Part 5

The most perfect form of this curious art is an improvement which, I believe, is my own invention. This consists of introducing leaves of painted _mica_ between the two glasses. In this way four grades or tones of colour and light and shade can be made in a picture. Mica-leaves can be made into one by using mastic cement. Rub the edges with emery-paper to roughen them.

As I have already intimated, the materials for this work are so cheap and the process so easy, that all which I here assert may be at once verified by the outlay of a few shillings, with a few hours of time. It is, in another form, the same thing as arranging lights around a statue in a dark room, but adapted to all kinds of pictures.

As a Latin poet has declared, “It is an easy thing to add to arts,” when a beginning has once been made (“_Inventis facile semper aliquid addere_”), so I will add to this a curious discovery in glass made by me in Venice a few years ago. I was being taken by Sir AUSTIN LAYARD over his celebrated glass-factory. It was he who, with the aid of Sir WILLIAM DRAKE, _first_ revived the almost forgotten manufacture of glass in Murano. While standing with him by a furnace watching a workman skilfully forming ornaments in glass, it suddenly occurred to me that the Chinese were said to have possessed in remote times an art, now lost, of making vases or bottles which appeared externally to be quite plain, but on the surface of which, when red wine was poured in, patterns or inscriptions appeared of the same colour. It at once occurred to me that this could be perfectly effected by making a bottle, on the interior of which the ground should be of considerable thickness, say half-an-inch, while the inscription or pattern would be no thicker than ordinary window-glass. Then if the whole exterior were to be lightly ground on a wheel or sandpapered, the difference between ground and pattern would not be perceptible until red wine or some highly coloured fluid were poured in, when the pattern would at once show itself.

Sir AUSTIN LAYARD was so much struck by the suggestion that he sent at once for his foreman, Signore Castellani, who said that he had heard of such bottles, but always supposed it was a fable. He, however, at once admitted that they could be made as I proposed, but added that the expense would be so great as to render the invention practically useless.

It has, however, since occurred to me that such bottles could be made, and cheaply, as follows:--Take a Florence flask, and divide it into two parts with a diamond, using a saw for the bottom. Then on the sides within place the ground. It could be made of silicate of soda and powdered glass or flint, or even of white wax, hardened with powdered glass. Close the bottle with silicate, and grind the whole.

When any glass has been broken and mended, the fracture still discernible may be thus concealed by grinding the surface, and in many cases by surrounding it with a ring or tube of metal, also by one of silicate, or with an ornament formed with it.

A glass stopper when too large can be easily filed down to fit. Should the neck of the bottle be too narrow, it can also be enlarged by the same process. When the rim of a goblet is fractured, it can be ground down on a grindstone. I have done it with a file.

A pane of glass can be somewhat rudely cut into shape with a pair of strong scissors, under water. In this, as in other things, practice leads to perfection.

An old method of effectually closing bottles of wine was as follows:--The edge of the opening on the top was ground down on a stone, and a small disc of glass was exactly fitted to it. Heat was then applied till both were in partial fusion and the cover was welded to the bottle. A little powdered glass would aid the fusion, or it could be effected with silicate without heating. The process is the same as using glass stoppers, rather sunk in, and sealing up with silicate.

A broken champagne bottle is not easily mended, but I have seen one curiously utilised. The bottom only had been broken, and it was cut off round and evenly with a file. Within it there hung from the cork by a cord a very large nail or small bolt of iron. Thus prepared, it made a capital and appropriate dinner-bell. Here in Italy I have often seen bells made of crockery or terra-cotta; their tone is better than would be supposed.

WOOD-SHAVINGS

IN MENDING AND MAKING MANY OBJECTS

“_In human industry, there is on an average a loss of fifty per cent. in labour or material._”--Observations on Art, by CHARLES G. LELAND.

