'Medieval' Camp chairs / stool

[Sir James A]

Cutting and test fitting done with the first two:



I learned my jigsaw is *terrible* at straight line cuts, despite having a laser, angle adjusting, and reciprocating adjustable blade. I bought another one, half the price, that doesn't do any of that, and works 100x better. I tried to clean up the first one a bit, but the junk saw had done it's work. You can see the small gaps in the one on the right at the top. That's medieval, right?

I'm not 100% on curved leg cutout, or none. I did one of each. I need to do some better tenons, then stain, then seal, then they're ready. Then just need to make a couple more - I may try permanent assembly with hidden screws for stability, but the wedges seem to work well so far.

Then on to chests!

[Sir Brian]

They look great! 

Stain? Is stain period or did they just slap some linseed oil on their furniture? 

[Sir James A]

They look great! 

Stain? Is stain period or did they just slap some linseed oil their furniture? 

Thank you, Sir Brian. I'm not sure if stain is completely period, but I think it will be roughly 'period appearing', based on this:

The earliest known varnish recipe is from Theophilus (11th Century) who recommends mixing it with red pigment as a final coat for woodwork. (1979). English building accounts refer to colored varnish being used on interior woodwork by the 13th Century (Salzman 1992).

The first evidence we have for the use of varnish on furniture, as opposed to interior woodwork is from the Thirteenth Century.

http://www.medievalwoodworking.org/articles/Interior%20Wood%20Finishing.pdf

Since I'll be doing 13th century or later, I think it will be close enough to be passable. I picked a stain that I think will end up slightly reddish, almost maroon-brown. I've seen references to Tung oil, but mostly for Viking era stuff, and it leaves it in a natural (light) finish, whereas I prefer the darker tint.

Also, here was the general inspiration of the design (scaled to my ability, and for single seating):



Depending on time, I *may* attempt the table (with simplified legs) - once the other seats, chests, and beds are done.

[Lord Dane]

Here's my table & 2 mini-benches for my battle tent setup. Looks fresh from a European tavern. Just put a decorative runner on the table top & wala. Perfect look.

[Thorsteinn]

Nice stuff here.

[Sir Gerard de Rodes]

Nice work.
I like the trefoil type cut outs myself. I wouldn`t go with a high shine varnish look, a nice aged oak stain would look really nice.

I have made a couple of items using this guys simple plans. I was especially pleased with the gothic arch chair and flat pack chest.
http://www.greydragon.org/furniture.html

G.

[Sir Wolf]

usually linseed oil some people mix beeswax into it. there's also ammonia. just be REAL careful with boiled linseed oil rags. fully soak them with water and dispose of them properly. dried out linseed oil can and will combust and catch your house on fire.

[Sir James A]

Lord_Dane, thanks for the picture. That looks similar to what I'm going for. The table is making me wonder; is there a leg not shown in the picture or something? I can't picture the "T" standing up on it's own. Looks like the benches have the same assembly style mine does, but yours looks better.

Nice work.
I like the trefoil type cut outs myself. I wouldn`t go with a high shine varnish look, a nice aged oak stain would look really nice.

I have made a couple of items using this guys simple plans. I was especially pleased with the gothic arch chair and flat pack chest.
http://www.greydragon.org/furniture.html

G.

I may give the trefoil a try. It doesn't look too complicated ... but sometimes, even the simplest task eludes me. Fingers crossed.

I like the color of the chest here: http://www.greydragon.org/furniture/bocce.html

Here's a picture of my sword cabinets (http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t8/jba3/medieval/projects/2012-01-22151634.jpg). I have the same stain to use for the benches and chests, and expect similar color; only difference being the chests are cheap low grade pine, and the benches are knot-free medium grade pine and seem slightly lighter. My tent is white, so hopefully the darker furniture will give it a nice contrast. Most of the pictures I find of period pieces are in black and white, and only repros seem to be in color.

[Sir Edward]

These are really great. Between us all, we can probably fill out my panther pavilion with some nice stuff.

[Lord Dane]

Lord_Dane, thanks for the picture. That looks similar to what I'm going for. The table is making me wonder; is there a leg not shown in the picture or something? I can't picture the "T" standing up on it's own. Looks like the benches have the same assembly style mine does, but yours looks better.

Nice work.
I like the trefoil type cut outs myself. I wouldn`t go with a high shine varnish look, a nice aged oak stain would look really nice.

I have made a couple of items using this guys simple plans. I was especially pleased with the gothic arch chair and flat pack chest.
http://www.greydragon.org/furniture.html

G.

I may give the trefoil a try. It doesn't look too complicated ... but sometimes, even the simplest task eludes me. Fingers crossed.

I like the color of the chest here: http://www.greydragon.org/furniture/bocce.html

Here's a picture of my sword cabinets (http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t8/jba3/medieval/projects/2012-01-22151634.jpg). I have the same stain to use for the benches and chests, and expect similar color; only difference being the chests are cheap low grade pine, and the benches are knot-free medium grade pine and seem slightly lighter. My tent is white, so hopefully the darker furniture will give it a nice contrast. Most of the pictures I find of period pieces are in black and white, and only repros seem to be in color.

Thank you, Sir James. The cross section base is centered under the table but hidden by the benches. It supports it nicely & allows the benches to slide under the table on both sides but still allowing leg room when pulled out seated.  Table is solid oak (perfect English wood) & stained same.

[Sir James A]

These are really great. Between us all, we can probably fill out my panther pavilion with some nice stuff.

That brings up a good question; are we going to have ourselves as Order of the Marshal, or separate knights? I'm not sure where I'll end up for encampment, but I'm guessing the 'War of Roses & Burgundians' area based on my 'lots of plate' favoritism. I can bring the Marshal gonfalon. Do we want to propose any scheduled long sword demos? Or some random improv? I'm not sure I'll make the whole 'patrons' part of the day in harness, but I'm a stubborn little mule, so I'm going to give it a shot.

I've been trying to think of what I can logistically fit inside my own tent, but since I just ordered it last week, and it won't arrive until September, it's pushing up to crunch time on trying to make last-minute furniture and seeing if it fits in the tent and truck, too.

Let's talk a bit offline on coordinating people / stuff / transporting / camping / etc. Despite finding a puddle in my yard yesterday when I got home, due to a leaking water line that needs a replacement (worth 2 average albions - ugh!!), I'm still going to push to make DoK, even if it involves a credit card. We have a lot of different options for camping / setup / etc, and some details on my end are still fuzzy.

[Sir Patrick]

Here's a finish recipe I've used on many woodworking projects to get an aged look.
Equal parts white vinegar, linseed oil, and turpentine.
Rub it on with a cloth (probably will take 2-3 coats). Finish by rubbing on some minwax paste wax with cheesecloth.  If using a high grained wood like oak, a short stint under a hood with ammonia prior to using the oil will really bring out the grain.

[Sir Wolf]

easy table ideas. 2 plain pine boards lay across these.










i will look for my pattern and get you dimensions.

do you see my bench behind the tables? in pics 1 and 4, they are like yours Sir James, thin out your lower cross member a little bit or put a design in it ehhehe

[Sir Wolf]

other table ideas

[Ian]

Here's a message Joe Metz sent me on FB that contains some useful links for obtaining chairs/chests/tables etc. 

Here are two links you may find useful: http://medievaloak.com
http://craftedqualityplus.com/index.html

A table by itself (I recommend the trestles from Medieval Oak with some simple boards across the top) and/or a chair http://www.smoke-fire.com/wood-items-furniture-1.asp make for a quick and easy presentation set-up. These are the vendors I have used:)