Restoring Antique Furniture

Restoring Antique Furniture

• Points to Consider Before Refinishing Antique Furniture
• Is your piece out of the ordinary? Is it a masterpiece or classic example of craftsmanship? Make sure refinishing won’t diminish the value of your furniture.
• Was your furniture made by a notable craftsman or manufacturer, regardless of its age? Look for any marks or labels that might indicate the origin on the bottom or back of the piece.
• Would it be feasible just to give the piece a good cleaning and make minor repairs such as replacing missing brasses?
• Always choose the least invasive method for making a piece of antique furniture usable in your home.
• Focus on restoration rather than revamping whenever possible, especially with valuable pieces of furniture.

What to Do Before a Restoration Project

Before you tackle a restoration project, take some time to inspect the piece of furniture for any identifying labels or marks that might help

you research its origin. Look at the overall quality of the wood and craftsmanship, including any carving present. If it turns out to be an

extremely valuable item, leave it alone. Any fixer-up tasks accomplished on a piece like that should be left to a professional who works

with high-end antique furniture.

If it turns out that the piece isn’t a rare antique, it’s still better to take the path of least resistance when possible. If the piece has held

together pretty well over time, try just cleaning out the dirt and giving it a good dusting. Even with furniture that isn’t of masterpiece

caliber, most tried and true collectors value an original finish. Sometimes a once over cleaning and a little glue to hold the joints together

securely will do a world of good. When that’s still not enough, figure out just how much restoration to the finish and components will be

necessary to make it presentable. Again though, try to determine whether or not the item is a rarity before you alter it extensively. Those

really hard to find period pieces can be well worth restoring, and still hold quite a bit of value even with newly manufactured repairs when

they are professionally done.