Working drawings of colonial furniture

Because of the increasing demand for woodworking projects embracing the designs of the famous masters, Chippendale, Hepplewhite, and Sheraton, the author has endeavored to secure dimensioned sketches and photographs of old fashioned furniture. While this collection does not represent the highest types, there are features in all which merit distinction. Only those which could be copied by junior and senior high-school students have been considered. Nothing has been added to or detracted from the original measurements.

It is hoped that these drawings and illustrations will afford an inspiration for instructors and students. For reference work, Woodwork for Secondary Schools, by I. S. Griffith, will prove of great value.

While this book is designed for use in the schools, it need not be so confined. Its scope and practical treatment should fit it for the use of all who enjoy the pleasure of creating things of wood.

Acknowledgment is made to the magazine The House Beautiful for the use of one of the illustrations.

Due to the present popularity of period furniture designs, the demand for gate-leg tables has almost become a fad. Thousands of reproductions have been made and the style has been highly featured in magazines and books of recent publication. During the Colonial days the tables were often made of oak. William Penn owned one of this kind. Later models were made of walnut and maple. Most of them are now made of mahogany, walnut, gum and birch. Those made of other woods like poplar or whitewood and pine are often finished in tones of ivory, cream or gray, with decorative patterns stenciled on the top surface.


DIRECTIONS FOR MAKING THE TABLE

To reproduce the table shown on these drawings, turn the legs and stretchers on the lathe. Cut out the stock to dimensions for other parts of the table and then proceed with the assembly of the end frames. Cut the notches and glue up the two gates. Locate and bore the pivot centers and cut the notches on the cross-rails and long stretchers. It is advisable to put the rest of the table together, using clamps, but no glue. This is to see if all parts are properly placed and if the gates are hung correctly. Testing with a steel square will help to check up the work. If the table frame and gates all rest evenly on the floor, either in open or closed position, the joints are ready for glueing. A drawer 24" deep is made to slide in on one end, and a drawer pull similar to No. 2 on page 28 should be used. All the joints are mortised and tenoned and also doweled. The appearance of dowels on the outside is not objectionable on gate-leg or tavern tables. The top is oval in shape and has beaded edges to match the leaves. Plain butt hinges are fastened to the underside of the leaves and table top. The finish is one of choice and depends largely on the kind of wood used to make the table. The original one is made of maple and is stained a dark brown color.


SHERATON CARD TABLE

In many instances it is rather difficult to distinguish the difference between Hepplewhite and Sheraton designs. Sheraton published a book in 1791 and another in 1804. He no doubt was influenced by the designs of Hepplewhite. His early work was much better than that which appeared near the close of the eighteenth century.

In some respects this table is similar in construction to the one on page 23. The legs instead of being square are round and reeded, or fluted, as it is often called. To make a reproduction of this table, first cut four pieces of mahogany for the legs. Two of these pieces should have a quarter-section removed so that they can be easily fastened to the table frame on the front side. Temporary pieces can be glued into these places while the legs are being turned on the The reeding can be done by hand. Mark off a strip of paper into twelve equal parts, the paper being long enough to pass around the post where the reed- ing commences. Paste this strip on the wood at that point. Prepare another paper for the lower end of the legs where the reeding stops and after dividing this piece into the same number of parts, attach it to the posts in a like manner.

All this can be done while the legs are in the lathe which will hold them securely. Be sure to have the ends of both paper strips in line with each other, and then connect the points on the upper strip with corres ponding points on the lower one, using a straight-edge about 17" long. Draw the lines with a sharp point and pass over each line a number of times. Take two thin pieces of steel and shape them like Fig. 13 on page 29.

Hold each one as firmly as possible and deepen the lines. A few strokes on each one will develop the reeds which can be sandpapered afterward.

The back legs are made up the same as the front legs except that they are square at the upper end where the rails are attached. The frame of the table is much like that of the Hepplewhite table, page 23. The rails are pine with heavy pieces glued on the front and two ends. Mark out the curves which are shown on the drawing and band-saw close to the lines. Save the waste pieces and use them as cauls when glueing the veneers. The satinwood or maple marquetry panels should be glued in place and the borders afterward. These borders are wide and are for the front only, so the end rails must be veneered with mahogany. The hinges are the same as shown in Fig. 10, page 29. The top is made up in two parts. The lower one is plain and the other is inlaid along the edge.


SHERATON WORK TABLE

This is the one table in this collection of drawings which should be the stepping-stone for the more difficult projects. It is quite small, has good lines and can be slightly modified from the drawing.

It is suggested that this table be made first by the student if he contemplates the making of any of the card tables.


DIRECTIONS FOR MAKING THE TABLE

Before turning the legs, cut out a quarter-section of the four legs down 6 5/8" from the top and glue in temporary pieces. Locate the centers accurately on the lathe and turn down the wood to the proper dimensions. The table will look much better if the legs are reeded as described on page 10. When the legs are finished the table frame can be put together. To attach the legs, remove the temporary pieces and they can be screwed to the frame. A drawer with a veneered front should be made. The picture shows a wooden knob on the front. This should not be copied as it is not the original and belongs to a later style which developed near the close of the Empire period. A drawer pull similar to No. n on page 28 is suggested for the reproduction.


SHERATON BREAKFAST TABLE

This table is one of very pleasing lines and is not a difficult project to make. While it is termed a breakfast table, there is no reason why it cannot find an appropriate place in any room. The characteristics of a table of this kind consist of the drop leaves, which are held up by wooden brackets that swing under the top. It is made of mahogany and has some inlay on the outer edges of the legs and border strips of inlay can be found along the lower edges of the rails.