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Dropleaf Pembroke Dining Table.

No table cloth here as well, why have a nice solid wood table and cover it up.


Pete
Pellaprat says - and I like to think George would agree - that a plain white damask tablecloth ‘together with the silver, the glass and the porcelain create the scintillating symphony of colour and the changing effects of light and shade which alone lend perfection to the table.’

This is roughly the setting that is laid out for me each evening. Note that the elaborate wrought silver epergne is no longer used as ‘such pieces are now out of date. People have become less pretentious…’ I will be donating it to the Christmas church raffle this year, along with the usual bottle of Mateus Rosé.

52483786995_a6dcc41038_c.jpg
 
All waxes are a mix of canuba, paraffin wax and a solvent, so they are all much of a muchness, the only different one I know is Renaissance wax https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B001DSZWEM/?tag=pinkfishmedia-21


Which is all paraffin wax and solvent it’s devolved by the British museum.

Wood silk is a good spray wax it needs using very sparingly.


Pete
With all due respect, when I do use wax on an antique I make my own up using a double boiler. I mix beeswax and turpentine. Put it on thick and brush it well in with stiff bristle brush. Leave overnight to solidify. Then brush it in, and polish it with clean lint-free cotton rag again and again till no wax is visible. Takes a lot of rubbing.

This is still not the best finish. For the best, I use pure linseed oil left overnight after being rubbed in covered in brown paper. Then a lot of polishing with clean rag. This procedure is done over and over again, many times. It is said to be the hardest and most durable waterproof finish there is for antique wood. Some expert opinion is that linseed oil never fully dries out. I have never regretted the time and effort involved in repeated multiple coats. The end result has always been worth it.
 
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Linseed oil apply once a day for a week, once a week for a month, once a month for a year, and once a year for life.
As they say.

Big danish oil fan self.


Pete
 
Apologies for spelling Antiquax incorrectly. I use either the Lavender scented version, or the original depending on which they have. I buy it in Bromyard. There is an old saying, "If you cannot buy it in Bromyard, you don't need it!" Not bad advice really. Anyway I have just given the table a third buffing up with polish and the first two produced a certain amount of grime, but this time the cloth did not show signs of lifted dirt, and result is rather nice I think.

On the whole I prefer the leaves down to look at, and as the room faces East, it will not get any direct sunlight on it. The early morning sunlight in summer does reach right into the room, but nor for long. The leaves match the colour of the top [or likely the leaves are equally faded as it], but the wear is greater on the top, so I assume it has mostly been used with the leaves down. The legs show very little sign of wear from chairs. Still rather crisp in their edges.

IMG_1419 by George Johnson, on Flickr

Here I have the two Norwegian pewter candle sticks with red Christmas candles alight.

It may be slightly old fashioned, but progress is not everything! It is now "part of the furniture!"

Best wishes from George
 
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Are you sure that's mahogany? The grain looks a little too big - I'd be inclined to think it's elm.

Either way, it looks like you're bringing some hygge into the room. Nice simple candlesticks :)
 
No I haven’t understand it’s good I need to get some osmo as well to try out.

But until my knee is better there’s not much point.

Have you heard of peacock oil made by Wayne Skelton I understand that’s good as well he uses it on his saw handles.

https://www.skeltonsaws.co.uk/

Pete


I am a big user and fan of Osmo but it is expensive. I have gone back to Danish as it is 95% as good and a lot cheaper.

This was Osmo, like most oils apply to finish required, here was a mild sheen.

48722278667_62b4b8ec16_b.jpg
 
Are you sure that's mahogany? The grain looks a little too big - I'd be inclined to think it's elm.

Either way, it looks like you're bringing some hygge into the room. Nice simple candlesticks :)

I think it is mahogany. Certainly not elm. You can see the underside quite well, and this gives the clue, as it is just as dark as the finished top. It is heavy enough to be either. Both are woods that will sink in water.

I have an elm high-back wooden chair, which is probably old as the table. It weighs a ton as well! It is the only chair I have ever owned where I can sit comfortably for the duration of a radio concert or feature film. Like the table it has the patina of age and general wear and tear. In colour terms it is a light brown, compared to the very dark brown of the table, and try as I have polishing it brings next to no finish. It is smooth from age, but it does not take a shine at all. It also lightened the colour [using Antiquax, which itself is not pigmented] after decades of living in a smoky [open fire] room made it very dark when I first got it. It has come up a very nice even colour. Polishing the table did not bring any lightening of its very dark colour. I think it is the colour of the wood as it is only slightly darker in the areas that will never have faced direct sunlight.

It is dim today, but if I can get some nice light over the weekend, I'll take a picture and post it here. It cost me £50, for a truly functional comfortable chair. They don't seem to be worth more. Old fashioned, well made but out of fashion. People even paint them, which is a crime against craftsmanship in my book!

Best wishes from George

My old high back chair. It has a wonderfully supportive back that allows me to sit comfortably for hours.

IMG_1424 by George Johnson, on Flickr

IMG_1426 by George Johnson, on Flickr

IMG_1427 by George Johnson, on Flickr

IMG_1428 by George Johnson, on Flickr

I love the primitive blunt back of the one piece seat plank! No effort wasted that does not lend extra comfort!
 
