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 Cane Material Info

What Is ...

Cane Materials
Cane Materials
This is where you can check out all the various types of raw materials which are used in the manufacturing of cane and wicker furniture. .

Listed below you will find the name of the raw material with a brief description and the use the material has.

What Is Wicker, Cane, Rattan, Chair Cane, Reed, Willow, Seagrass, Rush, Fibre Rush (Paper Cord), Danish Cord, Water Hyacinth and Bamboo?


What Is Wicker?

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Wicker Trunk
Despite the popularity of wickerwork, few people realize that 
wicker is not a material but a general term which includes a class 
of natural and man-made materials such as cane, rattan, willow, 
reed, rush, grasses and splints.
WICKERWORK is the term used for furnishings made from these materials and for the techniques used to weave wicker into furniture 
and accessories.




The term Wicker has evolved into a generic classification that covers all woven furniture and baskets. Wicker is a flexible branch or twig of a plant such as willow and rattan.

Source: Wickerworken.wiktionary.org/wiki/wicker

What Is Cane?

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Cane Binding
Cane is produced from the peeled-off bark of rattan. The strips of bark, also known as the skin, are cut into cane strips of uniform width and depth, refered to as peel. This product is then used for weaving seats and backs for chairs, and is also used to wrap the arms and legs of furniture. This is generally known as binding cane.
Woven rattan seats and backs can be cleaned with a damp cloth so as to ensure the rattan does not dry out to much and then become brittle. Avoid warm to hot environment.

What Is Rattan?

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Rattan Palm
There are several hundred species of rattan, which are commonly grown in South East Asia, China, India and Indonesia. Most rattan can grow to great lengths, technically a palm, it's more like a vine and has been known to grow over 180 metres tall.
To process rattan, the outside edge (known as the skin or peel) is removed and cut into long thin strips to be used to weave chair seats. The left over pithy interior is then cut into various size reed, which is then used for wickerwork. Rattan is extremely strong and durable, as well as weather resistant and so suitable for outdoor furniture
.

What Is Chair Cane?

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Chair Cane
Chair cane is a natural light honey coloured, shiny strip of rattan which has been removed from the outer edge of the rattan. It is a resilient material that is generally used for hand weaving chair seats and backs and is also used to wrap arms and legs on furniture, commonly known as bindings. 
Chair cane is also hand crafted on a loom to produce cane webbing which is then secured onto chair seats with a cane spline.

What Is Rattan Webbing?

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Open Weave Rattan Webbing
Rattan webbing is made from the strips of thin rattan woven on a loom to create a pattern. This material is available in several design patterns as well as different size patterns. Generally you use this material for chair seats and backs, door paneling and decorative features.



What Is Reed?

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Woven reed
Cut from the pithy interior of the rattan, reed can be processed into various sizes and shapes, round, flat oval and wedge shape. The reed can be left natural, stained or even painted and is used to weave wicker.
Web definitions for reed: tall woody perennial grasses with hollow slender stems especially of the genera Arundo and Phragmites
Source: wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn


What Is Willow?

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Willow Wicker Chair
Willow is a common weaving material that comes from willow trees and shrubs.
Hard to distinguish from reed, these blonde coloured twigs often exhibit little knots where the offshoots have been removed.
Willow is still a very popular material and is harvested in Europe and the United States to make furniture, baskets and even garden fences. The willow twigs are cut, peeled and soaked to produce a highly flexible weaving material which takes paints and stains well, although shellac or an oil finish looks the best in my oppinion.
Willow - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia: Willows, sallows, and osiers form the genus Salix, around 400 species of deciduous trees and shrubs, found primarily on moist soils in cold and temperate ...
Sourse: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Willow -

What Is Seagrass?

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Seagrass Chair
Seagrass, also called Oriental or China sea grass. The dried stems of this tassel grass are hand-twisted to look like rope, then used to weave furniture and baskets. It is also used to produce matting for floors. Seagrass has a natural soft greenish colour and as it ages, turns to a more honey colour.  Seagrass should be left in its natural state, treated with oil will maintain its colour and will elliminate it from drying out and becoming brittle. It is not recommended that Seagrass be painted.

What Is Rush?

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Old Damaged Rush Seat
Common rush grows wild in swamps and along river banks. There are many diferent species which are found in the northern hemisphere. The species most often used to make rush seats is familiar to most of us as the catail. Dried rush is soaked in water and then two or three strands are twisted together to form a rope look. This is a very time consuming process, hence most craftsmen turn to fibre rush as a suitable substitute. Apart from weaving seats, rush is also used for basket making and floor mats.

What Is Fibre-Rush or Paper Cord?

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Fibre Rush / Paper Cord
Fibre-Rush or Paper Cord, is a machine-made material introduced during World War I and is made by twisting paper into long pliable strands. Sometimes these strands are twisted around a thin metal wire to give them greater strength. Fibre-rush was invented in 1904, and caused a revolution in 1917 when Marshall Lloyd created a loom that would weave large sheets of it. This naturally eliminated the hand-woven process, saving drastically on labour costs and making the furniture cheaper to purchase.

What Is Danish Cord?

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Chair Seat Woven in Danish Cord
Danish Cord is a man made recycled paper machined into a twisted rope like appearance. It is soft to touch and is used in the weaving of Scandinavian chairs. Furniture designers Hans Wegner and Moller used this material to create of some timeless furniture.

What Is Water Hyacinth?

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Chair Woven in Water Hyacinth
One of the fastest growing plants known, water hyacinth reproduces primarily by way of runners or stolons, eventually forming daughter plants. They may also reproduce via seeds. The common water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes) is a vigorous grower known to double its population in two weeks. Invasiveness as an exotic plant.Common water hyacinth in flower. Water hyacinths have been widely introduced throughout North America, Asia, Australia and Africa.
The Indonesians have mastered the art of manufacturing this natural product into furniture and basket ware.


What Is Bamboo?

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Bamboo
Bamboo is a member of the grass family, and bamboo can grow to heights of more than 30 metres. Bamboo is similar to rattan, having a tough outer bark that can be stripped off to make cane. However, bamboo is a very different on the inside compared with rattan. Bamboo is hollow, where as rattan is solid. The joints on the bamboo stalks are susceptible to moisture and should be sealed. Once bamboo is cut and made into furniture, bindings and metal  caps are used so that the bamboo doesn't split as the bamboo becomes dry. Bamboo is often a great decor product and is used for sun blinds, room dividers, garden and water features.

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