The technology of making do-it-yourself antique furniture, as well as diagrams and drawings
The original way to update the interior will be antique furniture with your own hands, drawings and diagrams will help in this. Handmade is a very popular trend of recent years, unique technologies for creating vintage things have not bypassed the sphere of furniture. The future design needs to be carefully considered - whether it will be collapsible, which elements are to be decorated, since it depends on what tools will need to be used.
Necessary tools
The second life of old furniture can change the overall perception of a boring interior. And no longer need to think about what to do with old furniture. Many home craftsmen prefer to change antique furniture with their own hands, and drawings and diagrams will help to measure all the necessary parameters and prevent mistakes in such an interesting case.
To start the process, you need to familiarize yourself with the tools that will be used in the work, as well as think about how to make the process as easy as possible. As a rule, tools are selected in order to solve a specific problem - how to age furniture. If you plan to create an entire interior on your own or to decorate old furniture, then you should go to the store, after preparing the list. The necessary equipment with which to repair old furniture is presented in the table.
View | Instruments |
Manual | An awl, an adjustable wrench, saws on wood or metal material, planers, a jigsaw, several types of knives, a hammer (you can immediately buy it with a nail puller), chisels, wire cutters, screwdrivers (it is better to purchase a kit). |
Consumables, accessories | Bright pencil or felt-tip pen for marking, several types of drills (to make through holes), crowns (ring), clamps (the best clamps when it is necessary to glue parts), drills for working with metal (2-10mm). |
Electric | Screwdriver (electric), drill, grinder, jigsaw (electric). |
Measuring | Roulette (it is advisable to buy up to 5m), a ruler (preferably metal length of 100cm), level (up to 60 cm), squares. |
Novice masters most often have difficulties with the choice of an electric tool with which you can perform the aging of furniture. In order not to waste money in vain, it is better to consult with a sales assistant.
Aging Methods
Before you paint antique furniture at home, you need to familiarize yourself with all available methods and techniques for how to age furniture with your own hands. It is worth noting that the process of working with modern furniture is no different from the methods of creating antique furniture with your own hands. The main differences are in the final result, namely the appearance resembling old, cracked objects. Before artificially aging furniture, you should carefully prepare. The most popular and popular methods are:
- Chemical surface treatment;
- Thermal impact;
- Mechanical restoration.
Chemical surface treatment
If pine is planned to be used as the main material, then chemical treatment using special reagents will be the best choice. As a result of the reaction of the chemical and wood, the material is cracked and the long-awaited effect of antiquity is obtained. However, it’s quite dangerous to age furniture with your own hands at home, because during operation you have to contact with chemical reagents, measure them, mix them. It is important to note that the substances necessary for work corrode the material, so it is important to protect the skin of the hands as much as possible.
Thermal impact
As for heat treatment, when repairing old furniture with your own hands, you do not have to use reagents, but another danger appears - working with an open source of fire. To achieve an optimal result, a high-temperature flame must be directed to the material. The best tool will be a soldering iron or a special lamp. It is important to control the process so that the lamp burns out layers of wood unevenly. Only in this way will an object decorated with antique be obtained. Soft layers take much less time because they burn out first. The hard surface remains slightly affected and the texture is heterogeneous. Without fail after the firing method, sandpaper is used to make the surface smooth. At the end, it is covered with a special varnish. As for transparency, you can choose the tool in accordance with your own preferences.
Mechanical restoration
Thanks to machining, it is possible to simplify the manufacture of antique furniture. If this is the artist’s first experience, then decorating old furniture with their own hands from the photo will make it easier. Using a brush with metal bristles, you need to walk along the entire surface along the fibers. Thus, a soft layer of wood is removed to obtain an uneven texture. Further, as in the first case, emery and varnish are used to preserve the new look for as long as possible.
Another popular technique for how to age furniture at home, which is used quite often by craftsmen of various levels - brushing. With it, you can make your own antique furniture provence style. The technology is used not only to transform furniture, but also to decor flooring, decorative beams and even the ceiling. It is worth paying attention to design projects in the old style. This technique of aging furniture looks great in combination with indoor plants, so it is often used to transform suburban homes, open terraces.
Brushing is the removal of soft layers of wood with the help of special metal brushes with further staining of furniture in a dark shade of brown. Final processing (especially if antique antique furniture is being restored) requires varnishing of wooden furniture, which provides protection against mechanical damage, humidity and other natural phenomena. This method can be used regardless of the size of the furniture. Optimum use for pine, larch, ash. It is important to note that the brushing method cannot be used for fruit species of wood, such as pear or cherry, because their wood does not have a pronounced texture.
Using this method, you can decorate your old furniture with your own hands: chests of drawers, cabinets, beds and other attributes without severe damage to the structure of the material, since exposure involves the destruction of only the top layer of wood. If you plan to use brushing for large objects (Provence style furniture), it is best to prepare a grinder or chisel to save time. To achieve a deeper effect, it is recommended to use several processing methods at once. So, brushing can be supplemented by chemical exposure to special reagents or by heat treatment.
