14 November 2017
Hi Cool Kids,
I have an idea for a potentially fun morning’s work in week 9 depending on people’s availability and interest. After a delightful session repairing and restoring some antique chairs with a couple of your cohort it occurs to me that everyone might appreciate some practise and training in furniture repair. We can rummage in the furniture store for items that need love or you could bring your own project pieces or both. We can practise dowel-fitting, reshaping and replacing components, high-tension knots, clamping and wrap techniques (for holding it together while the glue dries), and discuss painting, staining and different types and applications for adhesives. This is for theatre-grade furniture repair, not museum- or consumer-grade, but a morning or a few hours may be all you need to get those chairs back to work at their primary job: being jumped on by actors.
Do let me know by reply if you’re interested, and which day(s) of week 9 you might be available for a morning or afternoon.
Thanks!
KG
17 November 2017
Hi Stage Managers,
Thank you to those who have replied with your availability. I’m happy to run a session Wednesday morning of week 9, the 29th of November starting at 10am. Please do let me know if you are keen to participate and haven’t already replied.
Do make sure you wear work clothes and steelies, tie long hair back, and bring your comfortable goggles and ear defenders if you have them (we can also lend you what we have). You may want to bring a notebook, pencil, camera-equipped calculator and your favourite tape measure, but please leave any other valuables somewhere safe and clean (like your scarf and coat; if it’s chilly we’ll put the heater on).
Also, as this is trial run please feel free to offer honest feedback during and after the session about what was or was not useful to you, what you’d like to see happen if we do it again, and anything else that could help it gel into something cool.
Kind regards,
KG
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Broken Chairs and You: Assessment, Repair and Restoration
Class Outline and Selected Definitions
29 November, 2017. 1000 to 1300
Starting Points, Equipment and Materials:
How was it made in the first place? What was it worth new? How much will it cost to repair?
Parts of the Chair. (Top Rail, Mid Rail, Stile, Leg, Corner Block, Seat, Spindle, Rung) (Draw and label)
Is it Broken, Dismantled, Weak or Squeaky? How does it need to be used?
Mould, Dry Rot and Decay (or when to just say no).
Whether to repair components or replace them—what is the line?
Two types of Dowel, Wedges. Appropriate use of Hardware, and Why to Avoid Brackets (Hint: they bend!)
Types of Adhesives: Flexible, Rigid, Expanding, Epoxy, Filler, Cyanoacrylate (why, and their cure times).
Pilot holes: Why? Where? How? And what to do about hairline cracks?
Use the Least Hazardous Product you can that is still effective.
Common Chair Materials:
Hardwoods: Oak, Maple, Hickory, Beech, Teak, Iroko (Mahogany), Eucalyptus (Grandis), Cherry. DURABLE.
Softwoods: Pine, Spruce, Cedar, Fir (and other evergreens) CHEAPER. Not usually good to use outdoors.
Sheet: Plywood, MDF, Particleboard, OSB (Sterling Board), Cardboard. OFTEN CHEAPER STILL except ply.
Plastics: Polyester, Polypropylene, Polyurethane, Polyethylene, Acrylic, Polycarbonate. RANGE OF QUALITIES.
Metals: Steel, aluminium, cheap chromed alloys. RANGE OF QUALITIES.
Holding It Together while the Glue Dries:
Clamping (padding, protecting clamps from adhesives, protecting furniture from the clamp)
Ropes for Knot Tying: Nylon, Polyester, Manila/Hemp, Polypropylene. No string.
Clove Hitch: a tight-fitting, simple and reliable knot, for attaching a line to a fixed object (such as a pipe)
Constrictor Knot: One more step beyond a Clove Hitch, this knot is self-tightening and difficult to remove.
Bowline: A permanent, slip-resistant loop that can be introduced anywhere in a system.
Trucker’s Hitch: a double-purchase system without pulleys, makes a very high-tension line.
Finishing: Painting, Staining, Scuffing, Scraping
Painting: If your furnishing has already been painted with a flat emulsion, paint it with another flat emulsion.
If your furnishing is multi-tonal, paint it all white or black before painting it again (prime it).
Staining and Varnishing: If your furnishing is a raw softwood and needs to be a hardwood-tone, select a stain and follow the instructions on the tin. For most solvent-based stains you will need GLOVES, GOGGLES, a RESPIRATOR and ruin-ready clothes. Be prepared to let it soak and then wipe off the excess. Once it is dry you should varnish, or glaze it. Use the Least Hazardous product you can that is still effective.
Scuffing: if your furnishing has been varnished but needs to be painted, you do not need to remove all of the varnish in order for the paint to stick. Use sandpaper to thoroughly scuff the varnish, or make a ‘tooth’ for the paint to hold onto. Sanding all the way down will often re-shape the wood and waste a lot of paper.
Scraping: If your item is varnished or painted and needs to be stained another colour, you will need to remove all of its existing coating. The easiest and most effective way is to scrape the varnish off with a heat gun and flat scraper. You will need leather gloves for this, a respirator and a very well ventilated space.
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29 November 2017
Dear T, S and E,
Thank you for participating in the furniture session today. I hope you enjoyed yourselves--I sure had fun! I still have bits of rope for you if you want or need it. Please do practice your Trucker's Hitch when you have nothing better to do (or when listening to podcasts!) I've attached an annotated picture of the hitch we worked on. Yes, that's a chair in my office. Does green on greyscale work for you?
I've attached my lesson plan, which includes a cheat-sheet about painting techniques, which we did not get to but that's absolutely fine. If you have any questions, or would like clarification or reminders about anything, please do feel free to ask.
I would appreciate your feedback about today's session when you have some time. Don't spare my feelings! Was it useful? What would be more useful? Was it relevant to your practice?
Kind regards and thanks again,
KG
6 December 2017
Hi KG,
Thank you for all your useful resources!
From my point of view, your session was very useful. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to stay for the whole duration of the session, but in the hours I was there for, it was really insightful and it taught me that there was more to fixing a chair rather than just drilling things back together.
I believe it would have been more useful if I had more time to spare to learn more things from you.
Fixing chairs is something I believe that is very useful for Stage Management. It's good to know basic knowledge when you can attempt to fix a chair onsite during a tech rehearsal rather wasting time to find the right person to fix the chair for the job. Also, it's just generally a great skill to have.
Thanks,
E
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