Expert: Greg Scholl - 12/2/2009

Question
I have two of the EA Gooseneck chairs.  I bought them on ebay and they were in horrible condition.  I took them to an upholsterer and she would reupholster but she would not refinish the wood.  There is not much to the arms and legs but she said the finish was sprayed on and we should get a spray with the polyuranthane in it.  I have looked and also purchased a can but none of the finishes seem to be dark enough.  I had the diningroom refinished and it turned out great but when I called to have these chairs done the job was too small and they wouldn't do it.  I've stripped the old finish off and ready for the stain, but just don't know what color to put on.  I hope you can help me.  Thanks.

Answer
Hi Arlene, these chairs were finished with lacquer, not poly.They could be stained as well with a dye stain, pigmented stain or even a combination of both. Ethan Allen uses toning as well, which is the use of colored finish coats under the clears to deepen the color, hide mismatching grain, and even out the color and finish.These finishes are multi part- multi coat, and involve much more than stain and poly, and you won't be able to replicate the original look that way, but you should be able to get a decent look using stain and poly... I can't believe that someone told you a job was too small, what a stupid thing to do, especially if they've done the previous job for you, they'd be the natural choice to finish match the chairs....that just doesn't make sense to me.Maybe they don't want to do it because the chairs were upholstered before the finish work. It's a big risk to finish chairs with new upholstery, one slip or over spray and it's ruined. The finish should always be done before re-upholstering because ALL the materials used in each step of finishing have the capacity to ruin the upholstering job in the blink of an eye.........I can't possibly guide you from here in regards to color and finish without being able to see the furniture, determine what type of wood it is, and if you're trying to match the other pieces, it takes some knowledge and skill to do so......can you send a picture of the chairs?