Does anyone have any expertise in finishing the caning on chairs? I am refinishing a set of chairs whose seat and back are caned. The original caning was stained and I would like to stain the replacements. Anybody have any thoughts or experience in the type of stain to use, how to apply it, and what to finish it with? Thanks for your help.
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The consensus is that if possible ( if you can stand the light color) don't stain, but if the customer wants stain use a good oil base stain. I have so far convinced customers to live with it but in experimenting I found Minwax Colonial Maple seems to be about right. Then I cover it with a light coat of shellac. It seems to hold up well. Some of the old cane seems to have been finished after the chair was completed and the finish for the chair was not compatable with the cane, consequentally it flaked off.
The reasoning for no stain is that it is not sealed so an occasional spritz of water will re-tension the cane. Sounds logical to me!
Frank (Uncle Fixit)
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