All that vintage timber would look so good against a nice moss green or deep red emulsion :)
 
With all due respect, when I do use wax on an antique I make my own up using a double boiler. I mix beeswax and turpentine. Put it on thick and brush it well in with stiff bristle brush. Leave overnight to solidify. Then brush it in, and polish it with clean lint-free cotton rag again and again till no wax is visible. Takes a lot of rubbing.

This is still not the best finish. For the best, I use pure linseed oil left overnight after being rubbed in covered in brown paper. Then a lot of polishing with clean rag. This procedure is done over and over again, many times. It is said to be the hardest and most durable waterproof finish there is for antique wood. Some expert opinion is that linseed oil never fully dries out. I have never regretted the time and effort involved in repeated multiple coats. The end result has always been worth it.

You must be a demon with cricket bats!
 
All that vintage timber would look so good against a nice moss green or deep red emulsion :)

I like Gardenia as a colour for walls. Lighter than the usual Magnolia. Sometimes Magnolia can seem a bit drab!

Then for the brightwork, a contrast such as a light grey [or even cream] would set off the doorways and skirting boards. Gardenia is light enough to use for ceilings, thus saving a whole load of lining out!

I like a neutral colour as pictures look well against it and furniture stands out as well.

Another reason I like Gardenia is that it takes the varying colour of the outside sunlight or even the greyness of a cloud covered rainy day! As winter progresses, perhaps I'll paint through, one room at a time.

It is s filthy day for working outside, and today I have a day off unplanned, which is nice. Only domestic stuff to catch up with. I filed my tax return yesterday, so that is a relief. A friend looked through it to prevent me doing anything wrong. I had copied the original HMRC documents and filled them in, so as to make a fair copy on the proper sheets! Sent by tracked delivery via the post yesterday.

Best wishes from George
 
All that vintage timber would look so good against a nice moss green or deep red emulsion :)
Pellaprat doesn’t have much to say on the subject of decor, but his photograph of a light luncheon definitely seems to show a moss green-ish door.

52501461236_0cb474c230.jpg


That’s made me feel peckish. And it’s nearly lunchtime - where did I put my bell?
 
The first dining work the table will do is on Sunday 4th. December which is the nearest weekend day to my sixty-first birthday. No guests, but Lu will have a small plate of the same food I shall eat, though not the wine! Actually she has become a very genial small dog. Still yaps in the most irritating way when playing with other dogs though not inside, but given her other qualities, this seems a small price to pay! Her hello is to nudge my back quite firmly with her nose, and then challenger for play! She is far from a fussy dog. Thirty seconds of TLC seems to be all she wants. BUT when she wants it you better give it her, or else you are in for a full scale play fight!

You have to love Terriers - if you can of course - for their feistiness and sheer brilliance. I shall try to catch a picture of Lu at my sixty-first, hopefully with the table in shot!

Best wishes from George

PS: She stands on a lot of ground and has the mastery of many larger dogs without being aggressive. They simply cannot keep up or match her energy. She is no longer being led into trouble by others, but rather is now a good influence herself.
 
A fortnight ago I bought a mahogany corner cupboard [collected today] to go with the Pembroke table.

IMG_1862 by George Johnson, on Flickr

IMG_1863 by George Johnson, on Flickr

It will mean that only the workaday Willow pattern crockery need be in my rather small kitchen and the Doulton and cut glass can be stored out of the way and away from risks!

I noticed a fascinating detail concerning the drawer on the table. The face is mahogany, but the body is well chosen oak, which is a little odd considering that even the poshest antiques often have drawers made of pine behind the face.

The corner cupboard is not really antique, but is probably from the inter war era as a guess. The non-face wood is pine, but thick planks, so strong. No MDF! It looks nice, weighs a lot, but has nothing like the finesse of making the table has, but that is okay. It is nice enough and useful, and cost very little. The important right pull is broken, but I'll swap the two over, because the left door is on bolts top and bottom, so a pull handle is not needed!

Best wishes from George
 
A fortnight ago I bought a mahogany corner cupboard [collected today] to go with the Pembroke table.

IMG_1862 by George Johnson, on Flickr

IMG_1863 by George Johnson, on Flickr

It will mean that only the workaday Willow pattern crockery need be in my rather small kitchen and the Doulton and cut glass can be stored out of the way and away from risks!

I noticed a fascinating detail concerning the drawer on the table. The face is mahogany, but the body is well chosen oak, which is a little odd considering that even the poshest antiques often have drawers made of pine behind the face.

The corner cupboard is not really antique, but is probably from the inter war era as a guess. The non-face wood is pine, but thick planks, so strong. No MDF! It looks nice, weighs a lot, but has nothing like the finesse of making the table has, but that is okay. It is nice enough and useful, and cost very little. The important right pull is broken, but I'll swap the two over, because the left door is on bolts top and bottom, so a pull handle is not needed!

Best wishes from George

George, my eye caught the rope work on the inside of the glazed doors of your cabinet- very attractive. I’m guessing the cabinet is later than your George III? Pembroke table. I love later Georgian furniture for its rectilinear simplicity, practicality and understatement ( compared with Victorian). I’m guessing the style not only reflects your name but your attitude to life.
 


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