A woven rush seat can be accidentally cut or punctured.
Repairing the damaged area on a rush seat can prolong the seat life and allow you to enjoy the chair until the entire seat wears out and is rerushed. The seam may look complicated, but there are only two patterns on the seat, and one is a simple figure eight. This means you use one pattern to replace the section of damaged rush. A repair can often be completed in an hour even if you have never woven a chair seat before. Does this Spark an idea?
Instructions
1. Locate the area of damage on the seat. Slide a pencil or other long object through the rush from front to back on either side of the damage. Turn the chair upside down and rest it so that the pencils stay in place. Find the back rail of the chair. The back rail is directly under the seat back, and it has rush wrapping over it.
2. Find the rows where one pencil sticks up. Count two rush pieces away from the damage. Hammer a tack nail through the second rush piece into the back rail. Make sure the rush you tack is woven and tight. Count two rush pieces away from the damage from the position of the second pencil and tack the rush to the back rail again.
3. Cut through the rush strands between the two pencils using a utility knife. You should have a long end or tail up to where you tacked the rush to the chair. You may have needed to unweave rush from your cuts and now see four open areas. Make sure you have removed all of the damage. If you see trapzoidal cardboard pieces in the way, slide them toward the rails until you repair the weave.
4. Open your rush fiber coil, and cut it into 30 foot lengths. Dip one length into water for 10 to 20 seconds to soften the fiber. Note the location of knots on the underside of the seat. Tie the end of your new rush to the tail on what will be the left side of the chair if the chair is upright and facing you. Make a tight overhand knot. Turn the chair so that it is upright and facing you. The knot should be on the left and underside.
5. Bring the end of the rush forward and up through the hole in the center. Take the rush across the front rail and down to the underside and up through the center hole. Go over the rush you just wove to the left and over the side rail and down to the underside and up through the center hole. Take the rush to the right and over the right side rail, down and up through the center hole. Go over the rush you just wove to the front and over the front rail and down to the underside and up through the center hole.
6. Take the rush over the back rail and down to the underside and up through the center hole. Go over the rush you just wove and to the right over the right side rail and down to the underside. Take the rush up through the center hole and over the first rush you wove and to the left over the left rail and down to the underside. Go to the right and up through the center hole and across the rush you just wove to the back rail and down to the underside. Repeat Step 5 and 6 shoving the new rush tight against the old rush. Slide the cardboard back in place when it clears the weave.
7. Continue rushing until the seat is covered. Tie the rush off to the second tacked rush tail with a tight overhand knot and trim the tails. Remove your tacks.
Tags: rail down, center hole, down underside, rail down underside, through center, through center hole
