start this proc ess using the sa me sm all parting tool. Roll the tool sligh tly, so th at o ne si de of th e V-sha ped cu tting e dge will tr im th e sha rp a rris o f th e ad j o in ing reed. Be caretul nor to tak e too hea vy a c ut. After following the reed all the way down the nec k to th e ring, retu rn to the scribed line and place the pa rting to ol in th e sa me groove. Thi s time, roll it in th e o pposite dire ction to rem ove the arris of the other reed. Repe at th e se two cu ts in each groove to rough out all th e reeds. I sugges t mak ing ro ug h-s hap ing cuts all th e way around the post rath er tha n tryi ng to co m plete each individual reed , o ne a t at ti me. Working o ne step at a time on all the ree ds will e ns ure th a t they will a ll be uni form . O nce you ha ve wo rked your way back to th e groove in wh ich yo u be gan , yo u ca n start finis hing the individual reed s , I use a fla t ca rving c hisel, bevele d o n both sides o f th e c u tt ing edge, to co mplete the ro u ndi ng of the reeds. Afte r fini shing a series of th ree or fou r reeds, you can go back a nd clea n u p the co rne r formed by the beginning o f th e V-groove a nd th e scribed li ne . T his clean up can be d o ne wi th a mat kni fe . Wh e n all th e reeds have been rou nded and the corners c lea ne d. smooth the su rface of each reed with a cabinet scra per. Hold th e scra per blade so that o ne c orner is in the groove, a nd roll the e dge as ne c e ssa ry over the reed . You ca n use sma ll pieces of sa nd pape r to c lean up any irr egul ariti es no t smoo the d by th e scraper.
With the tool rest at the centerline of the lathe and roughly parallel to the turntng, draw a line from each of the 14 marks down the neck of the va se to the rinA s c r ib e d at the bottom (above). Once all the lines have been drawn, begin earvinA out the reeds with a l '- shllped pllrting tool (right).
After the Intrlul cuts have been made, shape the sides of the reed s with the partinA tool (riAht). Thi s time a s you cut, roll the tool sliAhtl)' toward the center of the reed bein~ s h a p e d . Then usc a scraper blade to s m o o t h lind clean up the rounded curve of the reeds (for ri~ht).
- - 34 -
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- 14 5 - -
THE BEDROOM
T
e pa rents o f the fam ilies th .u ha ve lived in ,,' " ,""""
,,,"'0 always used
th e east bedc hambe r as the ir bedroom, j ust
as we do . Th e ro om ha s a so u the rly e xposu re. and th e sunlight that streams in m ak e s it a wo nde rfu l room to wake u p in. The original bedroo m was a c hee ry roo m with it s woodwork painted "russian blu e. Seve ral yea rs ago whe n I was insula ti ng the att ic . I found about a square foot of th e bedroo m's original wallpaper under th e a ttic tlo o rb oards . Re c ently we found a n example o f the patte rn's fu ll repeat in the collectio n o f th e Soci ety for th e Pr e servati on of Ne w England Antiq uities , a nd we can now have the o rigi na l paper re prod u ced . This paper was p robabl y an Ame r ic a n ve rsi on of th e neo cl ass ical Frenc h pa pers popular duri ng the Federa l period. The bac kgro u nd colo r is a light b lue . a nd e ac h repe at co ns ists o f a central urn , topped by a c upid and surrounded by te ndrils wi th perc h ed birds. Th e urn is plac ed a bove a ba r draped with swags a nd ta ssel s . We pn intcd t he room 's woodwo rk t he o rigina l co lo r and , to m aintain th e blu e- on -blue e ffect, used the backgrou nd color of the o rig ina l wall pa per o n the pl ast e r wall s. So meday. a fte r we have had th e o rigi na l pape r re p rodu ce d , t he roo m's bas ic decor wi ll appear just as t he o rig ina l owners intend ed . Acco rding to t he 18 0 5 invento ry o f the hou se, th e b ed in thi s room was o ne o f th e o wne rs ' m os t expensive p o sse ssi ons. Mos t of the va lue no te d for the pi ece re prese n ted th e bed furnitur e , that is. th e pill ow s, shee ts. b la nke ts a nd b ed c u rtai ns . The