furniture

In letterpress printing, furniture consists of wooden or metal strips and blocks placed around type forms inside the chase, the rectangular steel frame that holds everything during printing. These pieces serve two critical functions: they create even margins around the printed area and fill empty space so the entire form stays locked tight under pressure. Without furniture, type would shift during the press run, producing blurred or misaligned impressions.

Furniture comes in standardized heights and widths. Metal furniture, typically steel or brass, is preferred in commercial work because it withstands repeated locking and unlocking cycles without warping. Wooden furniture, historically common and still used in hand-press shops, swells and shrinks with humidity, making it less reliable for consistent results. Furniture height must match the type height exactly, usually 0.918 inches for standard foundry type, or impressions will be uneven across the page.

The printer calculates furniture dimensions based on page size, type area, and desired margins. Larger margins require more furniture. Side furniture runs vertically along both edges of the type form; head and foot furniture run horizontally at top and bottom. Quoins, wedge-shaped locking devices, press against the furniture to create tension that holds the entire assembly rigid. A poorly planned furniture layout makes quoining difficult and creates weak spots where type can shift.

Furniture must be kept clean and stored systematically because a bent or warped piece ruins registration across an entire job. Shops maintain separate sets in common widths: 2-em, 4-em, 6-em, and larger increments, allowing quick makeup of different page formats. The term derives from the basic sense of supporting structure, though in printing it refers specifically to the wooden or metal "furniture" of the type form itself, distinct from the press or other equipment.