Among the many convenient pieces of furniture that a boy can make for the home, there are, perhaps, none that are so handy and generally useful as screens, shoe-boxes, and settles of various kinds.
Screens in particular are of so many and varied designs that it would be quite impossible in this short chapter to give more than a few of the simpler forms; but they will serve as hints for others.
A Light-screen
One of the easiest screens to make, and perhaps the most generally useful, is that shown in Fig. 1. This is a light-screen, which may be easily taken from one room to another.
Four rails of pine or white-wood are cut and tapered at one end for the tops, and slightly cut away at the other for the bottom, as shown in the illustration. The rails are four feet six inches long, two and a half inches in width, and seven-eighths of an inch thick. Dowels five-eighths of an inch in diameter are used for the cross-sticks. They can be purchased at a hardware store or from a cabinet-maker, and should be cut twenty-four inches long. Holes are to be bored in one edge of each strip, into which the dowels are driven, and fastened with glue and small nails. Four or five dowels will be sufficient for each wing, and they should be spaced evenly, the first one four inches below the top of the rails and the bottom one ten inches above the floor.
The wings are fastened together with two or three hinges, so that the screen may be folded and stood in a closet or behind a door when not in use.
Some pretty figured material, such as China silk, silkoline, cretonne, or printed cotton goods may be used for the covering, which is to show on both sides of each wing. It should be from three to five feet wide, so as to allow for some fulness. One end of the goods is tacked to the top dowel; then it is passed around the bottom dowel and brought up to the top, where it is again tacked fast. Some narrow gimp and brass nails will hide the edges of the goods at the top, and to hold the material in place a few tacks may be driven along the bottom dowel.
The wood-work should be painted, or stained and varnished, before the covering material is put on. If a dull finish is desired, some dark paint may be thinned with turpentine and rubbed on with a soft cloth, then partially wiped off and allowed to dry. It will not be necessary to varnish or shellac the surface, but a little beeswax can be dissolved in turpentine and rubbed on.
A Fire-screen
When an open fire is burning on the hearth a screen that will protect the eyes from the glare, and yet allow the heat to reach the lower part of the body and the feet, is a useful piece of furniture.
A simple screen of this description is shown in Fig. 2, and for a living-room or bedroom it should measure thirty-six inches long, forty-two inches high, the screen proper being eighteen or twenty inches wide.
Fig. 1. Fig. 2. Fig. 3. Fig. 4. Fig. 5. Fig. 6. Fig. 7. Fig. 8.
The uprights are of wood two inches square, and the cross-rails are seven-eighths of an inch thick and two inches wide. The joints are mortised and tenoned, and held with screws and glue, while the apparent fastenings are large, round, mock nail-heads. The feet are cut from hard-wood seven-eighths of an inch in thickness, as shown in Fig. 3, and attached to the bottom of the upright posts with glue and screws, the vertical edges of the feet being let into a lap cut in the posts. Each foot will then measure eighteen inches across at the bottom, and twelve inches high from the floor to the top of the lap cut in the posts.
Leather, burlap, denim, tapestry-cloth, or any good covering fabric, may be used for the screen. This material should be tacked on the top and bottom rail with large upholsterers’ tacks painted black.
A design may be lightly drawn on the fabric with a pencil, and afterwards painted in oil or water colors, or the ornament may be stencilled on with aniline colors, as described in Chapter XIX.
A Shoe-screen
For a bedroom a convenient screen is shown in Fig. 4. This is properly called a shoe-screen, since there is a ledge made fast to the lower part of it to serve as a rest for the foot when lacing or buttoning shoes. There are also two rows of pockets on the inside of the screen, into which shoes, slippers, and sandals can be slipped.