patte rn o n the bed c urtai ns pro bab ly co mple mented tha t in th e wallpaper a nd windo w c urta ins . The va rious beds used in th e roo m le ft den ts in th e flo orb oards, Eac h b ed wa s pl ac ed nea r th e front windows so t ha t it a nd the bed furn it ure cou ld be full y seen a nd a p p rec ia te d b y those passing by th e bedroo m doo r. Beca use t he 20th c e n tury h as brou ght a streetlig ht an d a uto mob ile tra ffic to o u r front door, we h a ve pl ac ed o u r b ed agai ns t th e roo m's re a r wall. Federa l-period America ns sa w th e be dcham b er as a ro om to be liv ed in . Wh en I s t rip ped the bedroom tlo or (wh ic h was no t painted un til t he 20th ce nt ury) . I found pattern s o f wear in th e raw pin e boards that co nfirmed th e roo m's regu lar use . In front of ea c h win d ow someo ne ro uti ne ly sa t in a Windsor c ha ir. \Vh en that person rocked b ackward in th e c ha ir , the turned feet of the Wi ndsor m a d e c risp hal f-m oon dents in th e so ft wooden tloor. Ano t he r row o f suc h dents occurs abo ut 8 ft. fro m the mouth of the fireplace. the d ista nc e I ha ve found m ost c o m fo rt a b le wh en s itti ng in fro nt of a fir e. From th e se p atterns of wearI dctermin cd the loca tio n of some of t he 18 Windsors listed in th e 1805 in ven to ry. - - 147 -
-
When the fires were banked for the night in a Federal-period home, the temperature indoors mi~ht drop well below freezin~. To combat the cold, the full-Ien~th curtains ori~inall,· han~in~ from this bed's canopy frame were drawn to form a tent that trapped heat inside. (Project: Roping the frame, p, 151.)
- - 14S -
-
lfigh-Post Bed Chapter 17
I' yo u h a ve ever sle p t in a hou se heat ed o nly b y a firepl ac e o r a wood st ov e , yo u will und erst and a nd a p p re ci a te th e o rigina l purpo se o f th e hi gh-po st b ed. Th e tall po st s . to p ped o n th is be d b y a wo od en arch call ed a ca no py fram e . we re no t inte nde d to ju st look nic e . C u rt a ins cove red th e to p a nd all four sides o f the b ed . c rea ting. in e ffect. a tent. Tha t tent tr apped heat in side a nd prote cted th e p eople huddled under th e cove rs from room tempera tu re s th at o fte n dipped well b el ow fre ezin g. These c u rta ins cove re d th e b ed so completel y th at th ere was little rea son to mak e e la bo ra te post s . It is th eref ore a tr ib u te to th e ca b uie tm a ker wh o mad e this b ed th at h e produ ced b e au tifull y turn ed . if quite sim p le . posts . Since ce n tra l h e a ting ha s e lim ina te d the ne ed fo r c u rta ins that ca n b e d ra wn s h u t aga ins t th e night c h ill, a t th e sa me tim e hiding th e b edpost s, we can a pprecia te th e b ed in a wa y it s o r igina l owner ma y not have . Fo r us, a hi gh -po st be d ma y be mo re intere sting as an archite ctural size pi ec e of furniture that wo rk s in thre e dimensions. Ma ny mo d ern b e d s are. b y co nt ras t. essen tia lly b road , flat , tw o -dim ensi onal slee pi ng s urfaces, whi ch sh a re little with th e hi gh -po st bed , exce p t that th ey too tak e up much o f th e 110 01' sp ace in a bed roo m . The hi gh-post bed , h ow e ver, occ u p ies bo th an e x pa nse o f 110 01' s pace a nd a lso co ns ide ra ble sp ace a bove the mattress. ~I a kin g a be d is a rew arding p roj ec t, ye t it will require a grea t deal o f adva nced planning. Amo ng th e things to th ink ab out b ef ore beginn ing is th at yo u will ne ed access to a lath e with a 6-ft. b ed (t he post s are 5 ft. 1 % in. long) . You will al so ne ed to locate a so u rce for e no ug h -l-in .vthi ck hardwood for th e bc d 's four J 1kin .·di a . po st s and fou r J 14 in .vthick ra ils (with th e e xce p tio n o f it s poplar h eadboard , th e o rigina l bed is mad e o f birch ). Native hardwoods this thi ck ca n be pu rc ha sed fro m wh ol e sal e lumberyards. but it may take so me fas t talking to co nvince th em to se ll yo u o nly e no ug h woo d fo r o ne bed .
