The Chair

Sliding down to my neck in the Morris chair (every shop should have a priority on one of these), I propped my feet on a box, lit a cigarette, and fell into sort of a reverie.

George Allen gets to thinking in Mifflinburg Mill, Model Railroader, July 1952.

No, my chair isn’t a Morris chair, it’s a 1960s Canadian knock-off of a 1960s Danish modern chair. And not a bad one at that. When I was a boy it sat in my father’s study and was my favourite place to sit when I went to chat with him. It came into my possession a couple of years ago and was looking quite forlorn in my basement, stashed away behind the snow tires. Last December I took it apart and Debra had the seat reupholstered as a Christmas present. 

When the good weather got here in the summer, I could finally take the frame parts outside and use a chemical stripper to remove the worn-out old finish. Those are some of the parts before they were refinished. I used a rubber mallet to carefully knock the frame apart.

I used Circa 1850 furniture stripper. Just follow the directions on the can. It does a fine job. One thing I'll mention is that it'll strip the varnish and lettering off that workmate as it did with mine when I accidentally slopped some around. 

The legs on the left are almost stripped and the unstripped seat frame is to the right.

Here's all the parts done and ready for re-assembly and refinishing. Once put back together the frame was treated to some oil that contained a light stain. 

I went to the window and took a worried look at the big flakes that were lowering over the winter’s afternoon gloom like a curtain. Shivering in disbelief, I returned to my Morris chair and settled back in solid comfort

George Allen seeks refuge from the winter in part 7 of the Tuxedo Junction saga, Model Railroader, April 1953.

I’m hoping the new old chair will work some magic on me this winter.