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June 2020 - Antique Shoppe - 19
        Dad’s Day

        Continued from Page 17                                                       Questions &

           Recent estimates are that
        Americans spend over one                                                     Common Sense Answers
        billion dollars each year on
        Father’s Day festivities. And                                                                              with Fred Taylor
        of course, when Dad isn’t
        otherwise occupied wincing at
        his latest new necktie, planting                                                  I have two chairs that
        those new rosebushes, or firing                                           Q. came from a church
        up that new barbecue grill, part                                          that is 120 yrs old. The name on
        of his Father’s Day schedule                                              the chairs “The Wylie Reclining
        includes opening greeting                                                 chair” made by “The American
        cards.                                                                    Chair Co.” Seymour, IN. I cannot
           Dad’s day means big                                                    find anything on these chairs
        business for greeting card          The little bear on this               as to how old they are, and
                                            1943 Hallmark
        manufacturers. It’s the fifth       card has                              what they are worth. One of
        most popular holiday for            practical things                      the chairs still has the straw
        sending cards, with retailers       on his mind. . .                      material in the seat. Thanks for
        totting up nearly 100 million                                             your help. Fred M.
        dollars in card sales. And, the                                                  Fred – Interestingly
        market for recipients is no                                               A. enough, I couldn’t find
        longer limited to just dear old                                           any reference material on a
        Dad. There are Father’s Day greetings tailor-made for grandpas, hubbies,   company in Indiana called
        sons, sons-in-law, uncles, godfathers, and assorted other favorite fellas.  the American Chair Co. The
           Vintage Father’s Day cards are popular with today’s paper              only one I could find was in
        collectors, who are taken with their nostalgic, often humorous appeal.    Sheboygan, WI. in the late
        While popular card imagery includes such old stalwarts as fishing         1920s. Your chairs are an early
        rods, smoking paraphernalia, and hunting equipment, interesting           20th century version of the         This oak recliner is an updated version of the
                                                                                                                     19th century Morris chair.  It has a continuous
        embellishments often added to the visual appeal. A World War II-era       well known Morris chair. The      friction bearing in the mechanism rather than the
        card, featuring an illustration of a hand-carved model battleship, was    mechanism in your chair is a         exposed bar of the original Morris design.
        accented with raised wooden letters, spelling out “Dad”. A take-it-easy   friction bearing similar to ones
        Dad was pictured at rest in a hammock made of real net, while a card      used in Morris chairs around the turn of the century, but the older
        showing a typewriter (remember those?), with the heading “You’re the      version had a series of positive stops that were released by a button
        type for me, Dad”, came complete with a swatch of “real” typewriter       inset in the arm of the chair. Yours appears to be a continuously variable
                                                     ribbon (in black and red,    slide, a considerable upgrade from the previous version. The style of
                                                     just like at the office).    the oak apron and of the arms also indicate a manufacture date in
                                                     There were cards with        the early 20th century, prior to World War I. The chairs were probably
                                                     metallic paper “mirrors”,    originally upholstered in leather. Chairs like yours would sell at auction
                                                     so Dad could see who         in the range of  $200-$300 each. Thanks for writing and thanks for the
                                                     all the fuss was about.      excellent photos.
                                                     . .cards with glowing
                                                     pipes, their embers                  In the ten years we’ve been in the refinishing and antiques
                                                     courtesy of gold glitter.    Q. business the best thing we have found to remove the odor from
                                                     . .and more than a few       inside drawers and cabinets are the fabric softener sheets for a cloths
                                                     cards depicting what Dad     dryer. Just throw one in each drawer and leave them as long as needed.
                                                     might rather be opening      We also stopped accepting painted pieces for stripping years ago as
                                                     on his day off: a ready-     we could never guarantee the results and the residue from the many
                                                     to-be-drained cocktail       layers of old paint often contained lead and was therefore considered
                                                     shaker.                      hazardous waste. We enjoy your articles, keep up the good work. Larry
                                                        This Father’s Day,        and Gail G.
                                                     if you’re part of the               Larry and Gail - The use of fabric softener sheets sounds like an
                                                     more than 60 percent          A. interesting  idea. I have never tried it but I will. It also sounds
                                                     of Americans who’ll          like a good way to just maintain a nice smell in the furniture year
                                                     be getting Dad a card,       ‘round. I will include my results in a future column. I know what you
                                                     why not send one of          mean about the stripping problems. I had the same ones during my 20
                                             the vintage variety? Plenty of       years in the business. I just found a good hazardous waste company and
                                              unsigned, new-old-stock cards       let them take care of it with all legal documentation. It was worth the
        A card shaped                          are among the hundreds of          cost just to not worry about it. In the meantime, remember that lots
        like a tobacco                          Father’s Day items listed daily   of other things are hazardous too (like sanding dust, two part bleach,
        canister offers a
        “cheery mixture                          on eBay; most sell in the $5-    and overspray) so keep up your safety guard. Thanks for reading my
        for Father’s Day”.                       10 range. And when you sign      columns. The best of luck to you in your business.
        Unmarked.                           it, be sure and add “Thanks, Dad”!                                                     Continued on Page 20
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