I
Th e stock I usc for be ds ca me fro m m y fa m ily's farm. For m.my ye ars I had a dm ired a grove of c herry tre e s th ere . which had to come d own wh en my fa the r o pe ne d a new pasture . Am ong th e se tr ee s were five th at we re a t least 18 in. in diam ete r. I to ld th e sawye r th a t I wanted th e crown pla nk ( the o ne with th e pith in it) from each to be 4 in. thi ck . Th e woo d on eithe r side of th e pith represents a radi al c u t a nd is ve ry stab le wh en sa wn this wa y. Your fath er ma y not h ave a grove of c herry tre e s h e wants to c u t d own , b u t th ere may be a s ma ll sawm ill so me where c los e by. A mill will us ua lly sell you a lo g a nd c u t it to yo u r spe ci ficatio ns a t e no ug h of a p re m iu m to mak e up fo r th e e x tra e ffort invo lve d in d e aling with a s ma ll-tim er. If . how e ver. th e re a re su rp rises s uc h as rot o r wind sha kes insid e th e log, th e sa wye r ma y remind yo u that yo u bought it. Ta ke your losse s with eq ua n im ity. If yo u bu y wo od th is way, pa int th e ends o f the planks to prev ent rapid drying a nd c hecki ng , a nd immediatel y rip th e crown planks in a lin e th at ro ug h ly follo ws the pith. The timber th en ne eds to b e stac ke d o n sk ids and a ir-d rie d for severa l yea rs . Ano ther thing to th ink a bou t is the type of m attre ss you will us e . Th e mattre ss o n th e o rigi na l bed was s u p po rted b y a wov en rope web , whi ch is d iscu sse d in d e tail o n p. 151 . I laid a shee t of :y.;·in. ·th ic l, plywo od o ver thi s ro pe web a nd a mat tress over th at. I use a h orseh air m attre ss, which is q u it e h a rd (it 's d one wonders for m y b a ck problem s) . If yo u want so me th ing so fte r, try a futo n o r a d ense foam mattress ove r the plywo od. Fo r a b ox sp r ing and mattre ss, yo u' ll h ave to sus pe nd th e b ox s pri ng b etwe en th e rail s with an gle bracke ts. Th e o rigina l bed measure s o nly 74 % in. by 54 % in . and was de si gn ed to h old a th ree-quarter- si ze matt re ss . This d esi gn is fin e for pe ople lik e m yself wh o a re o nly 5 ft. 8 in . tall. but yo u ma y wa nt to expa nd yo ur bed to tak e a s ta nda rd , full -si ze mattre ss. You ca n do this by app ropriatel y length en in g the ra ils , h e ad b o a rd a nd canopy
- - 149 - -
fram e . I would warn aga ins t m aking th e b ed wid e e no ug h and long e no ug h for a qu e en-si ze o r kin g-size mattress, though. Suc h pro portion s would mak e th e bed look foolish. Beg in the bed by ripping th e plank into sto ck for th e bed posts and ra ils. No t ice that th e post s a re 3 14 in . sq. in cross sec tion. while the ra ils are 31;:1 in. d e ep b y a full 4 in. wide. Su rfa ce th em to th e se d im en si ons. The n hand pla ne the ra ils a nd c h a mfe r a ll four e dges to prev ent bed cove rs from catching o n a ny slive rs or th e a rris. Plane th e s toc k for the post s in th e a re a o f th e mort ise s to ke ep m illin g marks from s ho wing o n yo ur fini sh ed b ed. Turn th e fou r post s to th e sha pe sho wn in th e drawing o n p. 15 5 . Th e o rigina l po st s were neve r sa nded. as th e tu rner was sk illfu l e no ug h to tu rn a cle a n s u rface using o nly la th e too ls. If yo u are not eq ua lly compe tent at th e lath e . I reco m me nd sa nd ing th e po st s, but not while th e la th e is turning. Th at would