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Beginners => Family History Beginners Board => Topic started by: flossie1 on Wednesday 22 May 13 16:24 BST (UK)

Title: What were these professions!
Post by: flossie1 on Wednesday 22 May 13 16:24 BST (UK)
An ancestor of mine was a 'grainer' in 1851 and then an 'ornamental painter' in 1861.  I am not quite sure what each would entail.  I am not sure about a grainer and perhaps ornamental painting was decorating statues / walls.  I may be totally off in both, can anyone help please?
Title: Re: What were these professions!
Post by: Lostris on Wednesday 22 May 13 16:31 BST (UK)
you're very close - use Google or similar search engine  ... use those words plus occupation - to get a full definition.
Title: Re: What were these professions!
Post by: Greensleeves on Wednesday 22 May 13 16:31 BST (UK)
I believe a grainer was someone who used to paint wood ..... to look like wood!  I remember in my childhood my grandparents' house had doors which looked as though they had been varnished to within an inch of their lives, and then some kind of texturing was added to make it look like woodgrain.
Title: Re: What were these professions!
Post by: stanmapstone on Wednesday 22 May 13 16:32 BST (UK)
There were two types of Grainer, one who specialised in decorating tin boxes and trunks to resemble wood, and one who painted wood, stone, iron, etc. to imitate the grain of wood, or veining of marble.

Stan
Title: Re: What were these professions!
Post by: LizzieW on Wednesday 22 May 13 16:36 BST (UK)
Quote
I believe a grainer was someone who used to paint wood ..... to look like wood!

It was very popular in the 1950s, I remember my mum had loads of it done around the house.  I didn't like it, to me it looked - what it was - fake wood.
Title: Re: What were these professions!
Post by: Treetotal on Wednesday 22 May 13 16:36 BST (UK)
See definition here for Painter and Grainer:

http://www.census1891.com/occupations-p.htm

Carol
Title: Re: What were these professions!
Post by: stanmapstone on Wednesday 22 May 13 16:40 BST (UK)
Grainer and marbler, imitator of wood and marble; paints wood stone, iron, etc. to imitate the grain of wood, or veining of marble; in graining, paints surface with flat colour, uses steel combs, pieces of rag or cotton wool, and his own fingers to give appearance of graining and knots; in marbling, applies various colours to stone or other surfaces with brushes, "A Dictionary of Occupational Terms"

Stan
Title: Re: What were these professions!
Post by: Treetotal on Wednesday 22 May 13 16:55 BST (UK)
I can remember this fashion in painted doors using a woodgrain effect when I was growing up...I think varnish was used with rags and a comb as Stan describes....the colour we had was an awful tan shade.
Carol
Title: Re: What were these professions!
Post by: stanmapstone on Wednesday 22 May 13 17:01 BST (UK)
See http://www.diynetwork.com/how-to/decorative-paint-technique-woodgraining-instructions/index.html

Stan
Title: Re: What were these professions!
Post by: Treetotal on Wednesday 22 May 13 17:04 BST (UK)
That brought back memories Stan...anybody who was nobody had it done back then...almost like wall cladding ;D ;D ;D
Carol
Title: Re: What were these professions!
Post by: stanmapstone on Wednesday 22 May 13 17:10 BST (UK)
It was also called scumbling, it must have been a fashion in the 1950s, I can remember doing it on one of the doors in my parents house.

Stan
Title: Re: What were these professions!
Post by: Treetotal on Wednesday 22 May 13 17:18 BST (UK)
Yes...thanks for that.....I was trying to remember the name...my Uncle used to do it too...it kind of left a raised pattern to the touch.
Carol
Title: Re: What were these professions!
Post by: Greensleeves on Wednesday 22 May 13 23:32 BST (UK)
I didn't realise it was a '50s thing, I had assumed it was earlier.
Title: Re: What were these professions!
Post by: stanmapstone on Thursday 23 May 13 08:32 BST (UK)
Scumbling was not just a 50s thing. Graining and marbling are a very old professional processes.

Stan
Title: Re: What were these professions!
Post by: LizzieW on Thursday 23 May 13 12:10 BST (UK)
Quote
anybody who was nobody had it done back then...almost like wall cladding

Reminds me of my mother who always wanted to be one better than the neighbours - she had formica put on our kitchen walls in the 1950s :o  I have no idea where she got that idea from.  A few years earlier, when we moved into a new house built by a builder friend of my father's, she had the bathroom tiled with black tiles.  ::)  all my friends used to come to see the bathroom.
Title: Re: What were these professions!
Post by: Maggie. on Friday 24 May 13 11:14 BST (UK)
Gosh this is a blast from the past.  All the woodwork in our house was subjected to scumbling in the 1950s as my Mum must have thought it was wonderful.  As a small child I remember watching the 'scumbler' at work with rags and something like a comb.  It was fascinating to watch.

At a later date she also had a wonderfully dark mahogony dressing table stained (or scumbled) a horrible light tan colour.