Q: I have an 1800s sewing rocker I would like to know more about. A: Your rocking chair is not a sewing rocker. A sewing rocker doesn't have arms, making it easier for someone to use when sewing or knitting. If the leather insert in the seat covers a hole, your rocking chair was probably originally a potty chair with a removable pot underneath. These were popular until around 1900, when flush toilets became common and many old potty chairs were altered to be used as regular chairs. Login to leave a comment. is pleased to share your comments. Your postings may be reprinted elsewhere on the site or in our print publications. We encourage a variety of opinions, but ask that you refrain from profanity and hate speech. Please remember that your username will appear with any comments you post. Get The Latest Collecting News Every Week for FREE! Enter your email below to receive Kovels Komments for the latest antiques & collectibles news, answers to readers questions, marks and tips.
In your inbox every Wednesday. You can unsubscribe at any time. Please refer to our Privacy Policy or Contact us for more information. Current IssueKovels on Antiques & Collectibles Vo… Buyer's Price GuideFebruary 2017 Prices HotlineMost Expensive Birkin Bag at Auction TipsOnions for Scorch Marks Words of Wisdom (Letter to Lee)What Kind of Collector Are You? The following is a partial list of chair types, with internal or external cross-references about most of the chairs. Barrel chair, c. 1465, Raversijde, Belgium An example of Elijah's chair, used at Jewish circumcisions A reproduction Glastonbury chair in the Bishop's Palace, Wells High chair by Cosco, 1957 "Pop" (2005), A whimsical variation of a patio chair by the American industrial designer Brad AscalonThe American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition. Children ChairsChairs KidsOld Rocking ChairsRocking Chair RockerDisney Rocking ChairPainted Rocking Chair IdeasChildrens Rocking ChairsKids Rocking ChairForwardMinnie Mouse rocking chair!!!
I have an old rocking chair I need to do this too except in pink & black <3 Is it Worth the Cost to Reupholster Old Furniture?Where can I get wooden dining room chairs repaired?What can you do about flattened down Leather Sofa Cushions? Hello, this is Kiel with Angie's List. and searching for the category Furniture Repair to see our top rated providers in that area. for more information on the right provider for the job. Mon-Fri: 8:30am – 8:15pm ET Sat: 8:30am – 3:00pm ET Thanks so much!Get it by Thu, Feb 23 Get it by Thu, Feb 23 Lewys Fabric Arm Chair Get it by Tue, Feb 21 Cedar Creek Solid Wood Folding Rocking Chair Magness Rocking Arm Chair Outdoor Traditional Rocking Chair Dollison Rocking Chair with Arms More Options: Fabric » Sandstone Rattan Swivel Rocker Five Acres Rocking Chair Get it by Tue, Feb 21Receive Free Shipping Every Day on Orders of $35 or More. Click Here to Learn How! Receive Free Shipping Every Day.
Sign up for price alert Budget pleasing leather look a likes. Made of an extremely durable fiber and polymer blend that looks like leather when finished. Easy to stain or top coat, as shown.Although there are examples of a few early antique rocking chairs in England, they were not commonly made and used in England or America until the mid 18th century. An antique rocking chair is one that is more than 100 years old. Therefore, antique rocking chairs date from the 18th, 19th and early 20th centuries. To identify the country of origin, style and date, examine all aspects of the chair and compare that information to find similar chairs with known historical information. Step 1 Identify any exact details you might have about your antique rocking chair. This might include finding a label under the seat or a bill of sale, or having a verbal comment as to when it was purchased or received as a gift. This information is extremely helpful for dating antique furniture, but it is often not available.
Step 2 Examine your antique rocking chair carefully. Gather information about how it was made. Consider the type of wood the rocker made from, how the joints are connected, and whether the finish is shellac, varnish, lacquer, paint or wax. These clues help determine where and when it was made. Chairs that have nails with uneven heads are older than chairs that might use machine-made nails from the 19th or 20th centuries. Maple and cherry furniture are usually American. In England, 19th century Windsor chairs were usually unfinished and waxed, whereas in America, Windsor chairs were usually painted. Varnish and lacquer were not used until about 1860. Before that, shellac was the surface finish.Step 3 Think about the overall design of your antique rocking chair. Consider if the overall shape is heavy or light. Decide if the decoration on your antique chair is floral or geometric and if the decoration is low relief or high relief. Early Neoclassical chairs, made in America from about 1780 to 1800, were lightweight, mostly straight lines, with low relief and inlaid decoration.
In contrast, a Victorian chair from the 1860s is heavy, curvilinear, with high-relief carving.Step 4 Gather together all of your notes and begin searching for antique rocking chairs similar to yours. Begin with antique furniture history books. After that, use other furniture identification resources such as antique shops and online antique malls. Antique exhibits, often held as fundraisers for various nonprofits, also are filled with learning opportunities. Furniture from many time periods is displayed and exhibitors often are pleased to share their knowledge with another antique enthusiast.Step 1: Plan of ActionShow All ItemsPainted Bentwood RockerBentwood Rockers ChairsBentwood Rocker NurseryBentwood WickerBentwood Rocking ChairThonet RockerGrandma'S RockerNursery Rocking ChairVintage BentwoodForwardOr don't paint, clean it up, leave it naturally distressed, and toss on a cushion and throw. Def the easiest option...When I discovered this old rocking chair collecting dust in the attic, unused and forgotten for over 30 years, I instinctively knew it deserved better.
