First of all, hello!
Secondly, I'm a Live-Roleplayer/ex re-enactor, which ought to give you some idea about my state of mind when it comes to this project
.
Thirdly, and most important, I've decided to make a curule chair.
Now, having done the research on how curule chairs are made, I figure my plan should be this:
That's the basic plan. But, I've been having problems finding new sources of hawthorn, and whilst I do have one source, I don't want to denude the entire spot. Also, I didn't want a plain leather seat and back, so I wanted to try stamping (not carving - I'm not that good!), but whilst I can find various stamps online, I have some questions about the theory.
1. Hawthorn seems to be touted as a good, hardwearing wood, but is there anything better? I'm extremely poor, so this really is a case of me finding stuff that people are getting rid of and reusing it :vio:. I suspect oak is out of my league, and I'd prefer to use steamed heartwood rather than cut, but if I can't find enough hawtorn, what would be a good 2nd choice?
2. How thick should the seat and back leather be, especially as I'm designing the thing to fold?
3. Can stamping be effective with just a hammer/anvil system, or is a machine nessessary? How about a flower press system?
4. Is it possible to get large leather stamps?! Since all the ones I've found have been around 1/2", and authentic (ish) 17th century designs tend to be complex. I could just buy a load of small ones, but I don't want it to look too overwhelmed. From what I've seen, I'll need a line border (searching), inset nature-based patterns (I have a couple, but nothing repetitive), 2nd line border, possible corner feature points and lastly, a focal point in the centre (can't find anything big enough, unless it's that foot stamp!).
Anyone got any thoughts?
Secondly, I'm a Live-Roleplayer/ex re-enactor, which ought to give you some idea about my state of mind when it comes to this project
.Thirdly, and most important, I've decided to make a curule chair.
Now, having done the research on how curule chairs are made, I figure my plan should be this:
- Cut 1.5" hawthorn staves.
- Steam, then shape each stave into an S-shape.
- Joint the staves into an X-shape using a metal rod with screw threads at each end.
- Stabilise the feet with 2 horizontal bars.
- Stabilise the arms with 2 horizontal bars.
- Add the back (2 staves with leather in between)
- Add the seat (Leather)
That's the basic plan. But, I've been having problems finding new sources of hawthorn, and whilst I do have one source, I don't want to denude the entire spot. Also, I didn't want a plain leather seat and back, so I wanted to try stamping (not carving - I'm not that good!), but whilst I can find various stamps online, I have some questions about the theory
.1. Hawthorn seems to be touted as a good, hardwearing wood, but is there anything better? I'm extremely poor, so this really is a case of me finding stuff that people are getting rid of and reusing it :vio:. I suspect oak is out of my league, and I'd prefer to use steamed heartwood rather than cut, but if I can't find enough hawtorn, what would be a good 2nd choice?
2. How thick should the seat and back leather be, especially as I'm designing the thing to fold?
3. Can stamping be effective with just a hammer/anvil system, or is a machine nessessary? How about a flower press system?
4. Is it possible to get large leather stamps?! Since all the ones I've found have been around 1/2", and authentic (ish) 17th century designs tend to be complex. I could just buy a load of small ones, but I don't want it to look too overwhelmed. From what I've seen, I'll need a line border (searching), inset nature-based patterns (I have a couple, but nothing repetitive), 2nd line border, possible corner feature points and lastly, a focal point in the centre (can't find anything big enough, unless it's that foot stamp!).
Anyone got any thoughts?
