Cane furniture can be used anywhere and for any purpose. There are cane swings that you can hang from a strong tree branch to enjoy the outdoor breeze, or you can hang them in your patio. Cane furniture is also ideal for the patio, providing you with a place you can sit and have your evening tea or your morning breakfast. Cane bookshelves are excellent for showing off decoration pieces or for what they are originally meant for — books. And these bookshelves come in many sizes; the small ones can be placed in bathrooms, too, for keeping magazines or newspapers besides other stuff such as towels, soaps, etc. Besides chairs and tables, you also have cane beds which would bring a touch of eco-friendly class to any bedroom.

What is it?

What we call cane furniture - be it chairs, tables, bookshelves or beds - is actually made from bamboo, straw, willow, fibre rush etc.

Besides being sturdy but lightweight, cane furniture has many uses and can be kept just about anywhere as weather conditions have no effect on it

Some people call it rattan and some refer to it as wicker but all here are colloquially known as cane furniture. Still it is mostly made from rattan which grows wildly, especially in humid conditions and creeps over other plants as it grows and spreads like a vine.

Unlike bamboo, rattan has a strong and flexible core while its skin or peel is used to bind the furniture joints together. As for wicker, it is actually the technique of making this kind of furniture be it from any material mentioned above.

Cleaning

Though cane furniture can withstand moisture and can be washed, try and not do it too often as it can make it loose or saggy. Also, when washing, make sure that the weave spacing and pattern remain in place because if it doesn’t, it will take that new shape with big gaps or a haphazard pattern while drying. Never keep anything heavy on it when wet because that will result in sagging.

While you can wash your cane furniture using a mixture of one tablespoon salt and one litre warm water to dip a piece of cloth or soft brush into before wiping off the dirt, you can also clean it with a scrub brush.

Painting

While cane is available in a variety of natural shades, it can fade if left out for too long under the sun. So it’s fine if you are keeping it indoors but if you are using it as lawn furniture, why not paint it? This can be done by brush or spraying.

Since it is not easy to paint over woven furniture with a brush, spray painting is better. You can play with colour as any would suit this kind of furniture. And cane can carry bold and bright as well as pastel colours.

Another thing which you can do is choose from a colour wheel. Maybe you can paint one chair one colour and the other something else? They can be contrasting colours that you find opposite to each other on a colour wheel. Like lavender and lemon, green and red, blue and orange, etc.

But before painting, brush off the dirt hiding in the folds with a scrub brush. Then spray lightly with a coat of paint so that it doesn’t glop or collect in crevices. After it’s dry, if you feel like it give it another coat. Later, you may also spray clear enamel over it to give it a protective finish along with a bit of shine.

Published in Dawn, Sunday Magazine, April 5th, 2015

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