The Golden State: Where & How to Live, Secure, Visit, Enjoy and Thrive in California

Furniture Finishing

Protecting the Leaf.—"While metal leaf will hold its luster almost indefinitely, it lacks any real strength or resistance so that it is customary to protect with either a pale lacquer, applied over both leaf and glaze, or for work which cannot be sprayed or is too small, a thin pale varnish. These may be rubbed or left in the natural gloss.

BRONZING

The use of bronze on furniture is confined largely to striping, carved decoration and polychroming. but is widely used on picture frames, metal and wooden art objects and lamp stands, especially where production is a consideration. The powders come in various qualities, graded according to fineness; the best are known as lining, striping or burnishing powders and stay in suspension, i. e., float well in the liquid vehicle; the coarser grades settle quickly and are mostly confined to use on radiators, bentwood chairs, etc. Bronze colors include every gradation of tone from pale to roman gold, and include as well copper, fire, blue, green, lemon, violet and a host of other colored metallic powders, mostly of interest to polychromers.

Next in importance to the powder comes the liquid which may be pale wood lacquer, thinned fifty per cent or more, or a good grade of coach varnish, reduced thin with turpentine. The former is best applied by spraying and dries very quickly, the latter may be brushed or sprayed a.s desired and requires usually twenty-four or more hours to dry hard. Both are most conveniently purchased under a brand name, the test of quality being their ability to keep the powder floating, their clearness, gloss and toughness. The body can be regulated according to the mode of application, a special reducer being required for the lacquer as recommended by the maker. Shellac is unsuitable owing to its tendency to "liver," and linseed oil, even with dryer, lacks toughness; no bronze powder should be purchased ready mixed in the liquid.

The proper way to mix bronze powders is to sift the powder into the liquid, about a pound and a half of aluminum or twice that amount of gold or colored bronze to the gallon. The mixture should be stirred both in the preparation and at intervals during use; with lacquer bronzing liquid add the bronze first in a small amount of thinner, then add the lacquer. It is best for brush work to mix up only enough for the particular job or day's work. For spraying, a cup equipped with an air agitator saves stirring and keeps the bronze nicely in suspension at all times. Uniform consistency is essential to uniform covering.