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Friday, February 20, 2009

The Many Pahs To Modern Design



It’s very possible that the modern leather sofa you buy today will someday be found in the same category as your great-grandfather’s antique Chippendale settee. Not because they resemble each other in any way, but because they were both products of an era of innovative design in home furnishings.

In fact, to some degree, “Modern” designs of the 20th century are already starting to be considered classics. The recent beginning of a new millennium has contributed to a nostalgic re-assessment of the furniture styles we grew up with. Modernism and Retro, two overlapping but distinctive looks, are hugely popular categories in today’s home furnishings and interior design.

A Few Definitions
It’s easy to get the terms mixed up but, in brief, Modernism refers to highly refined, minimalist furniture that’s part and parcel of 20th century modern art and architecture. There are great architects and designers associated with this era: Gropius, van der Rohe, Breuer, Aalto, Eames, and Saarinen are just a few of the best.



The influence of modern architecture on furniture design is clearly seen here.

Retro (short for retrospective) looks back through a different lens. It’s on the same timeline as Modern, but doesn’t take itself so seriously. There’s a touch of humor with Retro, with styles that look back to the 1930s Art Deco and 1950s sitcoms. In fact, old movies and television and the nostalgic attitudes they inspire have as much to do with retro as style or time period, so don’t be confused or dismayed by the blurred boundaries between Retro and Modern.

To add to the mix, there’s so-called “Contemporary” styling, a signature trend right now. That includes "lifestyle furniture,” with easy lines that appeal to a wide range of tastes and personal styles. Lifestyle is the sports utility vehicle of home furnishings: in-style, popular, comfortable and family-friendly all at the same time.


Mission sensibilities begin to give way to Modern ideas in this Transitional Bedroom


20th Century Energy
Modern, Retro and Contemporary have their differences, but they also share a 20th century energy. It all began with artists, architects and furniture designers seeking a way to shed the stuffy, over-decorated style of the Victorian era. At the end of the 1900s, two alternatives arose. The first was the Arts and Crafts (or Mission) Style noted for clean lines, honest craftsmanship and integrity of construction and materials. The second (and radically different) influence was Art Nouveau, a curvilinear style inspired by the organic curves of flowers, vines and tendrils. Although Arts and Crafts and Art Nouveau precede the Modernist/Retro era, they definitely helped set the stage for a new century of design ideas and a fresh way of interpreting home and interior design.

Art Deco and Modern Times
In the years between the two world wars, a new set of design trends developed. In a world that was becoming increasingly enamored with speed and technology, designers rediscovered the beauty of simple geometric forms. Characterized by its liberal use of circles, triangles and parallel lines, Art Deco spread like wildfire from France, throughout Europe and, finally, to the US. From road-side diners to Radio City Music Hall, exuberant Art Deco ruled the landscape, literally and figuratively, in the 1920s and 30s. Think: Chrysler Building, Busby Berkeley movie musicals, the paintings and bronzes of Erte.


The tenets of Art Nouveau and Art Deco find common ground in this Modernist casual dining room group.


Controlled, rounded lines characterize early Art Deco, but the look grew slimmer, sleeker and less decorated over time. Later, Art Deco came to be known as “Moderne,” and it was this look that gradually led into what today we call Modern design. Modernism’s other great influence grew out of the minimalist design aesthetic known as International Style, which was taking root in Europe, most famously at Germany’s Bauhaus School of Art and Design. Like their Mission predecessors, the modernists were committed to integrity and utter simplicity in design: “less is more,” in the words of architect and designer Mies van der Rohe. But both Art Deco and Modern evolved via technologies and materials that fostered creative and innovative design ideas.

Modern’s next huge step came after World War II, when Scandinavian, Italian and American designers began creating strong, clean-lined and startling furniture. Whether the squared-off Danish Modern teak pieces, or the brilliant and dramatic designs of Charles and Ray Eames and other “Mid-Century Modernists,” the era set the stage for the remainder of the 20th century, marked by a feeling that there were no rules that couldn’t be broken and, in fact, most rules SHOULD be broken at least once. The best of these great designs are held in the highest esteem by today’s collectors and interior designers.

