Hand Cane Instructions

When ordering cane, it is a good idea to send a sample from the old seat Weaving cane usually comes in hanks of 1000 feet. One hank is usually,enough for three or four average sized chair seats.
 

Other equipment needed for weaving is a razor blade or scissors, an ice pick or an awl, a cloth or sponge, caning pegs, an a container in which to soak the cane. 

 Getting Ready to Weave

 Study a section of old caning to see how the strands have been interwoven. Then remove the old cane, using the ice pick or awl to loosen any parts that are lodged in the holes. Brush the frame to remove dust   and pieces of cane. Repair all broken holes. If the hole is merely cracked, glue the cracked edges together. If it is badly broken, insert a patch of wood and glue it to the frame. Then bore a new hole in the patch.

 

Remember that cane must be pliable for weaving. Soak two or three strands in a pan of water for 5 to 10 minutes before you start to weave. (The soaked cane stretches while it is being woven, then contracts as the water evaporates, making the woven surface tight.) When you take soaked strands out of the water, put others in so that you will always have some ready for use. If a strand dries out while you are working on it, dampen it with a wet cloth or sponge.

Weaving a Square Chair Seat

If the chair to be recaned is not square, it will be necessary to adapt these directions to the shape of the chair. The most important thing to keep in mind is that all strands of cane woven in the same direction must be kept parallel -lengthwise strands with lengthwise strands, crosswise strands with crosswise strands, and diagonals with diagonals.

The glossy side of the cane is the right side. Be sure to keep the cane flat and the right side up. When weaving, pull the weaving strand completely thru every time after you have woven 2 or 3 inches. Do not draw it too tight for the first four steps, because the surface tightens as the weaving progresses. Be sure cane lies flat.


 
Step 1. To start, push a strand of cane down thru the middle hole at the back of the chair seat, letting it extend 3 or 4 inches below the frame. Push one of the wooden pegs into the hole to keep the  cane from slipping while you are taking it to the next hole. (Do this every time  you take the cane thru a hole. Leave the first peg in till all the first strand has been used up and the end tied. Remove other pegs as you need them after they have served their purpose.) Take cane across the frame to the middle front and down thru the middle hole. Pull it fairly taut and put a peg in the hole. Draw  cane thru thumb and forefinger, pull it under the frame to the right and up thru the hole next to the middle one. Cross the chair seat and go down and up as before until all holes on the right side except the corner ones are filled. (If  you are weaving any shape other than a square or a rectangle, fill the corner holes, too.)

When you reach the end of a strand, fasten it to an adjoining  loop on the underside of the frame, drawing the cane thru the loop several times. Fill holes on the left side of the middle strand in the same way that you did those on the right. When adding a new strand, start as you did in the beginning, leaving a loose end several inches long, which you will tie later underneath the frame to another strand already woven

Step 2.                                  

 Run the second layer of cane thru the holes from side to side on top of the first layer and at right angles to it. It is best for the amateur to start this layer in the middle hole on the side of the  seat frame.

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