Question about fabric and wood

I have questions! My dad is finishing up the cabinet I designed and he
made for all my stitching stuff (it's in the pre-staining sanding
stage!). I have two drawers for fabric. Do I have to line the drawers
with anything or is it okay to have the fabric laying (lying? I can
never remember which is correct!) on the varnished wood? If I line
them, do I line bottom *and* sides? With what do I line them?
--
Joan

See my first-ever design he
http://www.heritageshoppe.com/joan.jpg

"Stitch when you are young and poor, frame when you are old and rich."
- Elizabeth's (rctn'r) sister's MIL (Barbara Marr)

"Joan Erickson" wrote in message
...
I have questions! My dad is finishing up the cabinet I designed and he
made for all my stitching stuff (it's in the pre-staining sanding
stage!). I have two drawers for fabric. Do I have to line the drawers
with anything or is it okay to have the fabric laying (lying? I can
never remember which is correct!) on the varnished wood? If I line
them, do I line bottom *and* sides? With what do I line them?
--
Joan

See my first-ever design he
http://www.heritageshoppe.com/joan.jpg

"Stitch when you are young and poor, frame when you are old and rich."
- Elizabeth's (rctn'r) sister's MIL (Barbara Marr)

I lined a similar sort of cabinet with some pretty wallpaper - the unpasted
sort, and out of a "bargain" bin as I only wanted a small bit!

Joanne


"Joan Erickson" wrote in message
...
I have questions! My dad is finishing up the cabinet I designed and he
made for all my stitching stuff (it's in the pre-staining sanding
stage!). I have two drawers for fabric. Do I have to line the drawers
with anything or is it okay to have the fabric laying (lying? I can
never remember which is correct!) on the varnished wood? If I line
them, do I line bottom *and* sides? With what do I line them?
--
Joan

See my first-ever design he
http://www.heritageshoppe.com/joan.jpg

"Stitch when you are young and poor, frame when you are old and rich."
- Elizabeth's (rctn'r) sister's MIL (Barbara Marr)

It depends on how long the fabric is going to be in the drawer and how
worried you are about acid. Some wood, like oak, are slightly acidic
and that acid could in theory leech through the finish and into the
fabric. I don't think that it would be a problem if the inside of the
drawer is finished with multiple coats of polyurethane finish. I don't
remember if varnish or shellac would be as impermeable to acid. If your
dad is using an oil finish you will need to line the drawers, so excess
oil doesn't bleed onto the fabric. If you are lining the drawers to
protect the fabric from acid make sure the liner is acid free and won't
wick acid from the wood.

If I was making the cabinet, I would poly the bottom and sides of the
drawers even if I was using a different finish on the rest of the piece.
John

Joan Erickson wrote:

I have questions! My dad is finishing up the cabinet I designed and
he made for all my stitching stuff (it's in the pre-staining sanding
stage!). I have two drawers for fabric. Do I have to line the
drawers with anything or is it okay to have the fabric laying (lying?
I can never remember which is correct!) on the varnished wood? If I
line them, do I line bottom *and* sides? With what do I line them?

I don't know about the "necessity" for lining to keep varnish away from
fibers.

However, there's nothing prettier than a lined drawer, and it is simple
to do. I stained and lacquered a large chest for my daughter and lined
the drawers with moire satin. You could also line it with velveteen or
rayon velvet.

If this interests you, I'll tell you how. IT'S SIMPLE! And it doesn't
wreck the drawers, so if you don't like it, you can toss it. The
dresser is going strong after 20 or so years.

Dianne

Joan Erickson wrote:

I have questions! My dad is finishing up the cabinet I designed and he
made for all my stitching stuff (it's in the pre-staining sanding
stage!). I have two drawers for fabric. Do I have to line the drawers
with anything or is it okay to have the fabric laying (lying? I can
never remember which is correct!) on the varnished wood? If I line
them, do I line bottom *and* sides? With what do I line them?

On Tue, 16 Dec 2003 17:24:55 -0600, Joan Erickson
wrote:

fabric laying (lying? I can
never remember which is correct!)
Lay (present tense) is to place something. "Lay that book on the
table." Lie (present tense) is repose. "Lie there on the bed." To
further confuse matters, the simple past tense of "lie" is "lay." The
simple past tense of "lay" is "laid" (no, not "layed").

And if you're not going to seal the wood with a polyurethane or
something, I'd definitely put something between the wood and my
fabric. Woods contain acids which *will* harm your fabrics, as we
learned for ourselves quite tellingly when we deframed (for reframing
under glass) a NP project of my father's that had been on stretcher
bars for over 20 years.
Darla
Sacred cows make great hamburgers.

Please do tell!
Jacqueline in Carmichaels PA
WIPS TNTC
Remove SO2 to reply

John Quinn wrote:

It depends on how long the fabric is going to be in the drawer and how
worried you are about acid. Some wood, like oak, are slightly acidic
and that acid could in theory leech through the finish and into the
fabric.
Who know how long it's going to be in there--probably quite awhile! We
made it out of birch plywood. Any knowledge on acidity of birch?

I don't think that it would be a problem if the inside of the
drawer is finished with multiple coats of polyurethane finish.
I *think* that's what it's going to be finished with. I can't remember
the brand at the moment. I'll look when I get home tonight and let you
know what type of stain and finish it is.
Thanks for your help, John!

--
Joan

See my first-ever design he
http://www.heritageshoppe.com/joan.jpg

"Stitch when you are young and poor, frame when you are old and rich."
- Elizabeth's (rctn'r) sister's MIL (Barbara Marr)

Dianne Lewandowski wrote:

However, there's nothing prettier than a lined drawer, and it is simple
to do. I stained and lacquered a large chest for my daughter and lined
the drawers with moire satin. You could also line it with velveteen or
rayon velvet.

If this interests you, I'll tell you how. IT'S SIMPLE! And it doesn't
wreck the drawers, so if you don't like it, you can toss it. The
dresser is going strong after 20 or so years.
Oooooh, this sounds like a *nice* idea, Dianne! Yes, please do send me
some instructions.
TIA!
--
Joan

See my first-ever design he
http://www.heritageshoppe.com/joan.jpg

"Stitch when you are young and poor, frame when you are old and rich."
- Elizabeth's (rctn'r) sister's MIL (Barbara Marr)

Line them with a couple of layers of unbleached muslim. I'd fold it
up onto the sides, too.

I did the same thing with my stash dresser - any drawers with linens
or expensive thread (Caron threads, silk threads, etc.) got lined. I
just laid the muslim down in the drawer and did not attempt to attach
it. This way, I can remove it for cleaning if need be.


Joan Erickson wrote in message ...
I have questions! My dad is finishing up the cabinet I designed and he
made for all my stitching stuff (it's in the pre-staining sanding
stage!). I have two drawers for fabric. Do I have to line the drawers
with anything or is it okay to have the fabric laying (lying? I can
never remember which is correct!) on the varnished wood? If I line
them, do I line bottom *and* sides? With what do I line them?