There is no country in the world in which the art of mending is so much required as in the United States of North America. The reason for this is the extraordinary and sudden changes in temperature, causing the expansion and contraction of cells and fibre, especially in wood, which results in cracks. Thus seasoned furniture and carvings, which have remained unchanged for centuries, it may be for a thousand years, in any part of Europe, shrink and split very often within a month after being placed in a drawing or dining room in Boston or Philadelphia, as I know by sad experience. Thus I have known a very beautiful Italian mandoline, three hundred years old, richly inlaid with ivory, to so shrink and warp in America that a professional mender declared that nothing could be done with it. The sounding-board had curled up like a scroll and split, and the mosaic or inlaying had fallen out in bits.

In such a case, carefully detach the warped piece or pieces, and dampen the concave side carefully with a sponge till it resumes its flatness or usual form. When this is attained, take very thin shavings of a firm wood, as thin as they can be shaved, and glue them transversely, or _grain across grain_, to the under or plain side of the board. This will probably prevent all warping in future, especially if the best mastic and fish-glue is employed. It may here be noted that where the shavings cannot be obtained, thin parchment or even note-paper may be used, and that good, strong varnish, or not too thin, may be used for a binder. There are many cases in which parchment or paper are preferable to wood in repairing, as being less liable to warp or crack.

WOOD-SHAVINGS, which are as yet but little utilised in art, have, however, before them “a great future.” Combined with glue, or other binders, they can be made, even under the hand-roller, into boards, which have the advantage that they can be moulded, curved, or turned to suit many emergencies which would require a great deal of saw or carving work.

It is not unusual to employ veneers, or very thin sheets of wood, as a guard across the grain where shrinking is to be apprehended, as in tablets for painting on or panels, and it is a great pity that this very cheap precaution is so little used. But there are very few cases in which shavings are not as applicable, and they have the great advantage of being obtainable wherever there is a plane and wood.

Holes or defects in wood--for example, in American shingle roofs or the clap-boarded sides of houses--can often be more cheaply and readily repaired with shavings and glue (into which oil is infused) than by any other means. And it may be observed that such a coating of shavings and glue, laid on to a new roof, is the cheapest and most effective protector against rain or sun or frost.

In certain work wood-shavings can be advantageously combined with paper to give a solid, smooth surface and firm body. Here the paper-paste, with or without sawdust, is first forced into the cavities, and the shavings superadded.

Shavings and glue are excellent for the temporary repair of boats, and if the mending be _properly executed_, it will be as durable as the original wood. It would be an easy matter indeed to make a canoe entirely of shavings and glue. If the hand-roller be well used and thoroughly applied, the result will be a very firm fabric.

It may be worth knowing in the wilderness, that where a backwoodsman has a _plane_ (and he can always make one if he has a chisel, which, again, can be made out of a knife-blade) he can make shavings, and with these and some kind of _binder_--even clay--he can lay a dry, hard floor, when perhaps boards are not to be obtained. The substratum may be of beaten clay or stone. If of sufficient thickness and well rolled, such a floor as this would be impervious to damp.

Any surface can be very well _veneered_ with shavings and glue. Smooth the surface by pressure or rolling, and when dry glass-paper it. Veneers are often not to be had; shavings may be got in every carpenter’s shop.

Not only very strong and elastic canes, but even _bows_ of a superior quality, can be made of shavings. The Indians in Pacific America make the latter by pasting and pressing one shaving on another with great care. It may be understood that where the grain, as in a piece of wood, runs _altogether_ in one way, it will split with the grain. But where it is not uniform or connected, and is very powerfully incorporated by pressure with a good binder, we may easily have a very elastic and tough fabric, not so likely to split as wood. Thus we can make from hickory shavings a wood less liable to warp or split than the original wood itself.

Wood-shavings and glue are admirably adapted to repair broken boxes or any other articles of wood, especially for smoothing over roughly mended surfaces and covering knot-holes or other defects. In all cases when possible use the roller, and when pasting one piece on the other cross the grains.

MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS, such as guitars, violins, and mandolins, are very easily repaired with shavings and glue; and this is, indeed, in many cases, the very best means of reparation, since, while a piece of wood may or may not injure the tone, the shavings always give a good vibration. And where it is quite beyond the power of any ordinary amateur, say a lady, to set in a piece of wood or apply one, or to get it of a proper thickness, anybody with care can paste on thin shavings--the thinner the better--till the defect is repaired. In many cases parchment or paper will answer just as well, and I have myself thus perfectly mended violins which were apparently beyond all bettering, and got to the stage of _lasciate ogni speranza_, or hopelessness.

There are, however, many cases of badly fractured objects in which the owner gives up hope, because it seems _impossible to make a beginning_. Now, “whatever can be made can be mended” is true of everything except morals, and even in these there is more to be done than men wot of. And in a great number of these cases parchment strips, thin linen tape, or especially wood-shavings, can be used with success. Bring the broken edges together if they warp apart, and attach them with the strip and strongest cement; that is, with small pieces of the “fastener.” Do not attempt to do everything at once. When the edges are united and the _binder_ dried, fill in all crevices or holes with a suitable paste or “filler”--not too much at once, in certain cases. Then, as will generally be required, cover the surface with thin shavings and binder; as it dries, file or glass-paper it smooth. The shavings will make, with mastic and fish-glue, in many cases, a far better repair than could be effected with a piece of wood or parchment, because they will never _split_, like the former, if they are applied lying transversely or crossways, nor stretch like the latter.

It may depend, in many cases, on what _wood_ the shavings consist of. As I have observed, even in the bush a plane can be made with a chisel or a piece of a table-knife blade, set in a wooden block; but elsewhere any carpenter will easily supply what is wanted, _ad libitum_.

The paste or filler of wood-powder or paper-pulp will be found described in other chapters.

ORNAMENTAL WORK OF SHAVINGS--MARQUETRY

_A curious kind of ornament_ can be made by cutting out decorative patterns, human figures, animals, flowers, &c., from shavings with scissors or pen-knives, then glueing them on a smooth soft board. Apply as much pressure as possible, so as to make them sink into the wood, and when dry coat the whole with varnish, till an even surface is established. Rub over the dried surface with finest glass or emery-paper, and then smooth patiently with the palm of the hand. If this be well executed the result will be a perfect imitation of inlaid wood, although it is really an art by itself, which, I believe, is my own invention. Thin veneers may also be used instead of shavings. Ebony or walnut thus _appliqué_ on _larch_ or _holly_ make exquisite work.

This kind of ornament has great advantage over inlaid wood or marquetry, for the pieces of which it consist are far less liable to be detached or peel off, while it looks quite as beautiful. And be it observed that, laid with a transverse grain, it prevents warping and strengthens the ground, while inlaying weakens it; for to make the bed for inlaying or mosaic we must excavate the bed till it is extremely thin and liable to warp, whereas in shaving-work we make a light but very strengthening addition.

A single experiment will suffice to convince the reader of the merits of this very useful, elegant, and novel art. It is specially applicable to ornamenting albums and book-covers, where it may be used even on pasteboard.

REPAIRING PANEL PICTURES WITH SHAVINGS

It is often a very difficult matter to obtain a thin panel or strips and do all the work properly when we wish to put into shape a warped panel, let us say of an old picture, which is on the point of splitting. The inserting screws is very dangerous. I myself have inadvertently thus made a fearful blemish in a Madonna’s face. But if we use _shavings_ there is no such danger. Wet the back till the panel is flat, and then _gradually_ glue on the shavings across the grain. This is as well done with small bits as large. With a picture it would be well to continue the coating to the thickness of one-third of an inch or more, but a very thin coating will go far to prevent warping or bending. The thinnest panels or veneers may be thus “backed up” into solid boards. In all cases where practicable, use heavy pressure on the roller.