Mid-Century Modern style for today's tastes.

So What’s Contemporary?
Casual Contemporary is today’s preferred look, family-friendly and casually sophisticated. Its lean lines and strong silhouettes are indebted to modern design, but relaxed a bit for comfort and ease. Comfort also prevails in sofas and chairs, with softened fabrics and oversized styling for cocooning. The simple lines of Casual Contemporary may be distilled from Mission, American Country or Shaker design, but with an updating of materials, construction and styling for today’s tastes. Casual Contemporary takes its place in the stream of 20th century design as the final big design trend before the end of the millennium. Because the best of Contemporary design tends to be a melding of the influences that preceded it throughout the 20th century, it is a malleable force in today’s interiors, allowing you to express your individuality without sacrificing comfort, elegance or quality of craftsmanship.


Casual Contemporary brings many of the distinct design ideas of the 20th century together. The result? The marrige of style and comfort!

If it’s true that “everything old is new again,” then we can be assured that 20th century design will endure, and will find its place among the great and timeless classics of past centuries. PY/CDR


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Sometimes More is More


Interior design always swings between extremes: simple or opulent, delicate or bulky, straight or rounded. It’s been going on like that for centuries, and we’re currently in an era of “less is more.” We’ve become conditioned to prefer the pared-down, the sleek – but the bravest among us isn’t afraid to admit to the guilty pleasures inspired by the luxurious styles and decorative designs ideals rooted in the Victorian era.

Be honest: what’s the first thing that comes to mind when you hear the phrase “Victorian furniture?” Over-the-top pieces, dripping with carved angels and covered in dark velvet and gold paint, right? Well, while the Victorians certainly weren’t shy about ornamentation, there was a lot more that came out of that era (roughly 1830 to the beginning of the twentieth century) which coincides with the long, prosperous reign of Britain’s Queen Victoria. But to understand the Victorian era and the design trends that sprang from it, you have to understand the society of the day.

The first half of the nineteenth century was driven by social change. In America, England, and Europe, aristocratic and formal styles began to give way to furniture that was simpler, more democratic in design and affordable to a growing middle class. The Industrial Revolution meant that larger factories began to elbow their way in beside the smaller artisans’ workshops, using mass-production techniques that created an ever-increasing range of styles and decoration. Manufacturers made design decisions to take advantage of the new machinery that could imitate handcrafted woodworking and decoration. And more people, employed in the rapidly multiplying factories, had discretionary income to spend on the new lower-priced furniture for their homes.


Echos of the Rennaisance Revival movement
can be found in the burled oval insets of this bedroom collection.


Setting the Stage
Technology may have set the stage, but the bottom line for many middle class Victorians was that opulent styles became affordable. This phenomenon contributed to a renewed fascination with historical styles and designs from previous eras. The impulse to “look back” wasn’t invented by the Victorians, of course, but certainly took root in the beginning of the 19th century. English, American and French styles during those years were influenced by excavations of Pompeii and other Roman ruins. Bookcases and sideboards came to resemble temple facades, sofas took the shape of Roman chaises and, in general, furniture bu
lked up to resemble the massive architecture it was emulating. The Victorians changed focus from ancient civilization, but their design continued to be fueled by earlier eras.

The first true Victorian style in England was Neo-Gothic design, arriving around 1830 with a heavy emphasis on the medieval era. The style is most closely associated with the architect Augustus Pugin, who with his father used Gothic motifs in designing London’s Houses of Parliament. Dark woods, pointed arches, trefoils (a shape similar to three-leaf clover) and other Gothic cathedral carvings recalled the dedication of medieval craftsman and implied moral character.

