Tips for Furniture Restoration Projects

An important part of home design is incorporating meaningful pieces from your past or that have been handed down from generation to generation. Budget, too, plays a factor, and one great way to save money on home furnishings and incorporate a feeling of nostalgia is to restore old furniture and make it new again. We will discuss some tips for tackling such a project in today’s blog post.

Furniture Restoration Tips

Before we begin dishing out the furniture restoration tips, we want to issue a brief caveat. If you are thinking of taking on a DIY furniture restoration project with an expensive piece of furniture or a family heirloom and have any doubt whatsoever about your abilities, please call in a professional to handle the job – the last thing you want to do is make a mistake and ruin something that has been passed down through the generations!

Now that our warning is out of the way, let’s get on to the restoration tips!

Budget For Your Restoration Project

As with any home project – be it a remodel, renovation or repair – budgeting is key to your success. Be sure to have an emergency or contingency fund in place (10 percent of your main budget), in addition to the money you set aside for the main job, just in case things go awry. Likewise, make certain you budget your time as well and leave yourself a realistic timeframe to achieve your goals. Even the simplest restoration or furniture repair can take a decent amount of time, and you do not want to rush through the job and risk ruining your work – and the restored piece!

Another “budgeting” factor to consider is whether the amount of money you are spending makes sense. If you could purchase a new or better piece of furniture for equal or less value, it may make sense to go that route. Similarly, if a professional will cost you an equal amount, you may want to leave the restoration work to the pros.

Do Your Homework

This may go without saying, but you would be surprised at the amount of people that rush into a restoration project without taking the time to research proper techniques or even have a firm plan in place. This last bit is especially important, as you can’t expect to finish your project if you do not know how you really want it to appear in the end, or know the steps to get there!

Another area DIYers sometimes neglect is looking up the value of the piece of furniture they are planning on restoring. If you have a hand-me-down furnishing or picked up something to restore from a thrift store or consignment shop, plan on doing some research before you begin work – you never know what sort of treasure you may have in hand, and performing any type of restoration – or even cleaning – could lower the value considerably.

Call in the Pros

As fun as it can be to restore a piece of furniture, and as much emotional value as it can instill in the finished product, there comes a time when it just makes more sense to call in a professional. Not only can this save you time and money, but it also can save the project as well.

Another great benefit to hiring a professional restoration expert is the fact that they often have a love of the “job” and may add extra “authentic” touches to their work – things you may not have thought to include. This is particularly true for antiques.

Finally, keep in mind that not all projects are created equally. Applying finish to an old desk is one thing, but adding intricate carvings or inlays is a whole other task. If craftsmanship is required or safety hazards are at all a factor, call in the pros.

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