Restoring Wood Furniture and Leather Surfaces
, by Amy Howard, 5 min reading time
When it comes to your wood furniture, including tables, chairs, and shelving, it can be hard to know how to restore and maintain them. Most people use more “commercial” products, like Pledge or Endust, thinking that it will keep wood healthy. However, many feel that these leave an unpleasant oily, chemical finish on their furniture. That’s exactly why Amy Howard created Furniture Tonic, our all-natural wood protectant.
When it comes to your wood furniture, including tables, chairs, and shelving, it can be hard to know how to restore and maintain them. Most people use more “commercial” products, like Pledge or Endust, thinking that it will keep wood healthy. However, many feel that these leave an unpleasant oily, chemical finish on their furniture. That’s exactly why Amy Howard created Furniture Tonic, our all-natural wood protectant.
We all know that, over time, wooden furniture begins to look parched and dry. Our Furniture Tonic is designed to bring back the original warmth and beauty of your wood in one quick and easy application. Thanks to the hemp oil in the tonic, it also serves as a water-resistant protective layer for raw wood and milk painted or stained finishes.
On this week’s Finish Friday, Amy shows us how to take full advantage of the Furniture Tonic in a whole new setting: her very own home! She also introduces us to the all new Furniture Restoration Bundle, which includes Furniture Tonic, Clean Slate, and a handful of lint-free rags that are perfect for your restoration projects. Tune into the video to see more:
How to Use the Furniture Restoration Bundle
As Amy explains in this week’s video, using products like Pledge on wood finishes can actually change the patina and color of your wood. It also leaves a chemical scent and residue that’s not desirable on an antique piece, or any piece you want to maintain for decades to come.
If your piece is real wood, Clean Slate and Furniture Tonic are the perfect solution. Simply pour some Clean Slate onto a clean, lint-free rag and start rubbing! The solution will strip residue, gunk, and debris off your surface so that you can get the best results from Furniture Tonic.
Once Clean Slate has dried, pour Furniture Tonic onto another lint-free rag and apply it to your wooden surface. The tonic will go on very oily and you’ll likely be able to see it laying on top of your wood, but if you’ve cleaned your surface correctly, it will soak in. Amy demonstrates how to restore a wooden tabletop, wooden accents, and even her leather couch.
Let the Furniture Tonic dry for about 2 hours, then buff it with a clean lint-free rag. If you want more sheen, you can give your piece multiple layers of Furniture Tonic, waiting for each coat to dry thoroughly (without buffing) between applications.
Surfaces You Can Restore With Furniture Tonic
As Amy shows us, you can even use the Furniture Tonic on leather — including the leather on older furniture, books, briefcases, purses, and more! Authentic wood outdoor furniture (like teak) is another great surface for this Furniture Tonic!
Because the hemp oil inside the tonic is a natural moisture repellant, you can protect your outdoor surfaces using an all-natural product!
The tonic also seals the wood, which means your wood will be protected naturally. You don’t need to seal it with polyurethanes or acrylic sealers — you only need Furniture Tonic. It dries matte and you can even put a glass of sweet tea on it in the heat of the summer without worrying about condensation rings. What a great way to save money and extend the life of your favorite furniture!
Now it’s your turn to rescue and restore your wood and leather pieces!
Hopefully, you learned a lot from this episode of Finish Friday where Amy walks you through how to rescue and restore wood furniture and surfaces. We also hope that this inspires you to rescue a piece before throwing it out or donating it — and to even go out and find a thrifted piece to restore to its former beauty.
There are so many garage and estate sales this time of year, so make sure to go out and find something fun to rescue and restore using our Furniture Restoration Bundle and the tips you learned here.
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Did you register to win our Furniture Tonic giveaway? Your name may have been drawn — check out the video to find out and don’t forget to register for our next giveaway. Then, tune in every Friday at 12 noon Central on our Facebook page to see Amy on the next Finish Friday. Each Friday, she teachers DIY enthusiasts how to rescue and restore furniture, so don’t miss out.