Reviving Rococo and Renaissance
From 1850 to 1870, popular taste turned to a more romantic form known as “Rococo Revival.” This furniture looked back to eighteenth century France with swirling lines, natural motifs like fruit and flowers, and dark woods like mahogany, rosewood and black walnut. Furniture had gilt and marble accents, carved leaf or fruit drawer pulls, serpentine fronts and rounded tops and corners. Parlor seating featured cabriole legs, curved backs with carved oval insets, and rich, opulent fabrics. Cabinetmaker John Henry Belter, whose highly ornamented designs set the standard and were widely (and sometimes badly) imitated, is most prominently associated with the period.

The overlapping Renaissance Revival (roughly 1860-1880) offered a different set of options. Curvy cabriole legs were replaced with straight, turned or fluted legs and massive squared-off silhouettes ruled.

This marble-topped dresser
shows the elements of Rococo Revival design.



There was no lack of ego in this look; huge sideboards, beds and armoires that approached ceiling height were among the most extravagant pieces. Burl panels, carved crests, medallions, pediments, finials and bronze and brass accents replaced rococo carved flowers and fruit motifs. Such decorative elements took on a life of their own and were often lavishly added to poorly made furniture to give it a little more “class.”

During the 1850s and ‘60s, other trends took root. Patterned wallpapers and large-design wall-to-wall carpeting were mass produced, becoming increasingly available and desirable. Window treatments became more important, more layered and architectural, more opulent. For the first time, furniture was sold in suites: matched pieces for the parlor, dining room or bedroom.

Alternatives to Opulence.

As in current times, there was an alternative to opulence. In the 1840s, Cottage furniture surfaced as the less expensive, less formal option for working class homes, rustic getaways, and even the for the porches and solariums of the massive seaside “cottages” of communities like Newport, Rhode Island. Though simpler in design, and often crafted from less expensive woods, these pieces were anything but plain, often given light or pastel colors, then embellished with hand-painted or stenciled designs. Like gingerbread houses, this furniture sought to be conspicuously quaint, personal and intimate. These homey looks remained popular to the end of the century and beyond. They relate to the Adirondack style popularized at the turn of the century, and enjoying a strong revival today.


Cottage furniture wasn’t the only reaction to the ornate sensibilities of Victorian style. In the early 1870s, Charles Eastlake’s rejection of the overblown and excessive furniture had traveled from Great Britain to America. His call for honest furniture design resulted in more modestly scaled pieces with relatively (for the time) simple decoration such as carved geometric motifs, incised lines and modest painted accents. Golden oak replaced darker woods and for the first time, mail order furniture became available, sending a wave of Eastlake’s affordable factory-made furniture into homes across the country.

Sumptuous fabrics and trims are presented in
this modern interpretation of a classic Victorian sofa.


The final 25 years of the nineteenth century kept much of what had gone before, as well as a riot of new options. In the United States, the 1876 Centennial of the American Revolution fostered a Colonial revival, a Victorian’s look back at the eighteenth century. The Aesthetic movement was influenced by the fascination with all things Japanese – delicate bamboo and wicker furniture, folding screens and fans provided relief from the darker, heavier Victorian formality, as did the exotic touches of Oriental carpets, indoor plants and silk wallpapers and lampshades. By the 1890s, the circle was complete, with the curved lines of Rococo Revival giving birth to the simplified curves of the Art Nouveau style, and the chunkier geometric elements of Gothic Revival making way first for the straightened and geometric flavors of Eastlake, and then for simpler-yet squareness of the Arts and Crafts (or Mission) movement.

The importance of technology in furniture manufacturing as a factor in design trends cannot be overstated. Big cities like New York, Philadelphia and Boston set the trends, and small town manufacturers across the country fell into formation and began to produce the “newest looks,” taking advantage of a constantly improving set of manufacturing techniques and technologies. Routing and stamping echoed the look of hand-carving. Spool beds developed as power lathes made it possible to turn out miles of simple turnings at a fraction of what they had cost to produce in the recent past. A process developed by German inventor/designer Michael Thonet for steam bending wood was used by manufacturers across the country to produce simple, intriguing bentwood chairs, rockers and beds, laying the ground work for the twentieth century’s modernist movements.


