Tag Archives: Limbert furniture

Limbert No. 239 Tabouret–Construction

Limbert Number 239 tabouret

Limbert’s No. 239 Tabouret in fumed white oak.

While the tapered columnar base looks a bit elaborate, building it is relatively straightforward. I produced a pattern then used it to bring the sides to final shape, cut their mitered edges, and plow the grooves for the corbels. After roughing out the side blanks, I then routed them to final size with a pattern bit and mitered the edges with a  45-degree chamfer bit. A a 3/4-inch guide ring kept the ¼-inch spiral upcut bit straight as I plowed the grooves.

I took my usual approach to corbels, then cut the top to final size and chamfered its edges lightly. After sanding things to 220 grit, I fumed the table and applied a coat of boiled linseed oil. While I generally prefer to prefinish my parts that decision here proved problematic: packing tape does not stick to oiled wood. I had to scramble during assembly, replacing packing tape with masking tape and a couple of strategically-placed clamps. Despite this obstacle, I managed to get the base together, then installed the corbels, using a shaped caul and clamps to glue each one in place. Screws through corner brackets attach the top to the base.

Of Umbrella Stands and Table Bases

Lambert Umbrella stand

The base of the No. 239 tabouret reminds me of the No. 254 umbrella stand.

I’d leaned the sides of the tabouret against the bench to get them out of the way to begin work on the corbels when something in their shape seemed familiar. Because the Limbert Furniture Company produced so many designs featuring the tapered column base, it took me a minute to realize why these sides look familiar: They are very similar to the the shape of the No. 254 umbrella stand. The stand may have a slightly wider mouth than the table, but both share the same footprint and similar cutouts, though the tabouret features two cutouts the stand’s one. It would be easy to repurpose the template I created to build the umbrella stand, either preserving both cutouts or omitting the second. The umbrellas probably won’t mind if I’m not 100% accurate to the original.…

 

More Information

The No. 254 Umbrella Stand is one of thirty-three Limbert designs featured in my first book, Building Classic Arts & Crafts Furniture, available on Amazon and Shopwoodworking.com.

Limbert No. 239 Tabouret–Design

No. 239 Tabouret

Like several other designs from the maker, Limbert’s No. 239 Tabouret features an octagonal top over a tapered columnar base.

The Limbert furniture company produced several occasional tables on the same theme–an octagonal top supported by corbels and a tapered columnar base. The No. 239 also features two cutouts on each side, the shape of cutouts echoing the shape of the sides.

Limbert Furniture Company

 

A drawing of the Holland factory from one of the company's booklets

A drawing of the Holland factory from one of the company’s booklets.

After years as a traveling salesman of furniture and a failed manufacturing partnership, Limbert founded the Charles P. Limbert furniture company in 1894 and spent the rest of the decade building it. By the turn of the century, his reputation as a furniture salesman was well established–the April 1901 Furniture Record called him the “furniture commission man.” That skill earned him several prominent contracts, including the Patlind Hotel in Grand Rapids, the Grand Canyon Hotel, the Mission Inn (Riverside, CA), and the Old Faithful Inn in Yellowstone National Park. Continue reading

Limbert No. 234 Side Table–Construction

Limbert's No. 234 side table reproduced in pine.

Limbert’s No. 234 side table reproduced in pine.

I’ve admired the No. 234’s design for some time, but at 18 inches, it seems a little short for a side table. Before committing to white oak or cherry for my final project, I rehearsed the build in pine. Since the wide board I picked up had some nice quarter-sawn figure along both edges, I took some time cutting around knots and glued up the top and base. While my panels dried, I prepared the template, laying out the pattern on a piece of plywood and building a quick frame sized for the square cutouts. Using a template for the cutouts on the template requires substantially less time than drilling out the corners of each cutout, sawing close the line and sanding and filing to final shape. Continue reading