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How Do I Care For Antique Furniture?

Home » Antiques » Caring for Antiques » How Do I Care For Antique Furniture?

Looking after your antiques, ensuring they're displayed, stored and handled correctly is essential to preserving them for future generations. Furniture needs informed care and it's important to remember that furniture isn't just wood; the beauty of wooden furniture is often how the wood is aged as well as the other materials used.

The best way to protect the finish of your piece is to use a good quality beeswax polish. This should be done once a year, or twice a year for heavy use. The wax should be applied sparingly with a soft cloth and the piece polished with another lint-free cloth. A good shine comes from rubbing rather than lots of layers of wax. Don't use silicone-based sprays for cleaning as they leave a film that is very hard to remove. Oil-based polishes attract dirt and some might darken the wood. Avoid feather dusters as they can scratch the surface. You should clean intricate areas with a soft brush. Be careful not to catch or pull any decoration that could bend or come off.

Repairing furniture is a difficult and highly specialized area. We recommend you contact a qualified furniture conservator before considering any DIY repairs. There are a number of surface finishes including: wax, varnish, lacquer, shellac, paint and modern synthetic finishes. Even bare wood will develop a patina of its own over decades. These finishes are a sign of the age of a piece and should be preserved.

If you find a scratch, first examine how deep it is. If it's only a surface scratch and has not gone through to the actual wood, you can attempt to color-in the area. A scratch that has gone through to the wood can allow moisture in - this type of damage needs professional attention. Before attempting any repairs, make sure you know what the surface finish of your piece is. If it's varnish, shellac or wax you could try the following steps: Make sure the surface is dust free.

Use a basic watercolor set and a sable brush. Do some test colors to find one that looks as if it will match. Try it on the underside of the piece. The color when wet will be the color when waxed.

Avoid getting paint on the finish. Have a cloth ready to wipe off any stray spots of paints. When fully dry, polish with beeswax polish and a lint-free cloth.

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