I saved this Hans Wegner cigar sofa from junk collection at an elderly neighbor's house. The cushions had previously been discarded. I've never done furniture restoration but am very aware that this is a valuable piece of furniture and don't want to do anything to ruin it. I was hoping to have a few basic questions answered by the community here...What type of glue should be used to repair the arm dowels? What should I use to clean and restore its natural luster? Are there resources for replacement cushions, or should I have them made from scratch at an upolstery shop? Thank you in advance for your help! I've done a lot of searching online and can't find much information.
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Technically, the "cigar arm" series is the GE-240, whereas this is a GE-270 sofa.
Finding pre-made cushions that are the correct thickness, fabric, and height and width to match the sofa frame would probably be pure blind luck, and in my estimation, probably not very likely. There are plenty of professional upholsterers who can't even do a great job making loose box cushions, and getting the fit of the cushions correct. Most likely you will have to have them made, but even then you probably need to shop around and try to find someone who knows what they are doing.
Lucky you!
For the wood, I would just use #0000 steel wool and teak oil, rubbing in the direction of the grain. I use Star-Brite Teak Oil (sold at Ace Hardware and marine supply stores) which doesn't have any varnish in it. You let it soak in for 5-10 minutes, then wipe off. Buff again later after a few hours. Those arms may need two treatments.
Cushions: no, you won't find premade cushions anywhere for this sofa. It's actually not a complicated thing to make them (for an upholster, I mean---too exacting for a DIYer to do well).
First, you must use an appropriate fabric. I think most upholsterers work with fabrics that are right for traditional furniture (brocades, jacquards, etc) or contemporary furniture (chenilles and more chenilles). They don't stock Danish-style fabrics because no one uses them on mainstream furniture.
Fortunately it's easy to find the right fabrics on Ebay and at Modern-Fabrics.com. Maharam's Kvadrat line has the classics (but also a lot of very modern fabrics--just go for the wools). Any upholsterer or person with a tax ID can set up an account and order directly from them if you can't find what you want online in the right fabric, color and yardage.
From there, it's just a matter of measuring accurately (width of sofa divided by 3, front to back depth for the seat cushions, height of the back cushions is up to the top of the frame minus the thickness of the seat cushions---basically). The foam should have a thin wrap of upholstery batting, like 3/4". NOT the really poufy stuff used on mainstream furniture! I think these sofas probably had welted cushions but maybe you could go welt-less, not sure. There are probably lots of examples online with original cushions.
So beyond that, just look at the upholsterer's work. Things you want to avoid: ripples in the seams, ripples in the side panels, very noticeable joins in welt, tucks or pleats anywhere. Open the zipper to check the batting. I've seen cushions with no batting at all; this isn't good because the fabric slides back and forth every time you sit down and get up and it will grip the foam and stay there, resulting in shifting and ugly wrinkles. The batting is a buffer--the fabric doesn't grip it and will slip back into place. The batting also softens the hard lines of the foam block and just gives it a better look while still looking tailored and un-poufy.
So..probably more info than you need! Once i get going, I have a hard time stopping!
Krispy, while there are quite a few people here that would happily take that off your hands for a bargain price, try to hold onto it if you really like it. It's not likely that you would stumble across such a nice piece (for free or very low cost) anytime in the near future. The personal satisfaction of saving it from the dump and using it is also unlikely to be matched by buying a similar sofa in the future.
Try Mike Boyolan at Hye Quality in Berkeley once you get to San Francisco. I hope this endorsement doesn't violate the terms of use. I don't have any connection to Mike other than I've used him many times in the past — he is very familiar with mid century furniture and knows what he's doing. He also used to be an auto upholsterer, so is used to work with strange materials and around awkward angles. Not that your jobs needs such fine-detailed work, but Mike would do an excellent job.
Thank you all so much for your replies and recommendations, especially @spanky. There is no such thing as too much information, especially since I'm a novice. My interest in mid century furniture all started when I moved into an apartment in Brooklyn that came with a free Broyhilll Brasilia credenza. I thought it was beautiful! Once I'm unpacked i look forward to working on the frame and having the cushions made with period correct fabric.
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