6 Ways to Ruin an Antique

There are six ways that the well meaning owner of antiques can inadvertently ruin them. Here they are:

1. IMPROPER CLEANING: A good polishing is all you need!

If you've watched the Antiques Road Show series you will have heard the dealers speak ad nauseam about patina. They refer to this accumulation of dirt (yes, dirt and who knows what else) and wax on furniture pieces as patina.

On metal, this refers to the beautiful glow that comes from letting the metal age (tarnish) gracefully. Removing either of these finishes may destroy any value there was in the piece. A gentle cleaning is sometimes required but in especially fine pieces, get the help of a professional.

2. REFINISHING ANTIQUE FURNITURE:

This refers to the act of getting a piece of furniture stripped and stained. There are bad reasons to do this. Matching other furniture pieces is one. I have seen the travesty of an oak chair stained with a reddish colour to match mahogany furniture.

Trying to make the object look as good as new is another. Why buy antiques? This does not mean that a piece that has been ruined by bad storage or uncaring owners should not be refinished. If the choice is to refinish or discard, I vote for the former. However do your research so you can make informed choices about what to do.

Clean with a damp cloth only 3. AMATEUR RESTORATION:

Repainting a metal bank or dinky toy, repairing a crack in the face of a porcelain doll, cleaning a painting, soldering broken jewelry is a job for a professional.

Find out its value before attempting to do anything. Get the help of a restorer that specializes in the area of restoration you require.

4. IMPROPER STORAGE:

It is ironic that people store things to protect and preserve them, but often the storage will damage the object even more. Did you know that cedar trunks will give off gasses for as much as one hundred years- gasses that are detrimental to fabric and textiles?

Did you know that wrapping your silver in saran wrap is the worse thing you can do to it? Over time the plastic wrap will chemically adhere to the silver. Learn how to store your pieces. Check on line for more info, or if you are close to a university, or archives, contact them to get their advice.

5. IMPROPER DISPLAY:

Light is the enemy. Prints with glorious colour fade to nothing, wood furniture bleaches, painted finishes discolor, paintings dry and begin to chip away in flakes, textiles and paper antiques yellow and eventually crumble to the touch.

There is a good reason why museums control the light so diligently. Keep the least expensive pieces closer to the strongest light and protect your special objects by keeping them in the darker areas of your home.

6. ALTERATIONS:

This one is easy to understand. Cutting the legs off a fine antique table to make a coffee table, chopping the legs off a secretary to make it fit ceiling height, cutting a hole in the top of a sideboard to house a sink will understandably affect value.

Find ways that you can do what you want without damaging the piece, or consider antique reproductions if there is no alternative but to seriously maim a piece to get it to look the way you want.

Remember we are only stewards of these fragile pieces of history. Taking care of them now will ensure that they last for the next generations.

written by Johanne Yakula

From Times Past

If you would like to be the first to receive other articles on collecting antiques and collectibles as they are written for this web site click here to subscribe. Please forward this article or our web site address to someone who might enjoy it and don’t forget to add us to your favorites! Thank You!