How to Refinish and Repair an Antique Chair, Continued

Apply the stain with a brush, work it into the recesses, give it time to soak into the wood and then wipe off the excess. Working in sections, begin at the top and work downward. After the excess stain has been removed, allow it to dry overnight.

The next day, use a tack cloth to remove any particles of dust that may have settled on the wood overnight.

6. Apply shellac
Fast-drying shellac is a good choice for the first outside layer. This will seal in the stain before moving to the next step. Shellac is a totally natural product, and should only take about 30 minutes to dry.

After the shellac has dried, use a very fine steel wool to gently eliminate some of the sheen from the shellac. Try the finest steel wool you can find, like four-zero.

7. Glazing liquid
The next step is to apply a glazing liquid, which is basically a medium to carry color onto the chair. Add a colorant or tint to the glazing liquid. This will add some dark coloration to the carved recesses and will help highlight the details. The colorant will also give the chair an aged look by simulating the dirt and dust that would naturally have accumulated over decades of use. Remove all the excess tint with a soft cloth.

8. Varnish
Finally, apply a clear top coat of polyurethane varnish. This will protect the surface from wear, add a pleasing sheen and give the wood a feeling of depth.

9. Caning
After the wood is refinished, sometimes one last challenge remains. The chair that Ron worked with still needed a seat. They had the choice to cover the hole with a new seat pad or go for the full restoration and re-cane the chair seat. In this case, they chose to re-cane.

The cane that is used for weaving chair seats comes from the rattan plant, which is grown in Indonesia. This is the same material used to make rattan furniture. Rattan looks like bamboo on the outside but instead of being hollow like bamboo, it is solid. The outside bark of the rattan plant is removed in different widths and used to create the cane.

Caning is not particularly difficult, but it is very time consuming work and the steps are too complicated to explain here. There are several books and kits available for the do-it-yourselfer.

10. Final wax
After the caning is complete, the final step is to apply paste wax to the chair. This will not change the look of the chair, but is will give the wood a very good feeling. Apply the wax with a pad of steel wool again using the finest grade of #0000. Allow the wax to dry for a few minutes, and then buff it out with a soft cloth.

Shawna still had another one of the original chairs, so she set the unfinished chair next to the restored one. It is amazing to see the contrast when the two are viewed side by side.