I remembered this chair hanging around the house as a kid growing up in small town Pennsylvania. I’m not really sure where it came from – it may have been in my mom’s family but that’s just speculation. What I do know is that my brothers and I treated the chair as more of a play piece rather than a piece of fine furniture so it acquired more than its fair share of dents and scratches. At some point, the worn-out chair was relegated to the attic where it patiently waited, as rocking chairs often do, for someone to come along and put it back in service. This rocking chair is made from white oak and generally conforms to the Mission style (some would say Arts and Crafts), although the turned front legs impart a certain ornateness that is not characteristic of Mission style furniture. According to a couple antique dealers that I spoke with, the chair dates to the early 1900’s, perhaps 1920 at the latest. The dealers told me the chair wasn’t worth much – perhaps $100 to $150 at most.
But to me, it had sentimental value and I liked the way it sat – the perfect chair for the man cave. All it needed was a little restorative TLC. Fortunately, the basic structure of the chair was sound and the damage was mostly superficial – just the afore-mentioned dents and scratches. The heart and soul of the chair was intact. I had a vision for this chair… The finish on the chair had darkened considerably over the years which is fairly typical for old furniture. But, there was no blistering, water damage, etc. Not too surprisingly, most of the damage was confined to the rockers although this damage was primarily scratches and dings. No splits or missing chunks of wood. The underside of the seat was covered with a piece of cloth that had become stained over the years, especially around the rusty nails holding the cloth in place. The first job was to disassemble the chair. Surprisingly, many of the joints were held together with old fashioned slotted wood screws so they came apart quickly and easily.
This included the runners, the back of the arms, and the top rail. These joints were still tight and showed no signs of wear. The seat framework was held together with double dowel joints which necessitated a bit more effort to dissemble. This task involved liberal applications of denatured alcohol to dissolve the old hide glue, followed by well placed taps with a leather-faced mallet. To my relief, all of the joints came apart cleanly and none of the dowels was damaged. The biggest part of this restoration job was stripping off the remaining old finish. Except for areas like the arms where the finish was worn off, most of the grain was obscured by a dark, walnut-like coating. I suspect the original finish was fairly dark to begin with and that it got darker and darker over time. Some areas were so dark, it almost looked like a coat of black paint was applied somewhere along the way. To remove the old finish, I used a chemical paint stripper that came in gel form. This involved several iterations of applying stripper, waiting 15 minutes or so for it to dissolve the finish, and removing the dissolved finish via a combination of brass brushes, scrapers, and rags.
The stripped wood was wiped down with a rag soaked in paint thinner to remove any remaining traces of the stripping chemical. This was followed by a regimen of sanding to remove any remaining finish as well as dings and scratches. I didn’t attempt to sand out the really deep dings – that was too much work and besides, I figured they would lend more character to the chair. With all the parts cleaned and sanded, it didn’t take long to reassemble the chair. I reglued the dowel joints seat assembly using liquid hide glue. This will simplify any future repairs since hide glue is much easier to dissolve and remove than conventional wood glue. It also provides a slightly longer set time which makes for a less hurried assembly process. To finish the rocking chair, I first applied a single coat of Minwax Red Oak stain. I applied the stain with a cloth rag, allowed it to sit for 5-10 minutes and then wiped off the excess. Certain areas, such as the turned part of the front legs, had more exposed end grain and consequently soaked up more stain, making them considerably darker.
In retrospect, I probably should have applied a sealer to these areas to prevent them from becoming so dark but that’s water under the bridge. Besides, those areas will likely lighten a bit over time with a little sun exposure. After the stain dried, I brushed on a few coats of 2# shellac. This was followed by a sprayed on light coat of satin polyurethane. The poly provided a couple of benefits: It took away some of the harshness from the glossy shellac finish, creating a more natural hand-rubbed look (yes, I was too lazy to rub out the shellac). It also provided a bit more protection against water and alcohol, especially on the arms of the chair. By applying a dual shellac/polyurethane finish, I feel that I mostly preserved the vintage character of the chair (the shellac) while taking advantage of more modern technology (the polyurethane) to create a more protective finish. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it. The top of the front seat rail (stretcher?) had grooves rubbed into it on both the left and right sides.
One groove wasn’t too bad – maybe 1/8″ deep but the other groove was about a 1/4″ deep. I’m not sure how these grooves formed – perhaps a makeshift seat was used at some point that rested on the rail? I do know they were unsightly and needed fixing. I accomplished this by filling in the worn areas with epoxy mixed with a bit of wood dust. After the epoxy dried and the wood was stained, I took a black permanent marker and tried to simulate the wood grain as best I could. Although the fix wasn’t perfect, I thought it came out pretty darn good. It’s not obvious that a repair was made unless you’re looking for it. The seat on this rocking chair was long gone so I enlisted my wife’s upholstering expertise to create a new one. The seat support consisted of a piece of 5/8″ plywood that was cut to fit inside the seat frame, minus a quarter inch or so. This piece was covered with 2″ foam, followed by batting that covered the top and sides of the foam, followed by a brown, suede-like fabric that gives the seat a faux leather look.