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Collectibles-General (Antiques)/Ethan Allen Hitchcock chair

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Expert: - 2/12/2009


Question

Chair
I recently purchased an Ethan Allen Hitchcock chair.  It is black lacquer with gold trim, the seat is a corn husk I believe.  It is in good condition except for a couple of small pieces of the rope that are missing.  Is this still done by hand or are they commercially made?  The chair does not appear to have been used very much, I don't know how old it is, does this seat usually last a long time?  If it at some point needs to be replaced would you suggest another type of seat?
                        Thanks for your help

Answer
Thanks for your question,

  The seat may be corn husk as that material has been used in seats but my first bet would be  rush instead. This is woven by hand, a chair taking several hours to do.There are several materials used in what is called "4 rail weaving" like rush, fibre rush, splint,seagrass or binder cane. The key on your chair is to use what would have been used in the first place which would be rush,seagrass[which is used as a replacement for natural rush] or fibre which is also called paper rush.An example would be a binder cane seat.It could be put in your chair but would not have been done originally by the maker.
A rush seat should last many years.Your chair has a flat piece of wood for its rails instead of round dowels. This is ok but I have found that over time, the material rubbing over the edge of the wood can make it sharp and it will start sawing on the material, eventually cutting it. If you decide to have a new seat put in, make sure whoever does it, runs a rasp over that edge to round it over before putting in the new seat otherwise it may not last more then a few years.
Also keep in mind that the 4 rail covers will have to be removed to redo the seat so make sure your weaver will remove and replace them.
 Good luck with your project,
  Rob
 http://www.andersonsrestorations.com
    Questioner's Rating
    Rating(1-10)Knowledgeability = 10Clarity of Response = 10Politeness = 10
    CommentThanks so much for your prompt and informative answer.


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Anderson's Restorations-Rob Anderson

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We can answer questions about wicker repair and restoration, chair seating[caning-rush-splint-danish cord] furniture refinishing and repair, brass and copper polishing, veneering and veneer repair. WE WILL NOT GIVE APPRAISALS or answer "WHATS IT WORTH" questions. If you want a value, contact us for our current costs for this service.

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Just entered our 40th year doing this work. We started in Fl and have been in NC for the last 15 years. We have a web site www.andersonsrestorations.com where we have alot of information about us and a blog at www.andersons-restorations.blogspot.com where we have many before and after photos of our work.We also are experienced in Fiat Jolly Seats and other automobile seating and work on Horse Drawn Carriage pieces.

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