Coinciding with our nation's 100th birthday, the Colonial Revival design movement re-interpretted classic
Colonial furniture through the somewhat more florid
lens of Victorian tastes.

If we can step outside of our own realities for a moment, it’s not really hard to understand why a newly-monied nineteenth-century middle class rushed to embrace a suddenly-affordable, opulent style, even with its occasional excesses. The concept of “less is more” would have baffled them as a conceit of the wealthiest. Hard-lived lives had taught them that less was, in fact, less, and they cannot be faulted for wanting to see for themselves what it was like to have “more.” PY/CDR


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Sunday, February 8, 2009

Your First Home

Do's and Dont's when Decorating on a Budget

Congratulations on your new home! Whether you’ve just bought your first home or signed the lease on your first apartment, it’s exciting to create a special place of your own. Just remember to take it slow. Interesting interiors are created in layers, evolving as things are added and removed over time.

To help you get started, we’ve collected the following ideas for affordable ambiance.

DO: Make a budget, either for the whole living space or by individual room. Then create a list of what you have, what you need, and what you’d like to upgrade.

DON’T: Feel as if you have to fill each room with furniture right away. Versatile pieces, such as Parsons chairs, can float between rooms—from dining, to home office, to the living room when you’re entertaining guests.


DO: Visit your local library for books on decorating and
style. While you’re there, be sure to check out the period
icals section and peruse the magazines. Make a photocopy of anything that grabs you.

DON’T: Accept any hand-me-down furnishings you don’t like. These unwanted dinosaurs won’t inspire your imagination the way empty rooms can. Live with the open space for a while and consider what type of atmosphere you’d like to create.

Double Duty. Dining chairs, like these
versatile Parsons chairs can be easily
moved from room to room as the needs of
your household change.

DO
: Make a list of what a room will be used for and shop for furnishings that combine several of them. For example, a sofa table is the perfect height to use as a small bar or buffet when you entertain.

DO: Focus on finding a terrific looking bed to make the bedroom feel complete. Everything else—dressers, nightstands and chests—can be added over time. An eclectic mix will make your home cozy and unique.

DO: Bring unique style to your home by decorating with garden ornaments, architectural elements and old building parts. They’re often cheap, and always distinctive. Check your phone book for salvage yards and antique stores.

DO: Place a bookcase in the dining area to hold china and serving pieces. Later, when you upgrade to a china cabinet or sideboard, the bookcase can easily transition to another area of your home.

DO
: Create your own artwork. Add a frame to anything—a leaf from the yard or a photo from last year’s wall calendar—and voila, it’s art. For inexpensive frames, look in discount stores for framed prints. Remove the back (needle-nosepliers are terrific for pulling out large staples)
and replace what they’ve framed with something of your own.

Fantastic Focal Point. A terrific looking bed can
make even a sparsely furnished bedroom feel
complete. An eclectic mix of other pieces can be
added over time, as your budget allows.

DO: Sell furnishings you don’t like at a consignment store or website, such as eBay or craigslist. Use the money you make for the furniture you really want.

DO: Choose a dining table that will give you choices later. When it’s time to redecorate or move to a larger home, you may find your smaller scale table, or table with a removable expansion leaf, is just right for the kitchen or another room.

DON’T: Limit your decorating scheme to the existing layout of electrical outlets or phone jacks. Paying to move these features to where you want them is an investment in convenience you’ll appreciate over and over again.

One final note, don’t try to make a room work too hard. Write down all of your brainstorms for a specific space, and then edit the list to one or two solid ideas. Sometimes the key to decorating is in what you remove, not what you add. And if you’re like most people, you’ll continue to fiddle with your rooms until the next time you move. Until then, enjoy your new home.



