HOMES & FURNISHINGS

Dominion, Volume 26, Issue 301, 15 September 1933, Page 4

HOMES & FURNISHINGS

RENEWAL OF FLOOR SURFACES Stains and Varnishes: How to Apply Them METHODS OF REMOVING OLD POLISH An oft recurring problem to the home worker is that.of removing old stain-varnish-polish or paint, etc., from floors that have become unsightly through wear—bad preparatory treatment —or the continued application of cheap, quick-drying resinous stains. These latter, because of their unstable constituents, require to be applied almost weekly, and wear off in less than a week where subject to traffic. , There are many cases, too, where householders, in .the endear oui to better a bad original job, regularly apply coat after coat of shellac polish to keep the floor bright without the labour of wax polishing-. The spring is the logical time of the year to face this problem and, it possible, solve it permanently.

SMALL DRESSER Spring Job for Handy Amateur Builder CONSTRUCTION NOTES In spite o£ the fact that most new houses are provided with ample storage cabinets there are probably hundreds of houses which could usefully employ a narrow-dresser, such as illustrated on this page. In preparing the design attention has | also been paid to the requirements of those who may desire to make communication with an adjoining room by means of a servery, this being possible by piercing the wall just above the drawers. and fitting small sliding doors in the opening thus formed. If this work were carried out in a chimney recess then all end projections would be omitted from the dresser, and its carcase made to fit exactly into the available space. Included in requirements for.the job is a Oft. x 3ft. sheet of plywood for the back which, if purchased first, can be used on the reverse side as a setout board or rod. The most important drawing for this rod is a vertical section, similar to that illustrated. which can be begun by constructing a rectangle 2ft. 9-Jin. x Ift. din. to represent an end of the lower carcase. Inside this rectangle will come the lain, stiles and top rail, and the 3Jin. bottom rail of an end frame together with other lines representing a door and such runners and rails as are shown in various details. Top and Upper Carcase. Then comes the 17in. x Jin. table top which forms a foundation for the upper carcase and makes the total height of this first section 2ft. lOln. Its projection over ends and front is one inch. Similar procedure will serve for the upper portion of the job. Here liilllllllllll|||illllillllll|)ll|||||!l||||lllll)lll

again a rectangle is the main flgure; this time 3ft. 3Jin. x SJin. to which is added an Ilin, x sin. top, the various shelves and glazed door. From such a section it is fairly easy to prepare a cutting list in white pine or hardwood as is most suitable, and later to lay each piece of stuff in its place for marking to exact length. Dowelled joints will serve admirably for end frames and door, the first step in construction of the former being to lay a stile in place over the section and mark centres for two tin. dowels opposite each rail. This stile then becomes the pattern for all others in that group which can be cramped to it and the centre marks squared across. All doors have 21in. stiles :r*» top rails, but whereas the top pair have 3Jin. bottom rails the lower ones are only 3in.; and are arranged to stand in line with the end rails which have Jin. of their width covered by the plinth (see front and end elevations). In order that the joints should not be complicated by rebating, all panels, whether of wood or glass, are fixed between double beads so without further ado the various frames can at this point be glued up and allowed to dry while the preparation of shelves, etc., goes forward. Details of the Drawers. The central post between the drawers may have either a double tenon or a single one reinforced by nails, but it. should in any case be a good fit and thoroughly glued or the weight of the drawers will cause it to drop and bind the doors beneath. In a 3ft. length it is easier to run a groove than to make a series of mortises for ends of drawer - runners and “kickers,” but here again it is a case of good fits and secure fastenings if the drawers themselves are to run easily. Gare is also necessary in squaring the job by comparing its diagonal lengths and then thoroughly bracing the angles until all joints are set and the floor and shelves fixed. It is better to fit the drawers before screwing on the top as any necessary easement will then be visible, and referring again to the detail, it will be seen that the top itself is secured, after removing the drawers, by screwing through a cleat which has been slotted to allow shrinkage. The lowest shelf in the upper carcase can be fixed in the same way or simply stop-housed and nailed, the latter being adequate for a job which will be finished in enamel. The whole of this portion is detachable and is held in position by a couple of screws into the feet and others through the plywood back. The spandrel, which is housed Jin. nt each end will, of course, need to be glued in during general assembly. This piece is lin. wide at the centre of its arc, and after driving a brad at that point the curve can be struck by bending a lath from tho brad to tho extremities of the spandrel and tracing its outline with a pencil. Tire beads may bo run by hand along the edge of a board and afterward Tipped off and dressed, but it will probably be more convenient to get these and the smaller panel lieads prepared at a mill. If the job is in hardwood and finished for staining the panels should not be fixed until all stain has been applied. This ensures a cleaner job and if any shrinkage occurs there will be no white margin.

