1 Contemporary Furniture

Furniture Finish Repair by 1 Contemporary Furniture
www.1contemporary.com

Quality furniture can be repaired and enjoyed for generations to come. We are going to show you how.

What Is Finish?

The finish is the coating on top of the wood, the part that you feel and touch. The finish protects the wood and gives the wood rich color or shine. For example, the San Remo Italian dining table (above) has a high gloss polyurethane finish. Of all the finishes, high gloss is the most appealing, the most likely to show scratches, and the easiest to repair. Believe it or not, you can repair this high gloss finish (above) in minutes using no tools in your home with products purchased at Wal-Mart. We are going to show you how.

Cleaning & Maintenence

The San Remo square dining table (photo above) is covered with Teflon Marine wax. This shows you what the wood looks like with no finish. The factory DOES NOT recommend that you use furniture polish on this collection. We wanted to know why. We tested furniture polish on the San Remo dining table (above) and found that the first application worked great, but the second caused a build up of grit and polish that is impossible to remove. We are testing the Tephlon Marine wax (photo above) as a long-term protection solution. We have used this wax on cars and yachts for years and never experienced any discolor or build up. Star Brite teflon wax can be purchased at Wal-Mart. Test all wax and cleaners before you apply. Many cleaners will damage your furniture.

Suds is an amazing product that removes oils and stains (even ink) from fabrics or wood. Before you bring out the heavy equipment, clean it with Suds.

Repair Scratches in High Gloss Finish

Our customers love to look at catalogs on the Toscana Desk (photo above) because it resides in the entrance hall to our showroom. And who would not choose this desk to work from? The factory catalogs have metal binders that scratch the Toscana Desk. The top of the desk had bad scratches that where noticeable. No problem with a quality high gloss finish like this one. First we purchased a mild Mirror Glaze finish restorer from Wal-Mart called Swirl Remover 2.0 (photo above). I used a $ 50 high-speed Buffer and pad (Notice the word Buffer with pad. Grinders with pad are best left to professionals) that I purchased from Home Depot. After applying the Swirl Remover with the Buffer I used the Teflon Marine Wax. The scratches disappeared and the finish has been restored to perfect condition. Notice the beautiful Italian grapes from the glass blowers of Florence, Italy. Priceless.

This is a Buffer (photo above) and is not to be confused with a Grinder. Grinders can be used by professionals to do the same job. Tip of the day: Apply the finish restorer to the Buffer pad. Place the pad on the furniture BEFORE you turn on the Buffer. If not the Buffer will sling wet finish restorer all over your room!

Repair Nicks in High Gloss Finish

Repairing nicks in high gloss finish is more challenging than scratches. You may need a professional depending upon your level of skill. Nicks are deeper than scratches. Nicks cut through the finish all the way to the wood some times. Use an artist or at least an artist brush to apply pollyurithane to the area where the finished is damaged only. DO NOT apply polyurethane to other areas or on top of finish already applied. DO NOT apply to large areas. Only apply to a very small area where the finish is broken or removed. Wipe off any excess polyurethane immediately. Watch for runs and remove excess material. If you have no painting skill at all repairing nicks may be best left to a professional.

Repair Satin Finish

DO NOT use rubbing compound on satin finishes. Rubbing compound is for high-gloss finishes only. Satin varnish is very easy to work with. It is very forgiving. We purchase our varnish from marine stores however, you can find varnish almost anywhere. Home Depot has it. We do not recommend sanding on a do-it-yourself level. Sanding is best left to a professional. However, you may apply varnish to damaged or nicked small area with great results. Use an artist brush and take it slow applying one coat after another. Allow at least 12 hours drying time between coats. Only apply satin varnish to small area where the finish is nicked or damaged. Do not apply over old varnish. That requires sanding by a professional.

Swim At Your Own Risk

Some people have no artist, painting, or finishing skill whatsoever. If you are one of those people with zero experience, do not try to repair your furniture at home. Call an expert. Read About Us for more information.