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TOOLS AND TECHNIQUES 1600-1840

TOOLS AND TECHNIQUES 1600-1840

by Dr Clive Edwards



Fundamental to the understanding of furniture is an interest in the continuities and changes in the use of tools, and the application of techniques to furniture making. The development of tools over a long period established ‘type-forms' that often remain the basis of hand tools (and in many cases powered versions) that are used today. Although most tools could be purchased from tool suppliers, there has been, and still is, a tradition of furniture-makers devising and making their own versions of tools for their own use. These included for example, bevels, braces, clamps, scratch stocks, moulding boxes, saw frames, gauges, lathes, planes and squares. This article briefly traces the development of the various processes and associated tools, from cutting out and shaping, construction and assembly and decoration in the period 1600-1840.

Cutting and shaping

The processes of cutting and shaping timber to the sizes and shapes required for individual pieces are of course many and varied, but they do follow a simple path. Tools such as the mitre and try squares used for setting out are part of the preparation. Home-made wooden versions of these tools were common. The use of marking gauges facilitated preparation. These were marking tools that usually used a fixed pin, a fence and a stem. They were first used in the late sixteenth century with an unfixed fence. By the eighteenth century, the fence was held in place by a wedge (still favoured for home made versions). By the early nineteenth century the thumb screw fixing occurs and has become standard.

Once marked out, the timber needed to be cut to shape. Straightforward cutting to length used an appropriate saw, but if cutting curves, a bow saw was employed. This frame saw (which could vary in size) tensioned its blade by using a twisted cord and toggle stick. The blade is fixed so it can be turned to any angle in relation to the frame. Once used to cut veneers with a very fine saw blade they are now usually associated with cutting curved pieces. They may be made by a craftsman for their own use or factory bought.

Once the shapes had been roughly cut out the pieces were planed smooth.

Planes operate as shaping tools, fitting tools and finishing tools. The use of plane for shaping diminished over the period as sawn timber of a variety of thicknesses became available. For fitting purposes, the trying or jointing plane was most common as they finished the edges of boards to be butted together. The rebate plane was used for smaller work such as cutting rebates. These planes, usually with a wooden stock, were often made by the furniture craftsmen. Another example might be the 'Old woman's tooth', a term for a router plane that removes housing waste from grooved work or deepening flat sections in carving. These again may be home made.

Mechanised saws, and planing machines had been developed by simply trying to replicate the reciprocating human action and in 1776, the first machine was invented by Leonard Hatton. Bentham improved upon this patent, first with a reciprocating plane and then with one based on the rotary principle. Later models, all had horizontal cutter blocks in place of the vertical spindle. All subsequent planing machines were then based on the rotary knife principle.

The introduction of band-saws originated with an invention by William Newberry in 1808. However, it was not until the success of a Msr. Perin of Paris, who produced a band-saw blade that lasted reasonably well, that the machine was viable and operated satisfactorily. The fretsaw, jig, or scroll saw, developed from the simple marquetry cutter's saw during the nineteenth century, was one of the simplest and most useful tools for the cabinetmaker. Often treadle-operated with a single blade, it could cut out intricate shapes, and satisfy the demand for the most elaborate decoration.

Turning was also an important part of the furniture makers' repertoire and was often carried out by a specialist. Until the early seventeenth century, turnings were produced on dead-centre lathes, driven by treadle or wheel or on the pole lathe. For much of the century, knob and ring turning and bobbin turning were repeated but towards the end of the century, there were some contrivances introduced that allowed a twist or spiral to be put in on the lathe rather than by using hand-rasping to achieve the effect.