A convenient size to make this screen is three feet six inches high and two feet six inches wide. The foot-ledge should not be more than fourteen inches above the floor and six inches wide. The frame may be made from any easily worked wood, since when it is painted, or stained and varnished, nothing but the grain will show. The uprights should be three inches wide, seven-eighths of an inch thick, and three feet three inches long. Lap or dowelled joints should be made at the top corners, and at the foot of both pieces notches are to be cut in with saw and chisel, as shown at Fig. 5. The foot-pieces may then be driven up in place and made fast with screws or slim nails driven through the projecting ends of the side uprights and into the feet. The feet are of wood seven-eighths of an inch thick, sixteen inches long, and six inches high. The pattern may be drawn with lead-pencil on the wood; then, with a compass-saw, cut the wood on the lines, having first clamped the piece in a vise to hold it securely. The foot-shelf is made fast to the screen after the covering material is in place, and at both ends it is supported with brackets, the lower ends of which are made fast with screws.
A cross-rib should be made fast in the screen-frame midway between the top-rail and the one to which the ledge is attached, and a line of tacks is driven through the covering material and into the frame on both sides. This is to give a better finish, and also to support the rows of pockets when full of shoes.
The strip of denim for the pockets is seven inches wide and hemmed on both edges. It is then caught to the covering material so that generous pockets will be formed, each one being large enough to accommodate a pair of shoes.
The front of the screen may be covered with a fancy-figured material fastened on with small tacks; over this a gimp to match the material can be laid and held down with large-headed tacks, such as may be purchased at upholstery supply stores. The painting, staining, or varnishing should, of course, be done before the fabric, or covering material, is made fast to the frame.
A Bedroom-door Screen
At night it is often agreeable to have a bedroom door left open. Yet one does not want to sleep in an actual draught, and a screen such as is shown in Fig. 6 will be found most useful.
This screen is in one piece, six feet six inches high and eighteen inches wide. The frame is made from pine, white-wood, or any other wood to match the trim of the room. Two cross-rails are fixed so as to remain equal distances apart, thus forming three panels to the screen. Hinges are arranged at one edge, which in turn are made fast to the door-casing, so that when the screen is not in use it can be thrown back against the wall; or, if thought preferable, eyes may be driven in the casing and hooks in the edge of the screen, so that it may swing as if on hinges, and yet be lifted off at will and set away in a closet. An eye on the door and a hook on the screen will serve as a fairly secure fastening against intrusion. Any pretty material that matches the paper of the room may be used to cover this screen, and the edges should be bound with gimp and large-headed tacks to give it a good appearance.
A Heavy Fire-screen
For a dining-room, living-room, or library, an attractive design for a heavy fire-screen is shown in Fig. 7. This is constructed of oak, ash, or other hard-wood. It is thirty-six inches wide, forty-two inches high, and the rails and feet are one and one-eighth inches thick. The uprights and cross-rails are four inches wide, and the top and bottom of each upright are cut as shown in Fig. 8.
The cross-rails should be mortised in the uprights, or they may be made fast by butting one end against an edge and securing the joint with dowels. The feet are fourteen inches across at the bottom and fifteen inches high. They are glued and screwed in the laps cut at the lower ends of the uprights, and the screw-heads are covered with imitation wrought-iron nail-heads beaten from sheet-lead and attached with steel-wire nails, the heads of which are invisible when driven into the lead.
The side of the screen which faces the fire should be covered with burlap, denim, or other stout cotton fabric. The outer side of the screen should be faced with leather, on which the ornamental design is followed out with stains and pyrography (see Chapter XII).
The leather should be caught to the frame with tacks placed two inches apart, and also glue. Over the tacks imitation lead heads may be secured with slim, steel nails.
A Window-seat with Under Ledge
In the drawing of the window-seat with under ledge (Fig. 9) an odd but useful piece of furniture is shown. It is made from two boards fourteen inches wide and forty inches long, two end-pieces fifteen inches wide and twenty-two inches high, and four brackets eight inches on the right-angle edges. These latter are necessary to brace the top and ends, as shown in Fig. 10 A A.
The top shelf, or seat, is eighteen inches high from the floor, and the under ledge is made fast eight inches below it. The fastening is made with screws and liquid glue, and allowed to stand several hours before the drapery is attached.