OXTTNTTAT- coats of whatever material is used in time result in n bui lt-up layer that IArV? i s vory difficiilt to remove by any means. There have m been nuances where it was quite impossible to remove this layei with the most efficient surfacing machine, and before now it has been necessary to burn off (by means of a blow-lamp) quite an eighth of an inch of varnish, oil, wax and dirt before the surfacing machine could start cutting down. The employment of a surfacing machine when preparing a floor of any kind of wood for finishing by means of stains and various polishes is to be recommended. This advice also applies in the cases just mentioned for unless all the old finish is removed to the bare wood there ■will be no permanency of result. Stains or finishes of any kind will not penetrate or become firmly anchored to any surface that has not been thoroughly cleaned and prepared. Of course it will be understood that if. the old surface is prepared by machine sanding the procedure that follows is exactly that recommended for a new floor with this exception, that more careful scraping is required in the areas that the machine doos not touch. Many lovers of the home beautiful in its literal sense, however, cannot af-

ford the comparative luxury of paying for the use of an electric surfacing machine. Again, in far distant localities machine work is out of the question, but the same problems exist. Worn and Bare Batches. First take the case of a floor that has been fairly well done originally, but which has worn in doorways and traffic spots to a shabby bareness. Generally speaking it is a needless expense and a great deal of trouble indeed to set about removing the whole of the finish from the rest of the floor because of a few worn and bare spots in the doorways. An expert floor finisher can quickly remedy this trouble at small cost, and it is quite within the province of any handy amateur to do just as well as the expert if a little care is used. First clean the bare or worn patch thoroughly with benzine. Apply several hard-rubbed coats until all vestige of wax polish has disappeared. If any old varnish is apparent remove this with benzol or rub it away by means

of glasspaper. Where the patch merges into the general stain rub lightly, so that the matching may be gradually toned to the original. The staining of the bare patch can then be done vjth stainers.ground, in oil or ground in gold size. These can be bought at any paint store in small tins. The method is to take up a small portion of the stabler paste on a rolled up ball of rag and rub into the wood. If too dark in colour damp the rubber with benzine and lighten up the stained part to suit. Where stainers or pigments "ground in oil” are used a filler coat will be required. Gold size will do this filling work on small patches excellently. After allowing the restrained patch time to dry thoroughly rub down lightly with glasspaper and apply regular coats of wax polish until the repaired section is as good as the original. Sometimes it is necessary for the stained rubber or cloth to be lightly passed over the join at the edges of the patch to make the toning complete. Rubbing the colour into both old and new surfaces with fine glasspaper also has a good effect. Do one unimportant patch first and the experience will help the work of finishing the others more correctly. For yellow or light oak stains use raw sienna pigment with the addition of burnt Turkey umber In very light proportion. For dark oak use more

' burnt Turkey umber. For walnut apply , a mixture of Vandyke brown and burnt L Turkey umber. In mahogany stain • burnt sienna is the predominating colJ our with Vandyke brown and a little > burnt umber to kill or modify the red s tone. “Turkey” as used to denote an - umber pigment refers to the country of origin of the earth used. This mineral ! pigment came originally from Smyrna, i and was considered the best of its kinc. ;It really signifies nothing to-day pro- > viding a good make is obtained. All reputable manufacturers to-day deliver • 100 per cent, efficiency in their product. , The Turkey or Smyrna umber is said 'to produce a richer and deeper colour. > Reverting again to the repairing of - old finish, it often occurs that through • the use of colour varnishes by house- > holders over an old stain a blistered - effect manifests itself after a short or 5 long period, according to condition. ■ There is no remedy for this condition > short of removing the whole of the coli our varnish (or varnish stain) and, > when this is accomplished, washing the s whole surface thoroughly with benzine. ■lf using a colour varnish over an old : finish remove every vestige of dirt, ; grease, or wax before attempting to ; apply the varnish coat. “Sissing,” or ! rolling up of a varnished coat when applied to a bright very smooth surL face, is due to lack of nnclicxage or key ■in most cases, and the old surface must

therefore be prepared by sandpapering before the new coat goes on. '