sc ra tc h th e turning ac ro ss th e gra in. so me th ing none o f us woul d dre am of doing o n an y ot her pi e c e of wo od . b u t which man y o f us d o ro u tine ly with turn in gs. Eve n if yo u try to sa nd th ese scratc hes away . th e y will re a p pear wh en yo u a p ply the fin ish . For this rea son . I s ugges t sh u tting o ff th e lath e a nd. with the tu rning s till mounted betwee n cen te rs, sa nd ing lightl y with 220-grit paper in th e dire cti on of th e gra in. After the po st s ha ve bee n tu rn ed. th e bed is re ad y to b e joine d with s ta nda rd m orti se -and -tenons. Unless yo u've d on e tim ber fram in g. yo u ha ve prob abl y never c u t mo rt ise -and -tenons thi s large , but th e y are done th e sa me way as smalle r jo ints. Lay th em o u t with a sq u a re a nd a mo rt ise ga uge. I c ut th e %- in . mo rti se s with a morti se c hisel. I wo uld not m a ke th em a ny sma lle r than % in . and . if fac ed wi th a c hoice o f larger c h ise l sizes. would o pt to make th em ~ in . Unlike most sm a lle r jo ine d p iec e s o f furn iture. b eds occasio na lly h ave to b e di sassem bl ed fo r th e purpo se o f moving o r re deco ra t ing. Fo r this re ason , no glue is used o n the joints . To e ns u re th e b ed 's co rrec t reassembly. I sugges t foll ow in g wh at was s ta nda rd practice in th e Federa l peri od : numbering th e mortise -and-tenon s. Ch ise l Ro man num e ral s ne xt to th e morti se s and o n th e e nds o f the rail s near th e tenons. Sta rt with th e right mortise o n th e le ft head po st a nd a d va nce c lockwise aro u nd th e bed in the tradit ion al seq ue nce . The jo ints o f th e o rig ina l b ed a re furth er secured with a ro pe web. woven throu gh a se ries o f 3 0 holes in th e rail s. Eac h side rail has nine hol es a nd e ac h e nd rail s ix hol es. All of th e hol es are % in . in di a m eter a nd a re reli ev ed on the o uts ide o f th e ra il to ke ep th e rope from ch afing. They a re eve nly spaced alo ng .e ac h rail a nd alig ne d with th e hol es o n the o pposite rail. Alth ou gh ro ping works well to tigh ten th e bed fram e. it inrerferes with fitti ng a box s pring be twee n the rail s. You ma y th e ref o re wa nt ins te ad to ti ghten th e frame with b ed bo lts , whi ch c a n b e purch ased fro m th e re prod uc tio n hardware d e al ers list e d in th e a ppendices . O nce th e joine ry for the ra ils is co m p le te. yo u c an c u t the morti se s fo r th e h e adboard . On th e o rigina l b ed the he adbo ard is 112 in. thi ck . but it co uld easily be % in. th ick. whi ch wo uld a llo w yo u to use th e sa me morti se
chisel through out. I would a vo id making it ~ in . thi ck howev er. since this b egins to viola te Fe dera l-pe riod c a b ine tma ke rs' tradition o f d elicate furn itu re . Th ere 's no reason not to m ak e th e h ea d boa rd of so me th ing more exotic th an poplar. a nd almost any wood could b e used . If yo u ha ve e nlarged th e dim ens io ns of the bed, e xpa nd yo u r h eadb oard from th e m idd le of the pattern rath e r th an from the e nds . With th e h e ad b oa rd com ple te d. turn yo u r attention to th e can opy fram e . O n th e o rig ina l bed thi s frame is a s im ple a rc h mad e of b irch . but a ny h a rdw oo d wou ld do a nd th e fram e 's s ha pe co u ld just as we ll be serpentine. Eigh t pi e ce s mak e up the fram e : four a rc hed segme nts and four c ross s tru ts. The arc hed segments a re set up in pai rs to mak e tw o fu ll arc hes running th e length of the bed. Th ese segme n ts me e t in th e m iddl e with a b utt joint and are sec u re d o n th e unde rs id e with a leath e r h inge . Alt ernati vel y. a s mall me tal hinge co u ld b e use d. The e nti re ca no py is asse mble d with out glue to fac ilita te kn ockdown for moving. To co ns truc t th e ca no py fra m e . firs t transfer the shape of th e four arch es from th e d raw in g to yo ur wood. nesting th e patterns toge the r to minimize wast e. The arc hes are mad e from full -in ch stoc k a nd ca n b e c ut o ut on a bandsaw or with a how saw . Th e sa w n edges can be cl ean ed up with a spokesha ve or a co mpass plane . Next c u t th e four cross s tru ts fo r th e c a nopy. which are ~ in . thi ck b y 1 lis in . wide . Th e tw o s truts at the head and foo t o f th e b ed as well as th e hinged arch es arc mounted o n top o f th e po st s wit h a m etal p in. You ca n make these pins from 8d fin ish nail s by c u tti ng o ff th e na il heads \\ ith a h ack saw . Drill a fr ic tio n -t igh t h ol e in th e to p of the post (the lath e c enter ma rk s the s pot). a nd ta p the nail in place . point up . You'll ne ed to d rill a so mew hat la rge r ho le th rough each e nd o f the cross s tru ts a nd through the lowe r e nd o f eac h a rch ed segme n t , so b oth th c strut and arch can slide ove r th e nail s in the po s ts . Wh en assembling the canopy. put th e s tru ts in pla c e fir st and set thc arc hes on top o f th em . Bef ore these pi ec e s arc asse m b le d , how eve r. the two ce nte r s tru ts ne c d to b e joi ne d with h alf-bli nd dovetails to th e top s u rface of th e a rc hes . These st ruts are pos itioned to di vid e th e arch es int o thre e e q u a l sect io ns . When in plac e . th e y do more than jus t s u p port the cloth canopy. Th ey al so pr event lateral sway o f th e arc hes. O nce th e bed is co ns tructed . yo u' ll want to think about fini shing th e pi ec e . The origina l bed was fini sh e d wi th she llac, but b e ca use o f the we a r from th e mat tre ss and bedding, I would s ugges t so met h ing ha rde r, like varnish or la cqu er. If yo u r b ed ro om h a s a co u nt ry deco r. you m ight want to use a red or b lue mil k-pa int sta in, mixed the way I de sc ribed in th e c ha pte r o n th c ga te lcg ta bl e (p. 90) . If yo u wa n t to mak e b cd curta ins . co ns ult the book on te xtil es in th e b ib liogra p hy. Yo u ma y prefe r instead a sim ple. printed co tto n ca no py . o r a croc heted fishne t ca no py. You 'll ne ed to mak e yo u r o wn co tton canopy, but fishnet ca no p ies a rc a vai la b le th rough a num b e r of stores, wh ich usually advertise in th e a nt iq ues maga zlncs listed in th e so u rces o f su p ply at th e c nd o f the bo ok.
- - 150 - -
Although s o me h ed fr ame s wer e t ig hte n e d with bed holts, many, like thi s one, w ere s t r e n g t h e n e d h)' roping. T his produced a woven rope weh that al so s u p p o r t e d the he d's mattres s.
I. Afte r kno tting one cnd of ro pc and tl/p ing o t he r, bcg in ro ping a t end of side m il a nd work down bed's lcngth .
3
3. Af ter we b is woven. tighten s tra nds w i t h be d w l·cnc h. work i ng in s a me se q ue nce as fo r weav ing. a nd secure e nd w ith soooden plug.
