Pretwisted Natural Rush Seat

This material is quite variable in dimension and is nowhere near a nice as hand twisted bullrush or cattail.
Pleased with the final result here, but not anxious to use it again.

Tools and Quick Tips for Rushing

Here is the ubiquitous Paint Can Opener which can pull strands of rush into proper alignment or adjust a corner. Especially useful underneath to organize the forgotten bottom strands and produce a really professional finish.

Paint Can Opener pulling strand

Paint Can Opener

 Here again is the rush packer for compression. Lightly hammer toward the corners and keep the measurements even for each quadrant as the rush builds toward the center.

Rush Packer

Compromises --Plywood Seat instead of Cane

 This is the compromise which the customer and I agreed on to avoid removing wood to access the groove to recane this seat which is pictured in a previous post. We can always come back and recane in the future, but cost and usage entered into this decision.

1/4" plywood lightly bradded in place. Chair has always had a cushion.
This is a correction to a former post.

Upgraded Workstation for Rushing

While attending the Gathering of the Seatweavers' Guild in Indiana last summer, I observed a bench similar to this being used for rushing. It provides a stable base for securing a chair and doing the necessary pulling, tugging, and packing involved in good rushing technique. After chasing several unsecured chairs around the top of my canvas covered bench, I broke down and went to the garage to scavenge some poplar and melamine surfaced chipboard. Now I have an efficient workstation. The height is customizable by changing the length of the pipe nipples.
Second upgrade was making a semi-circular opening in the side of my hickory "compressor board" or "packer" used to compress the woven rush toward the corners to keep it close and tight. This handy tool now grabs the rush on 3 sides of the rung and a couple quick taps tightens it right up.
I also started to use 3/16" wide staples, 10mm long in an upholstery stapler(BostitchTU97) to secure lengths of rush to the rungs instead of hand driven tacks. Much faster and less frustration. Thanks to Katherine at seatweavingrestoration.com for that tool tip.

Footstool with different Fill-In

This footstool has 3/8" flat reed in a herringbone 3x3 and skip 1 pattern. The edges are filled in with 3 wraps over the edge, woven through, and wrapped under the edge. I'm thinking to fill in with 3 strands individually as free strips, not woven over the edges.

Anyone seen this pattern?

Seatweavers' Guild Annual Gathering 2011

Just back from Noblesville, IN where 23 of the faithful gathered to share the latest in seatweaving tips and techniques, marketing ideas and business practices. It was a very worthwhile trip, and meeting folks that have only been names on the Caning Forum was gratifying. Had a chance to weave natural bullrush and cat-tails for the first time -- tedious and challenging, but beautiful results.
The most notable piece that someone brought along for display was a wicker potty chair, which had been very popular with the grandchildren of that family.

Acorn Skiff Carvings

Here are the finished carvings for the Acorn Skiff. The nameplate is painted with marine grade poly based paints and the pelicans are stained with a mixture of ammonia and black walnut hulls. Now to get these on the skiff and row somewhere!

Here are a transom seatback and nameplate for the stern of an Acorn skiff a friend from Tennessee has built with a little of my help -- 5 hrs. separate us. This boat will be the tender for his 16' Cape Cod catboat which we manage to drag to the NC coast once a year.