We can teach you how to cane a chair seat in a few simple steps! Pieces of furniture are what completes a house, especially having a chair where you can rest yourself while aesthetically pleasing.
You can do this by yourself at home. You can even decorate and customize yours after memorizing the basic steps. It can help you in unleashing that crafty soul of yours.
Weaving seats is possible with your bare hands, and this is what you call caning. It is the process of building a new one or repairing what you already have. Most cane chairs produced with rattan vines are exported from the Philippines, Malaysia, and Indonesia.
This DIY project is fun, and it enhances your creativity. Who knows, you might end up having a business of your own with cane chairs as products! Below are the simple ways you can follow to cane a chair seat.
How Much Does It Cost To Cane A Chair Seat?
Since DIY is something you will do by yourself, it is good to know how much your materials will cost. On the other hand, having it made professionally is pricey because you also have to consider the labor of the furniture company.
There are two ways you can cane a chair. First is the one done with glue, the machine-woven cane sheet, and narrow groove edge will cost you 50$. This cost comes with the sheet and other materials such as glue.
The second is the chair that has holes in it. Most of the time, they are old and need a lot of time and patience to fix. Professionals often labor 2$ per hole with a total of 350$.
We know you clicked this to create your own, so caning your chair and buying the materials will only cost you 70$. That is a lot of savings from your pocket, plus you get to learn something new.
What Do You Need To Cane A Chair Seat?
To cane your chair, you have to make sure that you have completed all the materials needed.
First, you must have a chair you can cane. It is better if the chair has drilled holes around. Remember that it should be pre-drilled, or it will not be possible.
Second, you need to pick your caning material. Again, please make sure that your materials are suitable for your chair’s texture. It should also be based on your personal preference.
Third, you need to measure the gauge of the material. You can use a ruler to measure the drilled holes.
It would be good if you also took notes to measure from the center hole. It is a precaution to make sure all places in the seat frame are even.
Fourth, it would help if you also had scissors, peg, tack hammer, small hammer, ice pick, white soluble water glue, water bucket, and a hand towel.
All your materials should be on one table. Take note to consider the height of the table, and you must work on a table that you are comfortable with because it will take a lot of your time.
Caning Your Chair Seat
Step #1. Cut your caning material with scissors. They should be at least 6 to 7 yards long. If your scissors don’t work, you can use any cutting material, such as a knife.
Step #2. Put the caning material in the water bucket for 10 minutes. To save time, you can change the materials constantly to have the material ready. You must take note that over-soaking may affect the material’s color and quality.
Step #3. Insert a piece of the material in the center hole, and the glossy side should be on top. Leave at least 2 inches below and secure the cane material with a peg. Next, you may insert it again to another hole below vertically, then to the back rail, and repeat the process.
Step #4. You can do the same with step 3, but this time horizontally. Again, you should make sure that the lines are parallel and the spaces are aligned. Pull the strands tightly so it won’t look saggy.
Step #5. After this step, you may now do it diagonally, such as hole-to-hole caning. Again, it should be on top of the verticals and below the horizontals.
Step #6. You can now start securing the caning material, and you may begin the looping process. You can start at the bottom side of the chair and keep inserting and tie the loose ends.
You may use the glue to keep it in place. Remove all the pegs once done.
Conclusion
Knowing how to cane a chair seat is helpful knowledge that you may use on crafts. You can save yourself some money, and you get to have a new chair built on your own efforts. It feels good to have furniture items that we worked for because we value them more.