As changes in the economics of the industry occurred, developments in powered machinery began that had an impact on both preparing and assembling. In 1805, Brunel took out a patent for large circular saws particularly associated with veneer-cutting and in 1807 developed the saw further in association with block-making machinery. However, one of the most important developments was not on this scale at all. The small circular saw of up to seven inches diameter, often operated by a treadle, was one of the keys to the success of small-scale furniture makers. This saw enabled makers of cheap furniture to square up, mitre and rabbet cleanly, accurately, and quickly, allowing the frames of cheap carcase work to be simply rebated and nailed. This method of rebating, using a circular saw, was particularly useful for drawer-making which was traditionally a place for using dovetail joints. The advantage of this cheap method was that a dozen drawers could be made in the time it took to dovetail joint just one.

Construction and assembly
Fundamental changes in construction occurred during the seventeenth century with the use of veneers, dovetail jointing and improved drawer construction. However, distinctions between joinery and cabinet-making can be rather arbitrary as cabinet-makers used mortise and tenon joints for example, and joiners used dovetails, but the refinement was really in the change from working with solid wood, using joinery techniques, to cabinet-making using the skills of fine jointing, veneering and flush-carcase making.

As has been indicated, cabinet-making was based on the application of veneers onto a pre-formed carcase which was hidden beneath the surface. The basic principle of this kind of work is the construction of a rigid carcase, often using dovetail joints, to which a number of other items including doors, drawers and fall-flaps may be fitted. The revival of veneering in association with this method of working meant that less important timbers could be used for the carcase and the expensive exotic timbers could be used sparingly for surface decoration. Once the basic cabinet-making methods were established various developments and changes were made as tastes and demand required.

One process of construction that continued without question was the use of plies and laminates of wood for the construction of chair splats and fretted galleries. The use of plies in mid-eighteenth century work was merely a solution to a problem; it was not seen as a momentous technical advance. It was evidently common practice for larger plies to be used as well. Sheraton describes the construction of his Universal table by saying '...the panels are sometimes glued up in three thicknesses, the middle piece being laid with the grain across, and the other two lengthways of the panel to prevent it warping.' Developments that are more deliberate occurred in the work of Chapius in Belgium, and Samuel Gragg in the United States. Both men made chairs with bentwood components but the process was subordinate to the ruling taste in design terms. Tambour doors were introduced from France in the latter part of the century and were used as decorative falls or covers for night tables, pot cupboards and desks.

The mechanisation of the process of joint cutting that traditionally used saws and chisels originated with Bentham and his comprehensive patents of 1791 and 1793, but the methods were not commercially viable until the 1850s. Developments such as the leg moulding boxes used for holding legs while being moulded, fluted or grooved for inlay were pragmatic examples of solutions to practical problems. In this case, the piece to be worked was held in the box with a screw or wedges so that a scratch stock could mark out the work along the axis of the leg.

Decoration

Decoration includes veneering, carving and the use of mouldings and inlays. Veneering, which has a very long history, was the process that distinguished the cabinet maker from the joiner in the later seventeenth century and onward. The basic process of applying veneers to surfaces involves a few simple tools and the requisite materials. There are two traditional methods of hand laying veneers, by the hammer or by the caul. The hammer method was used for simple flat work with pliable and mild veneers. The process involved the warming of both the veneer and the base, followed by the spreading of glue to both surfaces. The veneer was then rubbed down onto the base and the hammer was applied to the surface, thus removing all the air to obtain a good adhesion. The caul method is based on applying heat and pressure to the veneer in relation to the shape, dimension and form of the base. In the eighteenth century, the cauls would be made of sandbags which were especially suitable for round or hollow work; otherwise, they would be especially constructed, often out of pinewood, to fit those pieces to be veneered. The pressure required to bond the two parts might be obtained by go-bars.

By the nineteenth century, these veneering practices which had endured since the seventeenth century were beginning to be inadequate for the larger volume of furniture being made during the nineteenth century. As with machine tools, large manufactories used steam power to heat the cauls which were largely made up from iron boxes with screws and clamps. Shops without steam power used a thick iron plate heated with gas jets in the same way. In contrast, the manual method which involved the prepared panels being put in a press, and then held down by planks and poles which abutted against the beams of the workshop, continued to be used.



