How to Restore/Refinish French Antique Parquet Table w/ Wax Finish
LaineRose
4 years ago
I would like to refinish the top of this antique french parquet table that I purchased from an online marketplace. The base is in great condition but the table top finish is chipping off, has pen indentations, and leaves are different color due to being stored. My plan:
Strip with a less toxic stripper like Citristrip, light sand then either:
1. Oil Finish then Wax finish with Briwax (or anther recommended furniture wax)
-or-
2. just Briwax?
If using oil before wax--which oil to use? Linseed or something else?
What color wax to use on an oak table to closely match the base?
I am doing this for the first time and a little confused!
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Comments (13)
lindac92
4 years agoLaineRose
4 years agoRelated Discussions
French Antique Restoration Question
Comments (30)Tedda 2006, that's a nice-looking piece you have there, and like somebody pointed out, it looks a lot like the stuff that first started showing up in mass quantities in this country back the 197Os, when it seems like every illegal loft in New York suddenly broke out in stripped antique pine furniture, macrame & ferns. Lots of historic paint--the kind that people go to great pains to simulate these days and that goes for megabucks if it's genuine & intact--ended up as toxic sludge at the bottom of a vat of lye in order to keep up with the decade's demand for "natural" finishes. Anyway, this is a handsome, well-proportined piece, and even in its current finish it's attractive enough to get by with nothing but that mineral spirits cleaning & a good coat of wax: not French Polish (which labor-intensive process would never have been wasted on cheap pine) and certainly not a coat of poly-anything. Just good old-fashioned paste wax. It's too bad Stocky bailed on us. Sure, digital slap-fests generate a lot of heat and very little light, but I still think it's better to have a back-&-forth "dialogue" between Poster A who's all wet, and Poster B who knows what's what than it is to for those with knowledge to abandon the field to the most ignorant, since, like the poor, those folks will always be with us. I just ignore them. And it's not even just with US. Those folks are everywhere, even in places where you would like to think that people know what they're talking about. I just followed that link above over to the Antiques Roasdshow site about the Roux-attributed cabinet and noticed this little gem of spurious scholarship: "The sideboard in Reno, like the other four Roux sideboards, was done in what was known as the Rococo Revival style, based on the Rococo Style popular in 17th-century England." Wrong century. Wrong country. What a Bozo. And he gets paid for this? Anyway, with "authorities" like that flapping their lips on TV in front of millions of people, it's no wonder that most people are full of misinformation. We're just fortunate that here on this board, we have a few regulars who have a broad base of knowledge that they're willing to share with the rest of us. It doesn't matter how many clueless know-it-alls there are spouting their nonsense: like Thoreau says "Any man more right than his neighbor is a majority of one already." Regards, MAGNAVERDE....See MoreHelp restoring newer finish
Comments (9)Well, looked at the one table I have in the house again last night, definitely solid, I'm thinking the shallow dents/scratches show so light b/c maybe the manufacturer just tinted the lacquer? Except that the underside is fairly dark too (not the practically white wood that's showing in the dents) but flat. The top/sides/legs are a satin finish. I touched up the marks a bit with a stain marker, I can live with the slight damage (it's "Arts and Crafts" style so a little distressing is OK with me). But what can I do to buff out the swirls from dusting that show when the lamp is on? Since (if this is tinted lacquer) the finish looks very thin, I really don't want to take any steel wool to it - I'm afraid of going right though the color. I think I might have to put a new coat of lacquer on, but how do you prep the surface of these modern post-catalyzed lacquers (esp if it's a tinted one)? And any idea (if the color coat is just on the surface finish) how to clean up the white scuffs, milk splashes, etc. from the legs without going through the color? I definitely don't want to have to relacquer the whole thing (all 3 tables), just the top(s) if I can get away with it....See MoreBriwax / Howard restor-a-finish to "refinish" oak cabinets?
Comments (18)luv, He just used a citrus-based (orange something) cleaner. Our cabinets were in good condition structurally, and they didn't look terrible, but we had a few places where they showed wear---one was near the sink, where I think water probably wore away at the finish. After 20+ years, I assume that whatever protective surface might have been put on the cabinets must have worn off, because the stain definitely did sink in. He applied the stain as you normally would---rubbing on a small amount, then rubbing off any excess. If you decide to try this, I would definitely test it first in an inconspicuous spot, or maybe even on a cabinet elsewhere in the house (especially useful if they used the same cabinets there as the ones in the kitchen). DH tested ours before committing to doing all the cabinets, and it seemed to work fine. The final urethane coat is important, too, as it is what gave the cabinets a finished look and, I presume, will protect the cabinets. I was honestly amazed that it worked. I really thought we'd have to sand and restain. I don't know if this method will work for all wood cabinets, but it turned out great for us. We did not try to darken our cabinets significantly, as I did not want dark cabinets in my kitchen, so if you are trying to do something to hide the fact that you have oak cabinets, it might not be satisfactory for you. We still have golden oak, the grain still stands out, but it looks much better....See MoreRefreshing Antique Furniture (wax maybe?)
Comments (28)The "old English" and the "Weed and feed your finish" things are just gloppy oils that will build into a sludge that traps dirt. they look great for a while, but furniture from people who use it repeatedly is easy to spot by the build-up. Start by cleaning them thoroughly with a method that doesn't dissolve the finish: Soap and water (not Murphy’s oil soap, you want a plain liquid dish soap or general purpose cleaner, diluted for use) and a soft cloth to get all the sticky spills. Wipe down with clean damp cloths to get rid of the soap. Repeat with mineral spirits and 0000 steel wool or other extremely mild scrubby things to get rid of oily hand grime and build up old wax. Wipe it down with clean cloth dampened in mineral spirits to get all the loosened grime off. EVALUATE THE FINISH: What does it look like? Are there worn spots? You can stop here until you have them all cleaned up and evaluated. If you have bare spots on the finish, clear shellac can protect them and will be easy to remove (with alcohol) if you decide to completely refinish. If there are no bare spots and worn places, waxing and budding with HARD PASTE furniture wax ... really thin and buffed out thoroughly ... is all you need to do....See MoreLaineRose
4 years agolast modified: 4 years ago
Izzy Mn
4 years ago
PRODunn Architects
2 years ago
PRODesign Options
2 years agochachawoman
2 years ago- PRO
Design Options
2 years ago smergels1
last yearMy french parquet table has missing cherrywood(?)
chips in the central inlay, although the side panels are fine (the seller hid them by stacking other items on top). How yould you repair the missing/loose pieces? Buy a nerw inlay? WQhere could I find a new inlay?
Fori
last year
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