There is something so wonderful about working with wood and bringing old furniture back to life.

In a previous article I wrote about replacing the riempies of an old chair. I have only ever done it using the genuine thing, long strips of rawhide leather that the Voortrekkers used to use in days gone by. 

The other day Martin phoned me from Johannesburg and asked about using synthetic riempies.  I was quite worried at the thought of using anything but the real thing, however I went on a quest to find out what is available.

Richard from Woodheads advised me that there are indeed alternatives to using genuine leather riempies and that his company, Woodheads, also supply synthetic riempie made from layers of plastic and rubber which are extremely durable, so if you need anymore information about that you can contact Richard on This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it .