RESTORATIONGot an antique you need to restore. Don't strip it and coat it with polyurethane and ruin it's value. Check in here for traditional finishes and genuine restoration help. Find out the ins and outs and how to keep or enhance it's value. Not just for furniture.
I had admired this cedar carver at a home in Rose Bay in Sydney. A good friend of mine was selling the home, and I told him to give me a call if he decided to sell or restore the chair.
Well, I got a call
He said, I have a chair for you in my garage.
How much do you want for it I asked. It's yours he said (he's a good friend).
I've since visited him with a bottle of very nice wine.
He told me that he just wanted to see it restored and loved again.
The surprise ?
Looking underneath the chair I noticed half a paper label. Pulling back the old upholstery revealed the full label.
A. LENEHAN Cabinet and Upholstery. I'm still a bit giddy about this.
Mr Lenehan was an important colonial cabinet maker in Sydney. He made lots of furniture for Government house etc. It came out of his 287 Castlereigh St workshop, and may not have been made by him personally, but it's a lovely find all the same.
The top of the back leg will need a rebuild (pic 3 and 4), and I'll need to take it right apart to re-glue all the joints. Time to get the glue pot bubbling.
It still has what looks like it's original polish, so I'll just give it a wash, and try to restore the finish before getting too drastic.
The beige vinyl upholstery will go, and will be replaced some dark leather (crimson, emerald green, black ?).
This chair will be positioned at the head of my new (old) cedar table that is being delivered soon (another restoration to do).
I'll try and post some pics as I restore this piece.
The chair is outside my dates of expertise, but I do know from exhibiting at major antique fairs and visiting museums that early Australian cedar furniture can be valuable. While this chair wouldn't be considered particularly early, it may well have some significance; especially in light of the attribution.
Unless you are an industry-trained restorer, I would seriously recommend you refrain from proceeding with any work on the chair until you obtain a professional opinion on it. I would take it to one of the major auction houses (Sotheby's, Christies, Bonhams, Lawsons etc.).
__________________ .
I know you believe you understand what you think I wrote, but I'm not sure you realize that what you just read is not what I meant.
The chair is outside my dates of expertise, but I do know from exhibiting at major antique fairs and visiting museums that early Australian cedar furniture can be valuable. While this chair wouldn't be considered particularly early, it may well have some significance; especially in light of the attribution.
Unless you are an industry-trained restorer, I would seriously recommend you refrain from proceeding with any work on the chair until you obtain a professional opinion on it. I would take it to one of the major auction houses (Sotheby's, Christies, Bonhams, Lawsons etc.).
Thanks for the concern WW.
I've been restoring Australian colonial furniture for quite a while now, and I will only be starting restoration on this particular chair after getting some further expert advice. My FIL has been restoring Australian colonial furntiure for many decades in a professional context. He has worked on some very important pieces. He is my main inspiration for this type of work. My reaction upon seeing the Lenehan label was very much like the description of him finding a 'J. Sly' stamp on a washstand that was being used as a potting bench in somebodies back garden.
The chair will be restored using traditional techniques, glues, upholstery and finishes.(SWMBO even weaves traditional horsehair coverings on a loom). I'll do some more research so that the upholstery will be either horsehair, leather or fabric depending on what it was likely to have been new.
The chair will not be sanded, routed, varnished, plastic-wooded, nailed or painted
It's in safe hands.
This chair I would guess was made circa 1850, but I'm not quite sure it's museum quality. A book that my FIL has, states (I think) that Lenehan operated out of the 287 Castlreagh St address from 1848 to 1851. I'll read up on it when I get my hands on the book.
I will get it valued for insurance purposes, but I'm intending for the chair to now remain in my family forever.
Does your wife make haircloth professionally and if so, does she have a web site? Seating that's upholstered in haircloth is normally out of my period too, but I have ocassionally come across Regency chairs that employed it and I could only source the fabric in Germany. I would be happy to add a local source of haircloth to my directory.
__________________ .
I know you believe you understand what you think I wrote, but I'm not sure you realize that what you just read is not what I meant.
Does your wife make haircloth professionally and if so, does she have a web site? Seating that's upholstered in haircloth is normally out of my period too, but I have ocassionally come across Regency chairs that employed it and I could only source the fabric in Germany. I would be happy to add a local source of haircloth to my directory.
My wife is primarily a textile artist. She has only made haircloth for her fathers chairs/stools, and some of our chairs. Not in a professional context though. So no website.
She's also a stay at home mum, so finding time to weave horsehair is a problem. It takes so long as you could imagine. One hair at a time.
The old chair is progressing nicely as time permits.
I was able to leave quite a few of the joints together as they were very firm. I've removed about a kilo of staples, upholstery pins, nails, blued cut tacks etc.
The chairs looks to have been upholstered a few times in it's life as can be seen by the condition of the rail (picture 2).
I've had to cut back the unsound tops of the back legs, and scarf join some extensions. I've also used hidden dowels for strength. Lot's of plugging old screw holes as well (picture 3).
New sections were added to the broken out sliding tapered dovetails in the chair back (picture 4), and I've yet to cut the male sections as the chair needs to be glued up prior to marking these out.
I'll be using Potassium Dichromate to deepen some patching pieces to blend the colour as much as possible.
New corner bracing has been fitted at some time (can be seen in picture 1). They may have been there quite a while as hand cut nails were used. I had to break off the other 2 during diss-assembly. I'll need to fit 2 more after glue-up.
Well .... off to do the glue-up.
Gotta love the smell of animal glue in the workshop
The chair's all together now (pics later), and after a light clean, it's time to rub it down (and rub and rub and rub) with the shellac/BLO mix.
Looking good !
Found something interesting behind the front rail ..... (see pic)
Could this be a signature ?
Could it say A Lenehan ?
Could this have been made by the man himself and not just one of his employees ?
I haven't been able to find a reference to his signature online, but I'll check the FILs books.
If anyone does have a reference please contact me.
I'll be taking more photo records before upholstery as it will be completely covered.
Wow congratulations Stu, that is indeed a nice find,..well find and gift. I get a thrill out of just seeing something from Lenehan, to have one of his pieces in my home would be a dream. The restoration is looking good as well.
Hi Stu, that is one fantastic cedar carver, most impressive, especially with the details of its provenance. Your approach to this piece IMHO is spot on.
As a restorer of our very early historic/listed country property 1826 and our current home 1850 as well as antiques, I know how important it is to respect the history of such pieces of furniture and in my case also the joinery in the houses, be it the cedar 6 panel doors/reveals, huon skirtings etc.
Time for me to post some more details of my current projects, but on another thread.
Look forward to see how your project finishes up. I am glad it has gone to a good home where it will be enjoyed.
__________________ .
I know you believe you understand what you think I wrote, but I'm not sure you realize that what you just read is not what I meant.
I do have a couple of cedar rail backs, and will restore another 5 if I can find them. They won't be matching though.
At the moment, my dining setting consists of 2 cedar rail backs, 1 Kangaroo chair, 1 Emu chair (both from the Melbourne chair Company), and the carver.
I have a few of the Melbourne Chair Co chairs with a Kangaroo and Emu on them. One was the first piece of "old" furniture I touched 20 years ago, there was that many layers of paint on it that you could not even see the pattern! They may not be cedar but they still have a place.
A new project - plus pleasant surprise 
(he's a good friend).
Just seven more to go! 
