The Furniture Guys Book (Hardcover)

~ Joe L'erario (Author), Ed Feldman (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Joel and Ed are well-known television and radio personalities whose trademark looniness combined with practical advice on old furniture repair and restoration have earned them a large and enthusiastic following. In this book, their particular brand of zany humor does not detract from the fact that it's packed with useful information and well-detailed, step-by-step instructions for 10 of their favorite projects, including gems like a beautifully refinished and reupholstered throne chair, a rolltop desk, and a walnut table painted to look like marble. You'll find solid information on how to find potential used furniture bargains and differentiate furniture worthy of the efforts of restoration from junk. Stripping, sanding, painting, finishing and refinishing, marbling, upholstering, gluing, and every aspect of furniture repair and restoration are covered, amidst Joel's and Ed's bad puns and strange ruminations on the meaning of everything. Even if you normally buy all your furniture factory-fresh from the showroom, you'll have fun with the wild ramblings and seriously good advice of the Furniture Guys. --Mark A. Hetts

Product Description

"The Furniture Guys" are the zaniest, funniest how-to duo on the air today. Watch them on the "Learning Channel" juggling expert furniture and home repair, pop culture hilarity, throwaway historical asides, and sudden swerves into B-movie lore, and you'll ditch earnest old Bob Vila and never give Home Improvement another look.

The Furniture Guys Book presents ten projects, complete with step-by-step guidance on stripping, staining, varnishing, upholstering, basic repairs, and troubleshooting touch-ups such as stain and scratch removal. Projects include a pine Hoosier, a Victorian throne chair, a roll-top desk, a pine hat-rack, and more. More than 250 black-and-white photos and drawings illustrate every detail, and a full-color insert displays the finished projects in all their glory. Plus there are handy tips on everything from setting up a work area to sizing up the potential of yard sale bargains.

All this, and funny too! A must for the millions who watch them on the "Learning Channel" or who will be tuning into their forthcoming nationally syndicated radio show -- and for any would-be refinisher looking for advice that's as entertaining as it is effective -- this book will find a prominent place on workbenches all over America.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 176 pages
• Publisher: William Morrow; 1st edition (December 16, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0688137660
• ISBN-13: 978-0688137663
• Product Dimensions: 11.2 x 8.6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #559,503 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Keep looking, August 1, 2002

By A Customer

It appears that this book is compiled of a number of projects that Joe and Ed did on their TV Show. But I think there are better resources out there. If I were them, I think I'd look for a new editor & publisher for their next work.

The Pros:
* Interesting side bars on specific topics (assuming you can find them when you need them) including materials, art history, etc.
* Covers both wood and upholstery work
* Covers a variety of techniques

The Cons:
* Aside from the few pages in the middle of full color sheets, all the diagrams are about 1" x 1.5" b&w photos or line drawings. It is very difficult to see what's going on with them. There is profuse text, but give me a few more pictures and a few thousand words less.

* There is clowning around and running gags throughout the book. I'm a light hearted guy, but think this is a little overdone. Maybe it works on their TV show.

* There are some technical errors and omissions. For example, Pure Turpentine is not a petrochemical. I caught a few places where you were instructed to make a stain or something without any idea of quantities or colors.

I think you would be better served to read any of the following books on wood finishing and repair:

* Great Wood Finishes: A Step-By-Step Guide to Consistent and Beautiful Results by Jeff Jewitt

* Understanding Wood Finishing: How to Select and Apply the Right Finish by Bob Flexner

* Perfect Wood Finishing Made Easy by Sue Noble

* Furniture Repair & Refinishing by Brian D. Hingley

Sorry, but I don't have a good upholstery recommendation at this time.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Nicely done, useful information, weak graphics., June 14, 1999

By	[e-mail] (West Chester, PA.) - See all my reviews

JOSE, CAN YOU SEE?

The humor is there, as is the really helpful information and professional tips on how to get the results the pros do. BUT, the publisher should have sprung for how-to photos that can be seen without a microscope! Come on, guys, I'll pay a buck or two more for pictures I can see.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars If you like the show, you'll like the book, March 6, 1999

By A Customer

The book is very much like the TV show with jokes and easy to read instructions. I only gave it four stars because I would have liked more pictures. Each project has one color picture in a center section. There are also TINY thumbnail photos in the instruction section showing you how to do something. I wanted a magnifying glass. The good thing was the instructions were well written enough that you didn't always need the pictures.