REPAIRING WOODWORK

“_Among the thousand mad schemes which were proposed by projectors was one for making sawdust into boards._”--History of the South Sea Bubble.

Very few people, even among workmen and artists, are aware of what remarkable and curious restoration the most decayed pieces of wood are capable. We will, however, begin with the simplest repairing, or that of furniture.

When articles of furniture have been strongly and properly made of oak or other hard wood, and as properly used, they will last for centuries; and should some unforeseen accident take away legs or arms, they can be perfectly replaced, especially in the admirable old-fashioned German objects of the kind, which were all put together with wooden pins or by means of mortise and tenon, so that, when need required, they could be packed as boards;--nor were they the less elegant for this. But if furniture be simply sawed from soft, cheap deal or poplar, and merely glued together (as most cheap furniture made in England is), it will soon warp and break up, and all the mending in the world will not make it better than it was when new. Glue is, therefore, the great material for most woodwork, and, as I shall show, in two very different forms.

Having a broken chair-leg, which can, however, be fitted together, first prepare your glue in a proper kettle--that is, a _balneum mariæ_, or one kettle in another. In the outer is only boiling water; in the inner the glue, mixed with water. The reason for this is, that glue, when softened with water, dries up very rapidly under the action of air or fire, while the softer heat of water keeps it, so to speak, “alive.”

But if, while the glue is soft, we pour, say, a teaspoonful of nitric acid into half-a-pint of glue, it will remain soft a much longer time--which is a valuable secret to many, especially where large, broad surfaces of veneers are to be glued on, and where, the process being slow, it is desirable for the adhesive to remain soft for many minutes. And here I would mention that the acid-glue will remain in a liquid state for one year if tightly corked up in a bottle. Its only defect is a disagreeable, pungent smell.

This glue can be improved by being made as follows:--Take of best glue three parts, place them in eight parts of water, and allow the mixture to soak some hours. Take half a part of hydrochloric or muriatic acid and three-quarters of a part of sulphate of zinc; add to these the glue, and keep the whole at a moderately high temperature till fluid--that is to say, boil the glue as usual in a _balneum mariæ_ or in hot water, after soaking it all night in water. Then stir in the hydrochloric (or muriatic) acid and sulphate of zinc. This is a first-class glue. Keep it in a bottle with an oiled cork; any other stopper would adhere. But for all ordinary work the glue, with nitric acid, will suffice, as it holds with great tenacity to anything.

This glue, which keeps liquid for a long time, and which holds without scaling off, as common glue often does, may also be made with _very strong_ vinegar. The latter, in fact, amounts to the same thing in most European countries, but especially in the United States, where, according to the New York _Tribune_, there is literally no vinegar sold or made, save from sulphuric acid and water. Perhaps when mankind shall have reached a higher stage of civilisation, all dealers will be compelled by law to place on every article of food sold the list of ingredients of which it is composed. We should then know how much oleomargarine passes for butter, and what proportion of “delicious conserves” are manufactured from apples alone or turnips.

Observe that in glueing ordinary wood together the two pieces to be attached should be gradually but very well _heated_ first. This renders them more inclined to “take” the glue. This is applicable to other substances.

Also note that when two surfaces have been made to adhere with ordinary water-glue, should they come apart when cold, it is very difficult to make them unite again. But this is not the case with acid-glue. And if you have such surfaces which will not unite, wash them with nitric acid or very strong vinegar, and the glue then applied will “take.” Also observe that the acid-glue is far stronger than the common kind.

Having the broken leg fitted, first with a narrow gimlet or brad-awl make a hole crossing the fracture, then glue the pieces together, and before the glue dries put a screw or two through the hole; _i.e._, _screw_ the pieces together. This will hold perfectly, if you will sink the head of the screw in the wood, smooth it with a file, then putty it over and paint it.

