Arts and Crafts Mission Sofa and Chair Wood Magazine
Arts & Crafts End Without the Fumes
At Mount Springs Woodcraft, aniline dye and lacquer supersede turn-of-the-century fuming and shellac for the mission look.
Arts & Crafts Finish
Gustav Stickley's original Arts and crafts, or mission, furniture of quartersawn white oak was fumed to a dark brown. That's a process which involves ammonia fumes reacting with the wood's high tannic acid content in a sealed bedchamber. "This process is the only one known that acts upon the glassy pith rays as well every bit the softer parts of the forest, coloring all together in an even tone so that the figure is marked just by its difference in texture," Stickley wrote.
The fuming process, however, proves extremely dangerous—ammonia is harmful if its fumes are inhaled or it comes in contact with the skin. And the shellac used as a final finish on Stickley's mission furniture, while information technology added warmth to the wood's tone, won't hold up like today'due south finishes.
To capture the night await of Gustav Stickley'south article of furniture without the danger, Michael Schmitt and his family plough to h2o-soluble aniline dyes. And the mission pieces they create on their Arkansas mountaintop would turn Stickley'south head—each with a deep, warm clarity of colour that highlights the rays and flecks of the wood. Careful applications of toned lacquer contribute protection and smoothness. But the Schmitts' success also comes from dedication in preparation and an in-depth cognition of materials.
How to dye to perfection
Because the forest has been thoroughly smoothed before glue-up, the aniline dye solution (v parts hot h2o to ane office dye, with the dye first predissolved in a bit of denatured alcohol) raises the grain little after it's applied. And the staining with the showtime base coat, such as the "calorie-free fumed" aniline noted on the next folio, goes quickly.
Armed with sponges and oftentimes mitt sprayers, Michael'due south wife Judy, twins Alana and Jennifer, and son Chris carefully apply dye to every inch of wood, every bit shown beneath. And so, they allow the dyed associates to soak several minutes before drying it off with cloths and using compressed air to blow excess from seams and corners.
The Schmitt family teams upward toapply the first toning coat of awater-soluble dye solutionto an oak baby crib built in theArts and Crafts mode.
After the dyed pieces have stale for 12 to 24 hours, the crew lightly hand-sands them with gray nylon abrasive pads or quarter sheets of 320-grit. "The dye is very forgiving at this stage," notes Michael, "and they tin piece of work over any mistakes or missed mucilage spots and reapply the stain. It blends correct back into itself."
Next come two coats of the final aniline, a slightly different color to requite the piece depth and enhance the grain. "The but limit to how much aniline nosotros tin can put on from here is the saturation bespeak of the wood fibers," adds Judy. "Once they take absorbed all the dye they can have, it begins to build on the surface and looks dingy. When nosotros add more dye coats, we always let the wood dry thoroughly. Wet wood won't absorb dye."
Lacquer locks in the dye
"Earlier I start spraying lacquer," explains Michael, "we make certain the dye has completely dried. If it hasn't, moisture collects nether the surface film and the terminate deteriorates in just a few months. My helpers likewise lightly sand the dry, dyed wood with 400-grit to eliminate any final grain fuzzies."
To lock the dye in, Michael begins spraying with ii quick sealer coats of lacquer cut 50 percent with thinner. When the sealer has stale, Judy and the children over again sand with 320-grit silicon carbide paper. This sanding makes the sealer glaze absolutely smooth.
"Earlier the final lacquer, I spray on a toned glaze [Behlen Natural Glaze tinted with black, umber, and raw sienna glazing stain]. After it has dried for a few hours, I follow with from three semigloss lacquer coats on the surfaces of to the lowest degree wear to eight coats on tabletops," says Michael. Between each, the wood is sanded with 400-grit paper.
"Finally, after the sprayed pieces have dried for a day or so, we rub them out with Wool Lube [a rubbing lubricant made by Behlen] and h2o," Michael adds. "The overall effect is a piece that looks mellow, onetime, and comfortable anywhere it's placed. One-time Gustav would have been only as proud to put his proper noun on it as nosotros are."
The Schmitts' favorite aniline dyes
Water-soluble anilines are easy to work with, and their lightfastness (resistance to fading) rates higher than other types. Although there are several brands, the Schmitts use just those of J.E. Moser, bachelor from woodworking supply dealers, which makes more than a quart of stain with Michael's ratio. Listed below are the Moser aniline colors that give the perfect shades for their furniture, along with some of Michael'southward comments.
Light fumed. "For an fifty-fifty tone under the terminal color"
Medium fumed. "Used as above, merely has a greenish cast to create richer browns."
Night fumed. "As a final colour over either of the above."
English brown. "Similar to, merely richer in red and deeper in color, than Dark fumed."
Flemish brownish. "A terminal color that duplicates Stickley'southward deepest tone, which he called dark fumed. It grabs onto the quartersawn oak'south rays for breathtaking effects."
Flemish black. "A final-coat blackness with brown overtones. Not for the timid, and so try it on fleck first."
Source: https://www.woodmagazine.com/materials-guide/finishes/arts-crafts-finish-without-fumes
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