4 ways to renovate your classical furniture to keep the ‘traditional’ look

Posted on Apr 28 2015 - 6:48am by Charlie

Whether you’ve gotten it from a jumble sale, it came with the house or you’ve inherited it from an elderly friend or relative, somehow you’ve gotten your hands on a piece of old, classical furniture. Perhaps it’s a few Vintage Style Steamer Trunks, or an oak table and chairs. Either way, you now need to fit in with the rest of your home. This can become quite challenging, particularly if your home has a specific theme to it but with a number of refurbishment options available for furniture both old and new, you can choose to re-design your old furniture however you like.

Classical furniture has its own unique style to it, and as they have often been hand made with time and effort put into it, older furniture has a longer ‘shelf life’ than newer made furniture because it was built to last. Nowadays we have relatively inexpensive sofas and chair and table sets that are easy to assemble but also have a far shorter shelf life because of their construction. They are built for speed and convenience. Therefore if you have the chance to renovate an older piece of furniture – even if it is just a coffee table or an old rocking chair – you should certainly do your best to restore it to its former glory!

We’ll have a look at four ways in which you can renovate older, traditional furniture to restore it to its former glory while keeping all the original features.

Taking a look at what needs repairing
In some cases we tend to look at the furniture as a whole and think the entire piece is beyond repair, when in reality a few changes here and there would be all that is needed to restore it properly. Take an old wardrobe or cupboard for example. The hinges may be beyond repair on the wardrobe and the wood may be a little scratched but this does not make it a hopeless situation! With a little sanding and by acquiring a few new hinges in the same style, you will be able to completely restore the wardrobe back to working condition.

By looking at individual features that need repairing, you can then see whether or not it is worth making an attempt at repairing your furniture. This way you are not wasting valuable time and effort trying to restore the object as a whole when only one feature needs repairing.

Professional Upholsterer
There are a number of experienced traditional upholsterers available, normally found in your local area or in a nearby village, who will happily reupholster your old or worn out classical furniture at a reasonable price. Their work is often on a small scale and they are experts in their trade, so you will certainly be leaving your furniture in professional hands.

Upholsterers can re-spring mattresses, repair and re-glue woodwork, cover old and tatty furniture and even help to redesign chairs and sofas with new material so that it fits with the theme of the rest of your home. They work on a personal basis so all you need do is let them know what you want and they’ll do it! Perhaps you could even look for a company that offers contents packout services. Those companies will come and collect your possessions from you, ensuring that they are packed carefully and safely. They will normally take them to their warehouses, where they will begin the restoration process.

Metal Beds Auto Shop
This is a strange tip but one that works surprisingly well. Treat any old or rusted metal beds like the body of a car. Take them to the auto body shop, where the mechanics there will be able to provide professional advice as to how to properly repair or remove any rusted metal. They will also be able to provide treatment to help slow down or even prevent rust in the future.

For metal beds that need a new coat of paint, ask for a powder coating – the likes of which are also used in painting car bodies – as this provides a more thorough, even spread that will last for much longer than your average spray paint. Auto shops will likely have sophisticated industrial finishing systems which are ideal for the kind of coating that you require, so it’s always asking to see if they can help you out with this.

Sanding and oiling old Wooden Furniture
Old wooden furniture – particularly coffee tables and table legs – can suffer from a lot of wear and tear, so it is important to know how to properly restore your classical wooden furniture without having to break the bank every time it gets a scuff or a scratch. It is simply done with a bit of sandpaper and some timber oil to shine and smooth the surface!

Start with an 80grit sandpaper, working down the larger scratches so that the surface is smooth. Even out the edges created by the rougher 80grit by using a finer 100grit sandpaper and then wipe down the dust before applying your oil. Using a thick paint brush, apply a nice coat of oil to the furniture, leaving it to set in for 15 minutes before wiping the excess off with a rag. Leave for a further 12 hours before applying another coat.

It is important not to over-oil the furniture as this can warp the wood and lead to rot. A good 2-3 coats provides a beautiful smooth and shiny surface that will have your wooden furniture looking as good as new!

If you are really stuck on finding ways to renovate your old traditional furniture, instead of throwing it out you can always donate it to a local upholsterers or charity shop where they may find a better use for it. However if you can help it, it is always best to try and restore old furniture as they are often well made, sturdy, and designed to last for years to come.

Article supplied by www.qualityironmongery.co.uk, the complete solution for high quality ironmongery for household fixtures and fittings – based in South Yorkshire for over 20 years

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