Do-it-yourself self-made wardrobe room is easy to carry out. You can add a highlight to the living room - to make a table out of old tires with your own hands or to decorate the interior with designer antique furniture. However, it is worth remembering that such a style should fit into the main style, otherwise the whole concept will look ridiculous.
Preparatory work
Before you paint your old furniture with your own hands, you must perform the following preparatory work:
- We clean all the details. If the remains of the previous coating are found on the tree, then they must be removed without fail. Dismantle small parts;
- Grinding. The paint will not lie flat on the surface, if it is not previously polished, removing the tubercles or swelling that have appeared over time. How to remove the remnants of the past decor, you can look at the available videos on the Internet;
- We remove pollution and dust accumulation;
- Apply an antiseptic primer. It is necessary so that during operation the tree does not begin to rot;
- If the furniture is in good condition and no broken parts are found, then putty is not needed. Otherwise, you need to putty the chips with a special mixture for wood;
- Dry the cleaned and primed parts for several hours.
Work execution technology
There are several techniques that can transform old furniture and radically change the facade of the furniture wall and its appearance.
Crackle
At the heart of the whole process is the use of a special varnish called craquelure. This is a kind of substance through which artistic microcracks begin to appear on the surface. It is optimum to use a varnish for processing wooden or glass objects. In order for antique furniture to be painted correctly, it is important to observe the following instructions:
- On the previously prepared surface, apply the first coat of paint - the base. When microcracks appear, they will acquire a hue of the base;
- Once the base is dry, you can apply craquelure. In this case, all strokes should be performed strictly in one direction;
- After drying, apply the color scheme, which acts as a finish coating. As a result of its use, the long-awaited cracks appear;
- We cover the resulting effect with fixing varnish for furniture.
This method is perfect for those masters who seek to return their own country or Provence style. Making aged furniture using this technique will take very little time.
Apply paintApply craquelure varnishLet the coating dryPatina
Over the years, streaks of greenish-bronze color appear on the furniture, which indicates the "old age" of the item. This is patina. It is the result of high humidity or exposure to high rainfall. To achieve an illusory effect, you must take the following actions:
- Varnish a tree. It is recommended to use a special mixture that will protect the furniture from harmful external influences and extend its service life;
- We wait until the mixture has completely hardened, and apply a patina to the surface;
- After a half-hour rest, you can begin to work with a wire brush. It is important to note that the greater the effort, the brighter the effect;
- Using rags, eliminate by-products of work in the form of dust;
- As in the first method, we finish the work with furniture varnish.
Overwrite old paintPrimer coatingPaint the surfaceApply patinaOverwrite with a ragVarnishThe main advantage of this technique is the lack of need for additional care. In addition, patina is quite easy to use with your own hands at home.
Colorization
The main work is carried out in several colors. To achieve the effect of antiquity, follow the instructions below:
- To create the effect of clumsiness and shabbiness, it is necessary to inflict minor mechanical damage. Thus, artificial aging of the furniture is obtained, for example, the effect of old Soviet furniture, because it cannot be in perfect condition;
- We apply paint in such a way as to preserve the texture of the material;
- We walk along the surface with sandpaper to form spectacular scuffs;
- We take a paint of a different color, apply it with neat brush strokes and blend it.
Artificial Pollution Effect
Things tend to get dirty over time, covered with dust. To produce a similar effect, do the following:
- Selectively, wax is applied to some surface areas. Movements should be in the same direction, but intermittently. Next, cover the item with varnish;
- If recesses were found on the object, then the varnish will give them a darker shade, visually enhancing the effect of antiquity.
Any furniture, regardless of the material or decoration requires proper care for a longer operating time. It is worth paying attention to the following methods:
- We rub the old furniture from the chipboard with our own hands with mastic or wax. They contribute to the formation of protection against high humidity and repel water. Rub the compounds with a rag or soft sponge;
- In addition, acrylic or a special varnish with its content is perfect. It must be applied periodically in order to "update" the protection. You can glue the surface of the subject with a mixture of acrylic and wax;
- If dust accumulates, the furniture loses its presentable appearance, so we wipe it periodically with an ordinary cloth without lint.
Drawings and schemes
A drawing or diagram is a prerequisite for creating high-quality and durable furniture from chipboard or other antique materials with your own hands. Therefore, in the process of its creation, it is important to make the following calculations:
- Dimensions of the whole product and the dimensions of each part;
- The amount of material that must be purchased for the implementation of the project;
- The drawing necessarily shows all the small components of the main structure, indicating the dimensions and their location points;
- The drawing should display the product from all sides, be three-dimensional.
In addition to a schematic representation of future furniture, it is important to pay attention to the decoration, to make a sketch. If there is no experience in the manufacture of furniture, it is recommended to start from the table, since it is easiest to make. You can breathe life into old furniture without major changes, just with the help of decor.
In conclusion, I would like to note that on the Internet you can watch a special master class on how to age furniture with your own hands. In addition, there is a video on the network that shows how to repair furniture from old boards, tells how to change the facades of a furniture wall, sanded a shelf of a shelf, ennoble them or simply repainted. You can also find a number of lessons on how to clean old furniture, for example, remove stickers on furniture.