Furniture Restoration

Jeff121

Hi, does anyone have any advice on restoring furniture? I have Ducal Victoria Pine furniture, the dining table has a watermark on it also the leather top on writing desk has scuff marks on leather. I have tried furniture polish on the watermark without success. Someone suggested rubbing Olive oil into the leather top of the desk, I have not tried this yet. Maybe ought to find a French Polisher and leave it to the professionals however wouldn't mind trying to sort it myself so long as I don't make the furniture worse, any tips and advice would be appreciated, thanks.

elona

I found that a mix of equal parts of olive oil and lemon juice - rubbed gently into the watermark and left to soak in - helped a lot.

Jeff121

thanks elona, I will try that tomorrow, will let you know if it helps remove the mark.

njm_2

The method I use is a small amount of white spirit and furniture wax, mixed to form a light paste – gently rubbed over the water mark with a lint free cloth. The theory is that the white spirit lifts the damaged wax. Ideally the wax should be a close colour match to the table top.

To be safe I would recommend trying the white spirit first on an unseen area of the table to ensure there is no adverse reaction.

Since you are “sprucing up” the table, you can revive the rest of the table top surface with some very fine (000 or 0000) wire wool and a little white spirit; always work in the direction of the grain and do not apply too much pressure. This should lift the top layer of wax leaving the lower layers intact. Then, once the table is dry, wipe over the table thoroughly with a clean cloth and then apply several coats of wax, buffing in-between. After the final coat buff to required sheen; best done in good light to ensure any smears are dealt with. The table should then only require a wipe over with a damp cloth periodically and then apply further coats of wax every six months. NEVER use a spray wax/cleaner as it will ruin all your hard work.

Try to rotate your table every few months as the side closest to a window will darken faster, also rotate position of chairs around table to even out colour.

Hope this helps (& yes I do make furniture for a living!)

Jeff121

Thank you njm for your detailed instructions on how to deal with the watermarks on my table. Your advice is very much appreciated, can you recommend a brand of wax that I should use please, also is there anything I can do to improve the appearance of small dents? What would you recommend for cleaning the leather surface of my writing desk? Being a furniture maker you are probably familiar with Ducal, I have Ducal throughout the house, all purchased about 15 years ago. Unfortunately Ducal is no longer in business, its a great pity as their workmanship ( in my opinion) is excellent and a shame that another Great British company is no longer in business and producing quality furniture. I have noted your points about moving the furniture to prevent or even the shading effects of sunlight. For the past 15 years I have kept my blinds tilted to an angle that prevents direct sunlight reaching the furniture. Thank you very much for your advice