Furniture Care

Surface defects on our furniture, such as watermarks, scratches and scuffs are the inevitable result of every day use. No matter how careful we are, sooner or later we will find ourselves confronted with some unwanted manifestation. You may have just purchased the piece and taken it home to give it a polish and clean before placing it for best use and enjoyment. Horror! that tiny blemish is screaming attention. After cleaning, these blemishes may seem more apparent than they did when covered by a film of old wax and grime. The most unsightly are watermarks, as these are completely alien on a prized piece of furniture. The odd scratches although unwanted are more acceptable especially on an older piece. In fact the absence of any signs of past use would probably make you suspicious of the items provenance.
Lets tackle the dreaded white heat mark first. These cloudy looking marks are caused by something hot being placed on the surface. Providing the mark is suspended in the finish and has not penetrated the timber below we can precede as follows. Make a solution of 50 parts boiled linseed oil and 50 parts turpentine. If turpentine is not available white spirit will do at a pinch. Apply a little of the mixture to the affected area with a cloth and leave for 10 minutes or so. Then wipe off. You may need to repeat several times. When finished neutralise the oil by wiping over with vinegar and buff or wax as needed.
A cold-water mark, similar in appearance, to a heat mark, is most commonly caused by a sweaty glass and if caught in time may only need wiping with a cloth and then allowed to dry through evaporation in a warm room. Generally though we are not this lucky and are left with an unsightly ring to deal with.
Sometimes these cold-water marks can easily be removed by rubbing over with metal polish. This is worth a try, but don’t let the metal polish dry out. Wipe all traces off before it does. Varnished surfaces respond to a mild abrasive such as T-cut, used for cleaning and reviving car paintwork. You may have some in your car care kit. A professional would properly use Rottenstone or pumice powder mixed with a little oil. If you can find these fine, if not the T-cut will work just as well. Proceed slowly making sure you do not remove too much of the varnish. On occasions you may need to use both approaches. I was once told that mayonnaise also works well on shellac, I can see how it might, although I haven’t tried it myself.
Scratches cracks and the odd worm hole, can be disguised with wax filler, which is available in stick form at most wood finishing counters or DIY stores. Those made by “Liberon” are good quality and just a bit harder than some others. Choose a colour just slightly darker than the timber you will be filling. Colours can be mixed if you are unable to find the exact shade you need. Start by Cutting off a few flakes from the wax stick and kneed them between you fingers in order to soften. Now would be the time to mix colours if needed. Work the wax into the scratch with a blunt ended flexible knife, which you have first rubbed over some fine sandpaper to remove any burrs. Some small blemishes may only require you to rub the corner of the wax stick over the scratch or crack. You must judge which method will work best in each situation. Once you have sufficient wax in the scratch, run the flat of your fingernail over the wax to firm down and smooth. Then using the BACK, yes I defiantly said the back of some old sandpaper, rub over the wax, frequently changing the area of paper used. This will blend in the wax surface and remove excess wax from the surrounding area. Leave to harden for say 20 minutes or while you have a cup of tea, then buff to a shine. Please don’t ever be tempted to use any scratch repair products containing oil or that come in liquid form. These will penetrate to the timber below and leave a permanent stain. The above method will not produce an entirely invisible repair, but good enough if not directly in light. A coat or two of finish will always improve the look and I shall be explaining how to apply these in a latter post,

Slight scuffs will respond best to a mild abrasive as that mentioned earlier. Scuffs usually contain some of the colour of the object that scuffed them, like a white painted door frame for example, knocked when you were moving the piece from one room to another. Once the scuffed area has been abraded enough to remove the colour, the scuff will generally disappear. Now burnish with a little wax to finish off.
A final tip: Antique furniture does not have a hard shine, it’s a little more subtle and muted. This may cause some burnished areas to stand out. You can cure this by applying wax with a synthetic wire wool ‘000’ grade. Steel wool ('0000' grade) will also do the same job, but can leave minute particles. Which could cause staining on some timbers with open grain such as Oak. Apply the wax in exactly the same way as you would if using a cloth, making sure to keep in the direction of the grain. Use gentle strokes and blend in with the surrounding area. In fact you may just as well cover the entire surface while you are at it, just to make sure.