Wednesday, June 3, 2015

Furniture Restoration Austin; Do It Yourself Tips

By Ericka Marsh


Furniture restoration in the city Austin, TX does not have to be done by stripping. Here is an easier alternative that also preserves the coating and appeal of previous finish. The wood piece will be the same as it was originally. When your item is old and broken, do not throw it away. Here are tips on furniture restoration Austin.

Before beginning any repairs, wipe wood piece with mineral spirits so you can decide on the next step you will be taking. Mineral spirits saturates the finish temporarily and reveals the appearance of the furniture with just a coat. Cleaning thoroughly is important as a first step in furniture restoration. By removing most of the dirt you are restoring the original shine. It is recommended that you use a mixture of ivory liquid soap with water mixed in a same proportion as that used in washing utensils. Dip a wiper in the mixture and wring out. Use it to scrub the surface gently. For carvings and molded piece it is better to use a paint brush. When you are through with cleaning, rinse using a wrung sponge and clean water and then dry it out with a towel.

White rings can be removed by using petroleum jelly. Special removers can be used too. The petroleum jelly is slathered on the ring and allowed to sit for a night. Oil from the jelly penetrates the finish removing the ring or making it less pronounced.

Remove the paint without destroying the finish. You can make a paint scraper from razor and masking tape. Firstly, cover the coat of masking tape round the edges of the blade and curve the blade faintly. Fill the damaged part with epoxy. When epoxy is mixed completely, press it in the place that is to be repaired and if you find out that there is a lost veneer, fragmented wood or destroyed molding, fix it with epoxy.

After the epoxy has hardened; this could take several hours, you can now sand and tinge the repair. The repair is blended onto the surrounding surface through gel stain painting which matches color and design. Select two stain colors matching bright and obscure wood areas. A dab of both is put on a wood scrap creating various color ranges by unifying the two.

The gel is then worked onto the surface and the excess wiped off. Note that this gel does not completely remove water stains or obscure bad effects but rather just make fine scratches less visible and add color to the worn out areas of the finish.

Fill the tiny cracks. If there are any nail hovels or small cracks after making the last finish, fill the holes with wax that is colored, wax sticks, wax mending sticks or plug pencils. You can remove small cavities by making them wet. The water makes the crushed wood to swell and its fibers to get back to the original shape. For it to work, water must get inside the wood.

The last step in the furniture restoration process is that of wiping a finishing coat. After having cleaned the furniture and having done all the needed repairs and touch ups, by wiping a finishing coat you are storing the original sheen and protecting the wood surface. Any type of finish can be used to complete the work.




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