For the upholstery material the dry-goods stores offer quite a variety of stuffs from which to choose. The least expensive are burlap, denim, cretonne, and some of the heavy, cotton, printed goods. Other fabrics, richer in appearance and more lasting, are velour, tapestry-cloth, rep, and brocade. Goods of this class will cost from fifty cents to several dollars a yard.
Fig. 9. Fig. 10. Fig. 11. Fig. 12.
To upholster this seat, obtain some curled hair from an old mattress, and spread it over the top board, having first tacked a piece of unbleached muslin along one edge of the seat. When a sufficient quantity of the hair is on the board, draw the muslin over it, and tack it down along the other edge and at the ends. Over this the fabric can be drawn and tacked.
The end boards are covered with plain goods of the same color as the seat and flounce, and the edges are bound with gimp an inch wide, held down with large, oval-headed upholsterers’ tacks painted black. Across the back of the seat (the part that goes against the wall or window-base) plain goods can be drawn and tacked, or it may be left open.
The front is provided with a flounce made by shirring the goods on a stout cotton cord and tacking it along the front of the top board, then covering the tacks with gimp and nails, as shown in the drawing. A coat of paint or shellac at the inside will finish the wood-work, and it will then be ready for use.
A Shoe-box Seat
A shoe-box seat is easily made and upholstered, and will be an acceptable addition in any bedroom (see Fig. 11). The sides are eighteen inches wide, thirty-six inches high at the back, and twenty-two inches at the front. The seat and ledge under it are each eighteen inches square, and the boards forming the back extend down to the floor. The parts are put together with screws and glue; then the seat is upholstered with curled hair, as described for the window-seat (Fig. 9).
The framework for this seat could be made from a box with the bottom and one side removed. The arms should be cut from a separate piece of wood and screwed fast, as shown in Fig. 12 by the line along the shaded side.
Plain or figured goods may be used for the covering material. It is drawn and caught with tacks at the edges; then the joints may be hidden with gimp and large-headed tacks. If it is possible to procure some English bellows-nails they will add an artistic effect to the trimming. If they cannot be had, very good imitation heads may be cut from sheet-lead with a pair of old scissors or shears. After beating them about the edge to flatten them and lend a hand-forged effect, these disks should be attached to the wood with long, slim finishing-nails of steel wire, which, when driven into the heads, become imbedded in the lead and are not seen. They should be painted black with a solution of shellac in which some dry lamp-black has been mixed to the consistency of cream. Apply with a soft brush.
A Dressing-room Settle
In the illustration for a dressing-room settle (Fig. 13) a comfortable piece of furniture is illustrated, and in Fig. 14 its construction is clearly indicated.
The ends are three feet high and sixteen inches wide. The back-boards extend from the top of the ends down to the floor, and are attached with screws. The seat and under ledge should be from thirty to forty-eight inches long, according to the space it will occupy against the wall or under a window.
The upholstering is done as described for the other pieces of furniture, save that a more elaborate ornamentation is suggested for the end-pieces. The design is drawn in free-hand, and then embroidered on with heavy linen thread. Mother or elder sister will have to help out with the needle-work.
A Short Settle
Fig. 13. Fig. 14. Fig. 15. Fig. 16.
A short settle with under ledge (Fig. 15) is another comfortable piece of bedroom or sitting-room furniture. In Fig. 16 the constructional diagram is shown for the arrangement of its sides, back, and under ledge.
The ends are sixteen inches wide and twenty-three inches high. The back extends down to the floor, and above the ends it curves or rounds over, extending up about five inches higher than the tops of the ends. Under the seat a strip of wood two and a half inches in width is attached at both ends, and the front edge of the seat is screwed fast to it. This acts as a support, and obviates the necessity of a brace block.
A Foot-rest
When putting on shoes it is convenient to have a short bench on which to rest the foot, and while a hassock will answer well enough, it is not so good as a bench or so easily handled.
Fig. 17 shows a neat foot-bench that is easy to construct from four pieces of wood. In Fig. 18 page 345 the plain bench is shown, while at B a view of the inverted bench is given so that the cross-bar may be seen.