2. With crosswise stra nds roped. pass rop e under f ra me and in sid e of leg. and bcgin wea~i ng len gth wisc strands.
Ropin g the fra me To rope a three-quarter-size bed , you 'll need about 97 ft. of % -in . he m p rope. and if you have expanded your bed to full -size. you 'll need an extra 10 ft. of rope . Don 't use nylon rope-it s t re tc h es . You ' ll also ne ed two whittled and tapered . 9 ·in .-long hardwood pins, along with a hammer (I prefer a cobbler's hammer, but a carpenter's hammer will do) a nd a bed wr ench . The wrench can be easily made from a turned dowel , 2 in. thick by 14 in . long. Cut a slot a t least % in . wide in one end of the dowel , and pierce the ot her end with a I-in . bit at a right angle to the center of the dowel. Insert a handle into this ho le to complete the T-shapeJ tool.
To prepare the rope, whip one end by wrapp ing it wit h electrical or masking tape to keep it from fraying and mushrooming as you work . Tie a half-knot in the other end. which will anchor this e nd in the first ho le . Begin roping the frame in one corner, threading the whipped end of the rope from the outside through the first hole in the side rai l. Pass the rope across the width of the bed and out through the corresponding hole in the opposite rail. Then pull the rope until the knot is tight . aga ins t the first rail.
A s im p l)' co nst ru c t ed b ed w ren c h is u se d to tighten t he wove n rope web,
- - 15 1 - -
Working o n th e side o f th e bed o p posite th e kn ot, pas s th e ro pe through th e seco nd hol e in that rail a nd out the co rres po nd ing hol e in th e fir st side . Co n tin ue working buck a nd forth in this wa y al on g th e e nt ire len gth o f th e bed. wh ich will pr oduc e th e fou nda tio n threa ds for th e wov en we b . Wh en yo u 've pull ed th e ro pe th rough th e last holc in th e side rail . pa ss it under th e ra il, insid e o f the post a nd up to th e o u tside o f the e nd ra il. Thread th e ro pe into th c firs t hole in th e e nd rai l. weave it a lte rn a te ly over a nd unde r th e crosswise stra nds to th e o p pos ite rail a nd pa ss it ou t th e o p pos ite hol e. Move to th e next hol e. just as yo u did o n th e side rail s, a nd co n ti nue to weave the we b . If you need to ti e anoth er piece o f ro pe o n to th e first. usc a sq ua re kn o t; thi s is stro ng b ut will u nt ie eas ily if yo u ne ed to di sassem bl e th e bcd . Wh en th e we b is co m ple te d. it ne eds to bc t igh te ne d. Sta rt a t th e co rne r o f th e si de rail o pposi te the kno t a nd slip th e wr ench down ov e r the short e xposed len gth o f th e ro pc betwe en th e fir st two hol e s in th e ra il. Twist th e wr en ch cl ockwi se as tigh tl y as you c a n. Wh en I'm d oing this by mysel f. I hold th e wr en ch wit h o ne hand a nd my thi gh . which le ave s my o the r han d free to pick up a tape red pin . Pre ss th e point o f the pin into th e firs t hol e a nd drive it with th e hamm er tigh t e no ug h to keep th e ro pe from slipp ing wh en th e wren ch is loo sen ed . Go to th e o p pos ite s ide o f th e be d and tighten th e ro pe in th e next hol e in th e sa me wa y. us ing th e seco nd pin to
a nc ho r the rope . Th en remove th e fir st pin by pulling it stra igh t back whil e you tap it s si de with th e hammer as c lose as possible to th e rail. Th e tapping will slow ly loosen th e pin. Avo id working th e pin from side to side. as th e ti p may sna p o ff in th e hol e. Tighten th e next stra nd of the foundati on th read s in th e sa me way. using the firs t pin to hold th e rope . Work in this le ap-frog fa shi on d own the e nt ire len gth of th e bed. Th e ro pe sho uld be tight e no ug h to vibrate wh en plucked like a guita r stri ng . You ma y also see a noti ce abl e bow in the hea vy side rail s. After I had fini sh ed rop ing this bed. the di st ance betwe en th e rails me a sured 112 in . less in the middle than a t the e nds . T igh te n th e len gthwi se st ra nds in th e sa me way, working ac ross th e width of th e bed fram e . Wh en th e las t st rand is t igh ten ed , loci, it with th e fre e pin. Th en saw o ff the pin c lose to th e ra il so th at it will not inte rfere with the bedding. To di sassembl e o r retighten th e be d. you ca n dri ve o u t thi s sho rt pin from the in sid e . Don ' t c ut the ex tra len gth of ro pe off- you 'll ne ed it the ne x t time you hav e to ro pe th e bed . Ins te ad, pa ss it under the foot rail a nd wea ve it o ve r th e stra nds so th at it does n't han g d own und er th e bed . Altho ug h it 's be en remo ved for th e ph otogr aph , we usu all y hang a dust ruffle from th e rail s. wh ich is actua lly tack ed to th e shee t o f plyw o od. Th e e ffec t of this ru ffle is to e nla rge th e bed 's m ass (a nd hide th e rope) .