It seems strange that anything can be so mended as to be stronger than before; yet this is literally true as regards the broken leg of a chair, a cane, a beam, the mast or spar of a vessel, or any similar long piece of wood. This is effected as follows:--Cut the two separated pieces into two exactly fitting “steps” or mortises, as shown in this illustration.

Fasten these with glue and screws; or, better still, by adding to both two sliding, tightly fitting ring-tubes, or one long one. This will actually make the stick stronger than it was at first. The rings should be covered with paper, glued, and then painted and varnished.

The processes of glueing and screwing are applicable to most fractures of furniture. Where a piece of wood is broken away, it, or a similar piece, must be inserted. When wood is warped it may be straightened by applying wet towels. Observe that if a flat panel is warped thus-- [Illustration] you must wet the upper or concave side, put it under heavy weight, and as soon as it becomes straight, screw it down with transverse strips. Drawers which are made from badly seasoned wood are a grief to the heart. They warp and stick. When you find that such is the case you can save yourself much annoyance by examining them, planing away the obstructions, and nailing transverse strips of wood across; that is to say, pieces in which _the grain_ of the strip crosses that of the wood. Very good and well-seasoned English furniture often warps badly in India; therefore it should be thus protected. This can in most cases be better done with strips of metal. In large wardrobes, presses, or chests, where there are broad and often thin panels, this precaution should always be taken. As I write I have just seen two exquisitely painted and valuable pictures on panel, one of which had curved and split in two, while the other was badly warped for want of such a precaution, which would have cost only a penny’s worth of strip and screws and half-an-hour’s work to save them.

It will very often happen in mending furniture that neither nail, glue, nor screw can be relied on. In such case bore with a suitable gimlet and pass wire through the hole. Flexible wire twisted in two strands, with the ends properly secured, say to the head of a screw, all being sunk beneath the level, will hold almost anything.

Frames for looking-glasses or pictures often “spring” at the joints. In such cases a screw with acidulated glue will make them permanently strong.

Always put handles to drawers. The vile invention or device of using the key for a handle is by far too common. Metallic handles of brass are preferable to wooden knobs. Keys are often lost, or else break. The bottom of a drawer should always be secured by screws.

When the bottom of a drawer, as frequently happens, shrinks and becomes too short, so that there is a long opening, the latter should be filled with a strip of wood. The chief cause why modern furniture is apt to become loose or separate is chiefly due to its being made either of unseasoned or soft wood, such as weak deal or poplar, which absorbs moisture from the air and then dries and shrinks, or because it is made of too many pieces only glued together, and that with cheap, bad glue.

RESTORING DECAYED WOOD.--The worst cases of decay or of worm-eaten wood can be perfectly restored in this manner:--Take fine sawdust of the same kind of wood as the original. Let it be as fine as possible, either cut with a refined saw or powdered in a mortar. Sift it. Then with acidulated glue, or else plain, clear, white Salisbury glue for light wood, make a paste, well mixed. With this you can fill up holes (using a spatula or flexible knife or ivory paper-knife). But, what is more, you can thus make a very strong _artificial wood_ which can be moulded into any form, and when dry polished by cutting over the surface with a chisel or flat gouge, and using a file or glass-paper to finish. In fact, you can mould or model figures with this wood-paste by itself. Putty is generally used for such repairs, but the wood-paste is like wood, and quite as durable.

If you have a mould of plaster of Paris, boil it in oil, clean it, and then oil it. With the wood-paste you can make ornaments which can be applied to plain wood surfaces.

Splints, fractures, cracks, holes, corners broken away, are all easily restored with wood-paste. In moulding it the fingers should be oiled to prevent its sticking.

Any kind of dry sawdust can thus be converted into a paste, which, when dry, becomes wood. It may be very much hardened under a hydraulic-press or by a wooden hand-roller. Housekeepers should use this composition for filling up rat-holes, or any kind of crevices in furniture, or panels, or doors and walls, especially where such cracks harbour insects.