The top board is eighteen inches long, ten inches wide, and an inch thick. The ends, or legs, are seven inches high and eight inches wide, with a V notch cut in from the bottom of each. These feet are set fourteen inches apart, so that there will be two inches of overhang at each end of the bench; that is, the top will extend two inches over the legs at each end. The brace shown at Fig. 18 B is two inches wide, twelve and a half inches long, and an inch in thickness.
The four parts are put together with glue and screws; then the top is padded with curled hair and upholstered as already described.
A Combination Shoe-box and Seat
From two canned-goods boxes the combination shoe-box and seat may be made, as shown in Fig. 19, Fig. 20 being the structural plan.
The left-hand box in Fig. 20 has the lid removed, and a shelf is inserted so as to divide it into two compartments. The other box is provided with a hinged lid. Instead of making the hinges fast to the edge of the box, a strip an inch or two wide should be attached to the rear of the box, and to this the lid is hinged, as shown in Fig. 20. The two boxes are screwed together, and a back is provided for the one on the right. The board forming this back should extend the entire length of the two boxes, and should be secured to them with stout screws. The tops of the boxes are padded with hair, and the sides are covered with upholstery material of any desirable color and quality, the edges being bound with gimp and nails.
The inside of the low box and the under side of the lid should be provided with denim pockets, as shown at Fig. 21. These pockets are formed by tacking a strip of denim to the wood and allowing fulness enough to accommodate a pair of shoes or slippers.
It furnishes the inside of such boxes nicely to line them with unbleached muslin tacked at the corners and edges. Where wood is exposed in the ledge and shelf seats a coat of paint or shellac is desirable.
A Double Shoe-box and Seat
Three well-made boxes, two of a size and one longer, will make the foundation for a double shoe-box and seat, such as is shown in Fig. 22.
Fig. 17. Fig. 19. Fig. 22. Fig. 24. Fig. 26.
In Fig. 23 the structural arrangement is indicated. The end boxes are provided with two shelves each, and the middle one is fitted with a back-board, which is rounded over at the top and projects about six inches above the top of the end boxes.
The middle box is provided with a lid and hinges which are made fast to a back strip, so that when the lid is raised it will not fall again, but will stand out an inch or two from the back-boards.
A Curved-back Window-seat
Fig. 24 illustrates a useful piece of furniture. The box part, or frame, is thirty-eight inches long, sixteen inches wide, and fifteen inches high, and the top of the back is fourteen inches above the seat. The structural plan is shown in Fig. 25.
Four inches from the bottom a ledge is arranged, and at the middle a division-brace is placed. The unions may be made with nails, but screws are preferable.
Fig. 18. Fig. 20. Fig. 21. Fig. 23. Fig. 25. Fig. 27.
The back is made from two boards shaped into a curve with a draw-knife and plane and held together with battens, as shown by the dotted lines in Fig. 25. The battens extend down behind the back of the box, and the ends are made fast with screws to support the back. The back and seat are padded with curled hair and covered with unbleached muslin, over which the upholstery material is drawn and tacked to the edges. A valance of some pretty figured goods to match the seat and back is made, and tacked around the upper edge of the box. Wide gimp and large-headed upholsterers’ tacks will finish the edge of the seat and back, and it would be well to give the wood-work a coat or two of paint or stain.
A Window-seat and Shoe-box
In the illustration of the window-seat and shoe-box (Fig. 26) a substantial and useful piece of furniture is illustrated.
It is made of three boxes screwed together, as shown in Fig. 27. The lid of the middle box is hinged, and the end boxes are stood on end. One end box is shorter than the other, and in both of them shelves are arranged for shoes, slippers, or sandals. A back is made of two boards and attached at the rear of the boxes. The top of each box and the face of the back are padded with curled hair or moss filling that may be had from an upholsterer, and covered with some upholstery material. Buttons and string are caught down into the top of the padded surface to give the tufted effect shown in the illustration, and the sides and fronts of the boxes are hidden with valances. Gimp and large-headed nails finish the edges as shown, and when the wood-work is given a coat of paint this window-seat and shoe-box is ready for use.