The knotted end keeps the rope from pullin~ throu~h the first hole and anchors the woven web,
The bed wrench and tapered pins arc u sed to tighten the webbing, working in the sequence in which it was woven [above], To keep from 'losing the ten sion on the rope, tighten and loci. it in two con securlve boles in leap-frog fashion around tbe bed. Witb the rope thu s secured, remove the tapered pin from the first hole by pulling straight backward and tapping the pin with a hammer near the rail. Once the crosswise strands arc rhreuded, pass the rope under the side rail, in side of the post and to the outsidc of the end rail to be~in the len~tbwise threads.
After tightening the rope in the last hol e, drive in the tapered pin with the hammer and s a w off the end to make a plug.
- - 15 2 -
-
HIGH -POST B ED Scale: Y16 in .
=
1 in.
-----lj - v
II III I
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~o tc:
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54 ~
C:/IWPY is usscmblcd without ,4/ue to Iucilitutc knockdown for moving,
I
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n um era ls chiseled near mortises und 01/ tenons e u s u r e bed's correct rcnsscm b ly,
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Uopil/g is not shown.
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View
UETA IL A Scale: ~ in. = 1 in .
I
'\ Leather hin~e
Taeks
61 \4
..........+--4 (t yp . sides and ends) o
c
c
%-in. -d ia. roping holes. equally spaced at about 7 ~ in. along sides and S in. alon~ ends
n
24 \4
~_ _-----J,...L--l S ide Vie w
- - 153 - -
t~
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-
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-26 - -
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.c:::;;.--i DETAIL A Sea Ie: ~ in . = 1 in.
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Steel pin. !.-lid x 3
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Ca no py arch
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PARTIAL END VIEW Scale: !.-Ii in. = 1 in.
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I V
Fly rail
/
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Fly rail (o pe n po sition)
Sho rt fi xcd rail
/ /
A
/
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B
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8
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PATTERN FOR FLY RAIL AND -
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S~~:~~:~F~):~I~L
Drawer-puIl cl earance
-
Notc: Fir mil and IOllg iixcd ruil arc both ~ y" . ill . ill height und cq unllv divided into five knuckles that m esh to form wooden hinge.
End Vicw
- - 16 2 - -
SECTION B-B = 1 in.
Sc ale : \4 in.
~ 1~6~
Detail A
-
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End rail . 1716 x 4 316
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716-in. tenon \
DETAIL A = I in .
Scale : % in.
Co rner bl ock. 1% x 1% (2) I..L- - -Drawer runner. 0/16 x
-L.-.
t Side View
"'"te: .\fit e n :d corners of 1>:1., ,' su u l lid molding» arc typicul.
-
- 16S -
-
%-in.-t h ie l, bottom
- f(.
Corne r br .Ice v
Bntt hinges, l !h x 1 ~
Side Yiew
Dctail A
PARTIAl, SIDE VIEW (lid rai sed) Sc alc: '}I. in. = 1 in.
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Y16 -
PATTERN FOR LID AND MOLDING I I I G r id: ¥.6 in. = ~ in. I I
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Doc et ails are 1 0//6 ill. 011 ce n te r (11 ).
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DETAIL A (at back) Sc alc: ~ in. = 1 in.
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II
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1/ T ocnailcd
-
169 -
ROI>ERL\' AN(iUNG THE SCREW SLOT
--GIb.~ .
L ·_
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A. W it ll s lot 'Vert i· ca l, to ol WOlI't c u t,
B, Co rre c t s lo t WI wood.
