How to Stencil Hitchcock Style Furniture
In 1818, Lambert Hitchcock founded the Hitchcock Chair Company in Connecticut, where hand-stenciled furniture was produced until 2006. Still River Furniture was founded in 2010 to continue producing furniture of the Hitchcock legacy. Lambert Hitchcock used brass stencils to decorate his furniture with ornate designs, and gilded striping to accentuate the fine lines of a piece became a particular hallmark of his work. Some of Lambert's original designs are still in use, although many designs have been introduced over the years. Recreating the Hitchcock-style of stenciling on furniture pieces will require a steady hand, concentration and attention to detail. Does this Spark an idea?
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Things You'll Need
- Screwdriver
- Sandpaper
- Petroleum jelly (optional)
- Brass stencils
- Water-based paints
- Acrylic or latex paints
- Bronzing powder
- Velvet
- Paintbrushes
- Stencil brushes
- Masking tape
Instructions
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Research the Hitchcock Chair Company archives to identify the particular stencil design you want to recreate. Cornucopias with fruit, flowers and butterflies are all common historic Hitchcock designs. Most of Hitchcock's pieces were painted black or dark green and were decorated by a process using brass stencils and rubbing a bronzing powder into a still-sticky top coat to achieve a luster effect. Pinstriping was achieved with yellow ocher paint, and gold leaf and paint was reserved for the banding on the legs of chairs.
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Find a source of suitable brass stencils. Occasionally, original Hitchcock stencils appear at auctions and estate sales. Craft stores and online stencil dealers will also have suitable stencils for the subject matter you are looking for, and you can even commission custom stencils.
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Remove any hardware, or, if that is not possible, smooth over it with petroleum jelly when you are ready to start painting. This will help protect the hardware from the paint application.
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Prepare your piece of furniture for painting and stenciling. To achieve the best result possible, you must prepare your piece of furniture thoroughly. Using a fine-grade sandpaper, lightly sand the wood in the direction of the grain. If you think the existing paint on your piece of furniture may be lead-based, do not attempt to sand it yourself, since the particles should not be inhaled. Take your piece of furniture to a wood-treatment specialist who will dip it and strip it safely for approximately $30. If your piece is particularly intricate and has layers of old paint on it, having it dipped and stripped is the quickest and most effective way of preparing it.
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Prime your piece to ensure that the new paint adheres well to the surface. Use a proprietary wood primer available from hardware stores and home improvement centers. Allow the primer to dry thoroughly before doing any further work.
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Select your water-based paints for your base coat. In keeping with the Hitchcock tradition, you will need a black or dark green base coat.
Select your acrylic or latex stencil paints. You will need yellow ocher, gold for any banding, and colors suitable for the particular template you have chosen. You will also need bronzing powder and varnish.
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Apply your base coat. You may need to give the piece two coats to ensure even and smooth coverage, particularly since you are using Hitchcock's traditional dark base for your piece.
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Attach your stencil in position with masking tape. Carefully apply your paints. Use paint sparingly; you don't want paint to bleed under the stencil. You can repeat the process and build up color far more easily than you can remove unwanted paint.
Make sure each color is dry before starting on the next, unless you want to blend colors as you go. Having carefully researched and studied Hitchcock originals, you will have a good idea of the effect you want to create. You may also find that practicing techniques on a scrap piece of wood before starting on your furniture piece is a useful exercise.
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Use masking tape to tape Hitchcock's signature pinstripes that you will fill in with yellow ocher paint. Take the time to ensure that your taped lines are straight. Paint them in with yellow ocher and leave to dry.
Once you are satisfied with the pattern you have stenciled and the pinstriping effect, varnish your piece.
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Apply bronzing powder while the varnish is still slightly tacky. The bronzing effect is a Hitchcock hallmark, and the technique takes some practice to achieve perfection. Make a small pad, the size of your fingertip, from a piece of velvet and dip it into the bronzing powder. Gently dab the bronzing powder onto the areas you want to bronze. Depth and shading can be achieved by applying the powder more heavily in some areas. If you have excess powder in some areas, you can remove it by blotting with warm water and a soft brush. Let your bronzing and blotting dry completely.
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Apply a finishing coat of varnish over the completed piece. Allow it to dry and install it in the room of your choice, in a position where everyone can admire your Hitchcock-inspired handiwork.
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References
Resources
- Photo Credit old furniture detail image by stassad from Fotolia.com
