How to Repair Loose or Broken Chair Parts

"All types of wooden furniture have their own individual structural problems. With common sense and a few particulars, you can keep all your wooden chairs in good repair. Here's how to replace loose or broken chair parts:

Loose Joints
Seat frames are held by mortise-and-tenon joints (a prong or tongue or wood secured in a hole in the joining piece) or doweled joints (pegs of wood hold the pieces together) supported by triangular glue blocks notched to fit the legs. If you catch a loose joint in time, repair it with glue. If the joint is broken, you'll have to disassemble it and replace the dowels. The triangular glue blocks will probably be glued and screwed to the frame, and the dowel joint might even be supported with hidden nail or screw fasteners. Separate the joint carefully with an old screwdriver or a stiff-bladed putty knife, then replace the dowels. Make sure the joint is clean and dry before you reassemble it.

Sometimes you can use a mechanical fastener -- an angle brace or a chair leg brace -- to mend the frame. This, of course, really depends on the value of the furniture. Do not lower the value of an antique with a piece of metal. Metal reinforcements are useless unless the joint is tightly fitted together, but they can be used to make a firm joint even tighter. Fasten the braces with brass screws, and make sure the screws are long enough.

Fasten the metal angle to one side of the chair frame; predrill the screw holes. Insert a piece of thin cardboard under the opposite part of the angle, then drill the screw holes for that side. Drive in the screws fairly tightly, remove the cardboard, and finish tightening the screws. When the screws are final-tightened, the angle will pull the joint tightly together to bridge the gap left by the cardboard.

Loose rungs or spindles -- and, where no bracing is used, loose legs -- can sometimes be mended by forcing glue into the joints. But a part mended this way may work loose again. For a more permanent repair, carefully separate the part from the frame. If both ends are loose, remove the entire piece. For very stubborn joints, twist the part slightly to break the glue bond; if necessary, use self-locking pliers. Pad the part to prevent damage to the wood from the pliers." ~ Source: HowStuffWorks.com

For more information on how to repair European Furniture, please contact us today!

Retailer Spotlight: Howard's Furniture

Looking to purchase some of our elegant European Furniture? If you are in North Carolina, go check out Howard's Furniture & Design Center.

About Howard's
We are a family-owned retail store selling furniture at discounted prices. We have been in business since 1954. We are members of the Better Business Bureau and the Catawba Country Chamber of Commerce. Also, available at our store are all types of flooring, GE appliances and Serta Bedding!

When you step into Howard's Furniture and Decorating Center's spacious showrooms, you’ll find a diverse collection of comfortable, yet sophisticated pieces for your bedroom, dining, and living room. Our furniture is distinctive and inspired by furnishings in the finest homes of Europe and America. We see many of our customers return again and again. By combining the outstanding service and knowledge of our family owners and experienced team, we can guide you to create the look and feel that is right for you. We understand that furniture lets you express yourself through your lifestyle. And you’ll be proud to own Howard's Furniture and Decorating Center's furnishings for a lifetime.

Our buyers travel as far as out of state to seek out one-of-a-kind treasures. We showcase artisans, blacksmiths, and craftspeople who make furniture and accessories exclusively for Howard's Furniture and Decorating Center.

The artisans of Howard's Furniture and Decorating Center use only the finest natural materials, blended in creative combinations and time-honored construction techniques to produce the finest quality products for your home. Our furniture, lighting, and accessories will add elegance, history and individuality to your home.

Visit Howard's Furniture and Decorating Center today. We’d love to help transform your house into your home. Enjoy our unique collections that offer distinctive sophistication and comfort.

About Pierre Deux Furniture

"In 1967, a shop opened in Greenwich Village in New York City that would soon bring the beauty of French Country decor to America. The shop was opened by two men: Pierre Le Vec, an American of French background, and Pierre Moulin, a native Frenchman. Their passion for French art de vivre and the French country way of life drove them to establish Pierre Deux as a name synonymous with French Country décor in America.

Their antique furniture imported from the provinces sold well, but the curtains, pillows and fabrics they used to accent the furniture sold spectacularly. The business evolved to include décor for every room in the house. With guidance from our President and Creative Director, Hedwige Cointreau de Bouteville, and her husband, André Cointreau, the President of Le Cordon Bleu, America has rediscovered that the French Country style is a centuries-old one that is perfectly suited to adding warmth, charm and sophistication which is often missing from American culture.

Since its inception, Pierre Deux has built up an artistic and cultural heritage which forms the basis of its collections. Our color palette takes cues from the natural beauty of the French countryside, while our designs blend old with new seamlessly. French Country style yearns for a return to a simple, uncluttered lifestyle surrounded by beauty. Our tradition is inspired by the landscape, soul and handcrafts of rural France. Entering a home styled in the Pierre Deux aesthetic means entering a happy, welcome place with the ideal atmosphere of relaxed ambiance and comfort.

French country style is one with a soul deeply tied to nature and humanity. The use of nature materials such as terracotta, stone, pewter along with wood beams and paneling are always found in Country French residences. Pierre Deux blends form with function and reflects the color, warmth and grace of homes throughout the French countryside." ~ PierreDeux.com

To learn more about all of Highland Houses' product lines, including information on bed room furniture sets, please visit our site!

The Costwold Cottage Collection

Discover the charms of the English countryside in The Cotswolds. Delight in vine-covered stone cottages and thatch-roof houses that abound among storybook towns and villages, ancient churchyards, picturesque stone walls and narrow, winding paths.

Highland House Furniture has used captured the Costwold essence, and can be found in our furniture line. Check out our website to view the vast selection of furniture.

Holiday Specials from Highland House

Who needs stocking stuffers when you can get something everyone wants... a new bed!

W: 64in D: 88.75in H: 58.5in Weight: 280 lb

Each piece of Highland House's fine wood furniture is finished by hand, involving many steps. Woods have grain and color variations due to the growth pattern of each tree. The result is a beautiful and unique piece. For additional product information on our European Furniture, please visit our site.

Product Spotlight: Juliette Chair

A sofa anchors and sets the overall decorative tone of any room. Nobody knows sofas better than we do, and we offer them in styles ranging from formal to semiformal to traditional to something a bit more relaxed.


Dimensions:
W: 35 in D: 36 in H: 40 in
65 lb / 30 cft
Apron Height: N/A
W: 19 in D: 21 in H: 18 in (Inside)
H: 22 in (Seat)
Arm Height: 26 in

For more information on Furniture European style, please visit our site!

About the Rue de Provence Collection

Provence, the oldest region in France, has for centuries charmed the world with its Mediterranean culture, ancient towns, multi-textured landscape, native fabrics, delightful shops, fields of sunflowers and lavender, delicious wines and cuisine. Discover the joie de vivre!

According to online resources, the Rue de Provence is mainly in the IX e arrondissement of Paris. Only the short part of the street between rue du Havre and rue de Rome is in the VIII arrondissement.

At this place was a little river called "ruisseau de Menilmontant". With the Parisian population increasing, this little river became the Grand Egout with two meters width in the XVIIth century. Letter patent of 15 December 1770 allowed the banker Jean-Joseph de Laborde to create a 30 feet width street by covering the "Grand Egout".

"Provence" is the name of a region in the south-east of France, but the name of the street is in honour of Louis-Stanislas-Xavier, comte de Provence, king of France from 1814 to 1824 under the name of Louis XVIII.

For more information on Highland House and our European Furniture, please visit our site!