~le to cO ll tllC t
{ C. Too lIIu c1l (l/I~/e , tool Ju s t scores lin e.
To usc th e tool, fir st pla c e th e bl ock fir mly aga ins t th e e dge o f th e drawer front with th e edge o f th e screw h ead in co ntac t with th e wo od ' s s urface . Th en tu rn the sc re w to th e a ng le a t which th e slo t c u ts b e st , as s ho wn in th e d rawi ng at le ft. If th e slo t is ve rt ica l, as in A, tile cool won ' t cut. In B, th e le ad in g edge of th e slo t is ra ise d so tha t th e c u t ca n be mad e by the e dge th at foll o ws . T ilti ng th e slot too mu ch (C) , h ow e ver. raises th e c u tti ng p o in t so tha t yo u merel y score a li ne wit h the edge o f the sc re w h ead with out remo vin g a ny wo od . Use th e sc ra tc h tool to make a groove as d ee p as th e to ol will cut o n ea c h o f the four e dges o f each d rawe r front. The to ol wo rks we ll o n b oth th e long edges a nd th e sho rt e dges . O n th e latte r, the chip will cu rl up into and b e ejec te d b y th e sc re w slo t, mu ch lik e it would be in th e th roa t o f a m olding pl an e . Try to make th e grooves come as cl ose toge th er in th e fo u r corne rs as yo u c a n without ove rla p p ing th em. You ca n use a sm a ll parting too l to join th e groo ves in the co rne rs wh ere th e sc ra tch tool will not reach . Th ese groo ves estab lis h th e b e vel part of th e bea d -a ndb ev el molding profil e . Round in g th e arris with a b lock plane will com ple te th e ro u nded part o f th e pr o file. O n th e two e nds o f th e d rawer front , wh ere th ere is e nd gra in , yo u risk c h ip p ing th e co rners if yo u plan e s traigh t across th em . Th erefo re plan e fro m th e co rners to wa rd the m iddl e wh en wo rking o n th e ends . Afte r yo u ' re fini sh ed . usc a sc ra p bl ock o f woo d with 120 -grit sa ndpa pe r wrapped aro un d it to smoot h aw ay th e fac eted plane marks. You ca n also use this scra tc h tool to c u t beadi ng o n seve ra l o the r p iec e s sho w n in th is b ook, s uc h as th e backs of th e co nt inuo us -arm a nd o va l-back Windso rs on p. 120 . The flat fe nce o f this tool will not work o n the inside edge of a pi ec e o f be nt wo od . tho ug h, s uc h as o n th e be nt b ac ks o f th e Win dso r c ha irs. To c ut a bead o n th e se c u rve d s u rfaces , yo u 'll ha ve to mak e a no the r tool wi th a round ed fence so that it ca n c ut o n the in sid e of a radius .
Thc body of thc serureh tool uets II'" II handle lind 1I fcncc (top). Pu ah or pull thc tool firml~' "A"in",t the edge of thc drawer front. Thc s lo t in thc s c r e w will cut 1I nur r'nw ArllO\·c. about ,/,. in. deep, c,icctinA thc chip "'" it creates thc Aroo\·c. Usc 1I smatl pllrting tool to .jo i n thc Aroc}\'c", lit t hc e e r ne r s (.. hove], Thcn with 1I block ptanc, round thc a rri ", of each cdAc (riAht).
- - 174 - -
CIIf
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Co rn e r bruce, l\lned and nai led to l\lIle bl o c ks
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Unci, View
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a t front
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I'A TTElt~ H>It mtA(;KET UASE ( ;rid: \4 in . = I in.
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17() -
SECTION B-B Sc ale: fl6 in . = 1 in . ~--- Slidin l!.
Y16- in. clearanc e to drawer top. 'YI6-in. to drawer s ide
l
0+- - - - - 1-
dovet ai l
Linc of drawer back when c lo se d
'M -in . dra we r fro nt
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Groove, J4 x J4 'I2-in. drawer bottom
SECTION AT C Sc ale : Y4 in. = 1 in .
'M -in. drawer runner
Carcase si de 'M- in . drawer divider Drawe r di vider with Y4-in. haunch for facing st ri p