As one of the most important decorative elements of furniture throughout many periods and in many locations, furniture carving has ranged from the most elementary scratch marks through to full-scale sculptural work. Carving methods varied widely (see below) so that only simple tools were required for basic jobs e.g. gouges and chisels, whilst more complicated work required a range of other chisel types, rasps, and punches. The specialist tools used included the carver's bench screw, designed to hold wood blocks secure with free access; the carver's clip which when used in pairs secured work on a bench; a wider range of carving chisels (over 1000 variations); a carver's cramp; a selection of chip carving knifes; a carver's mallet, a router plane for the flat recessed parts of work; a range of carvers' punches (with a variety of designs on their ends), and the riffler (a double-ended file used for smoothing curved parts).

The use of mouldings is generally decorative but they have a very early origin as most designs were based on prototypes established by classical architecture. Originally, they were cut into solid wood, but with the advent of panelled construction, they could also be applied. The application of decorative mouldings to carcase furniture, ranging from a simple cock bead to a drawer front, through to an elaborate built-up cornice, meant that techniques of producing mouldings changed in relation to prevailing styles. Mouldings were usually applied in two forms. In one case they were built up on a backing of inferior wood; alternatively they were produced as a composite of several simpler moulded shapes, thus offering a large variety of decorative possibilities, relatively simply. Particular developments included wave moulding where a wave-moulding machine was developed. It mechanically produced an undulating reeded band by a process akin to copying a template model. This particular moulding was often executed in ebony or ivory or stained sycamore. Moxon described its operation:

"as the rounds of the rack ride over the round edge of the flat iron, the rack and riglet will mount up the iron, and as the rounds of the waves on the underside of the rack slides off the iron on edge, the rack and riglet will sink and so in progression .... The riglet will on its upper side receive the form of several waves." (1703, pp. 106-7)

The hand worked moulding tools were initially made by the cabinet-maker himself but as the demand grew, specialist moulding-plane makers set up in business. The plane-maker was usually able to make any profile of cut to a customer's requirements, whilst the home-made scratch stock or standard irons continued to be used for the more simple mouldings. The standardisation of moulding planes occurred around 1770, but this did not mean a limiting of variety. Some American woodworking shops had as many as one hundred and forty-three varieties of moulding plane in their tool collection.

Nevertheless moulding mills were established during the 1840s in England particularly to take advantage of Muir's 1827 patent mechanism and the abundant supplies of Canadian yellow pine that were generally soft to work and free of knots.

Machines that allowed a cabinetmaker to produce the decoration for his own work included the spindle or toupie moulder. It was said that it was particularly useful for Gothic or medieval work ‘as more chamfering can be done by it in one hour than could be done by handwork in a day'.

The use of machines in the conversion of raw material and the construction of furniture during the nineteenth century is a story of both important changes and minor developments. The development of machines for preparing and shaping timber. (planers, mortisers, borers, dovetail-cutters and veneer cutters) was the most important change which affected all woodworking industries, including particularly shipbuilding and house building. Machines for processing and shaping parts (band-saws, fretsaws and lathes) were also being used in larger quantities as was the third category of machines, (embossers, moulders, and carving machines), that produced decoration.

The story of furniture making tools is an example of evolution, pragmatic development and eventually, a transition to mechanisation in response to changed demands.


Further Reading:

Edwards, C. D. (2000), Encyclopaedia of Furniture Materials Trades and Techniques Aldershot: Ashgate
Gaynor, J. M. and N. L. Hagedorn, (1993) Tools: Working wood in eighteenth century America, Williamsburg: Colonial Williamsburg Foundation.
Rees, Jane and Mark, (1994) The Tool Chest of Benjamin Seaton, Tools and Trades History Society.
Salaman, R. A. (1989, Revd. Ed.) Dictionary of Woodworking Tools, London: Unwin Hyman.

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