There are many ready made solvent mixtures on the market for the removal of old finish. Some are applied in paste form, and do good work in many instances. Best of alt are the liquid solvents, for these are easily applied and by means of a deterrent ingredient incorporated in their make-up do their work comparatively slowly and give the operator plenty of time for cleaning off one small area while the solvent mixture is doing its work of softening on the next area to be handled.

A simply prepared solvent may be made as follows: To one gallon of benzol add 4 pound of shredded paraffin wax. Allow this to stand for 24 hours, and the mixture will be ready to use. The addition of the wax to the benzol is necessary to overcome to a great extent. the tendency of the benzol to evaporate almost immediately it is exposed to the air. Keep mixture agitated. To use such a solvent, apply to n small area with a fairly stiff bristle brush, wait a few moments and then, with a stripping knife, scrape off the old finish. The operation may need doing twice or even three times. Each patch when clean must be wiped or rubbed with a liberal application of benzine to clean up the wax left from the solvent, also to take care of grease, etc., that may have escaped the remover coating. It sometimes happens that the under or old surface of the wood is dark by reason of stain that has soaked in it, and if . a light stain is intended as a finish the surface must, be bleached sufficiently to give the desired result. Another Effective Formula, Another easily prepared remover formula is as follows: —41b. laundry starch dissolved in cold water. Four tablespoons of common soda dissolved in three pints of cold water. Mix both and apply with brush. This will remove finish, but will discolour wood. Wash surface with vinegar before staining. Methylated spirits will remove shellac finish, but dries very quickly and rapid working is necessary. Many applications may be required to cut. away all the old shellac. Wash up with benzine or benzol. In many cases the dirty and “grubby” appearance of a polished floor is due to dirt and dust ingrained and trodden into the polish applied from time to time. Many wax polishes—especially the cheaper variety—do not. dry hard for a long period. Some of them never dry at all. and, although a shine may be achieved by rubbing, they remain soft, and are susceptible to the pressure and scuffling of shoes nt nil times. Such polishes nre a menace, and should be avoided, as they pick up and retain dust and fluff, nnd spoil the entire appearance of what may be otherwise a perfect floor. A good scrubbing with benzine will move all this surplus dirty wax, and it will be an easy matter after that to procure a good grade of wax polish nnd achieve a nice, clean, dustless, oasy-to-keep finish. Next week lacquering will be discussed : also the problem of surfaces on which stains will not "take.”

GLASS FURNITURE Novelty Pieces Shown in Paris Stores REFLECTED COLOURS (Special to “The Dominion.”) London, August 1. At the moment, Paris is very busy with glass for all forms of house decoration and furnishing. For some time glass has been the vogue for smaller features of decoration, but now it is being used for large pieces of furniture, cabinets, tables and chests of drawers. In some of the biggest Parisian stores some exceptionally interesting designs arc on view, A black glass clock, with the figures picked out in white, is one attractive feature. Another novelty is a black glass cabinet, Illustrated, the designs on each panel being painted on the inside, in white. The cabinet itself is mounted on a low white glass pedestal. Mirror-glass is also most extensively used, and there is being' shown a chest of drawers in mirrors—decidedly effective, if somewhat disconcerting to suddenly see yourself reflected in such a solid piece of furniture. One point in favour of this mirror furniture lis that, reflecting, of course, as it docs, everything around it, it liarmonises beautifully with the most daring colour schemes. A very shallow black glass tablepiece is another item which is attracting attention; two opposite oblongs being filled with just the heads of cut flowers, the colours of these a vivid contrast against the black background. Dining tables’in amber mirror; sideboards and smaller octagonal tables in mirror; numerous vases, of alb shapes, sizes and colours, to harmonise frith the gla t ss furniture, are all much in evidence.