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Taking care of your furniture whether it’s the antique of tomorrow or your treasured family heirloom is crucial for its longevity. Choosing the right product is a big part of this but there are other aspects of care that need to be considered, whether your furniture is lacquered, French polished or waxed.

Sunlight can cause fading and drying of the timber. Place away from windows if possible. If this is unavoidable, try to close curtains or blinds at crucial times of the year.

Temperature extremes can affect your timber furniture. Pieces should be kept away from radiators, fireplaces or under air conditioners.

Protecting your waxed furniture includes using coasters and mats to avoid placing hot and/or wet dishes directly onto your furniture.

Prolonged moisture on waxed furniture can cause damage to the wood. Therefore, when wiping down your table with a damp cloth it is advisable to follow with a dry tea towel or lint-free cloth.

Frequency of application for maintenance depends on the above but generally, we recommend every 3-4 months. Dusting regularly using a lint-free cloth enhances the appearance of your furniture.

Our penetrating and moisturising Floor Polish is perfect for developing a natural waxed finish on your raw or newly-stripped floorboards. Whether you have a dark or pale timber base, our beeswax-based Floor Polish is easy to apply and buffs to a moderate sheen. As with all wax finishes, you have the benefit of being able to repair and rejuvenate areas of high wear.

Maintaining your beautifully waxed floors is easy with our Floor Polish. Any worn, scratched and scuffed patches can be sealed in this way.

For laminated timber or bamboo floors that are scuffed or scratched, we recommend our Scratch Cover for Furniture and Floors. This product is ideal for disguising minor damage and feeds the bamboo or wood fibres at the same time.

How to Apply our Old Fashioned Floor Polish

Scrape out a small amount of the wax and spread it over the brushes of a floor polisher. It's always better to under-apply initially until you get a feel of how much the floor needs. If it's very dry, the polish will penetrate easily and quickly. You can apply the polish over the entire floor area of a room without worrying about the polish going off as it is quite soft. Using buffing pads or similar, go over the applied polish to buff/remove excess. The finished surface will be dry to touch. If your finger makes a print, there is still too much polish on the floor. The process is the same if you apply by hand (one brush/cloth to apply and then remove/polish with another clean cloth - old t-shirts are great for this). If you find the timber is very dry and would like to apply one or two more coats, it is best to let the first coat air overnight. Follow the same instructions as above for the second or third coats.

The question of coverage is a tricky one. Because timber varies so much in its density and moisture content, it is difficult to give an accurate measure of coverage. However, as a general rule of thumb you can expect a 200g tin to cover around 9 square metres of flooring. The product lasts for a long time as long as it is kept airtight so if you do choose to buy the larger quantities (1 or 2L tin) it will be handy for repair/reapplication in future. For a higher sheen/top coat, our Carnauba Polish is superb on floors. This needs to be applied and polished back in stages, no more than around 1 square metre as it goes off quickly.

When you are putting the finishing touches on your restored or new piece of furniture you need to make a decision about whether you are going to lacquer it with a modern finish or you are going to go the traditional pathway of waxing or oiling.

It is best to decide on which finish you will proceed with at the beginning because you may not be able to change your finish easily later. Each have their advantages and disadvantages and it is very much a personal choice.

The Three R’s of Waxing

• Reversible — If you do not like the look of wax you can remove it using the solvent it generally was made with. Generally this will be natural turpentine or mineral turpentine. With most timbers this will work but where the wax was a penetrating wax and the timber particularly absorbent, then there may be residual wax in the timber and lacquer may not adhere to this.
• Repairable — Re-waxing your furniture will often repair minor scratches and marks and there are no issues with the next coat not bonding as the solvents in the new coat reactivate with the original wax on the piece. Wax does not crack, flake, peel or blister.
• Renewable — Lastly it is renewable and just needs a reapplication when it starts to look a little flat or dull. Adding a new coat will help it to regain its original look. Another advantage of waxing is the benefit of immediate use as there is no waiting for it to dry.

Although ideally with waxing it is best to do several ‘light coats’ (rather than a couple or heavy coats - this can lead to a soft finish) you can use the piece straight away with care and ‘build’ the patina over time as you enjoy your furniture.

It is important to take a little more care of furniture with a ‘natural finish’ but whilst there is a little more maintenance the biggest advantage is that it never needs to be sanded back again and most minor scratches and marks can be treated with another coat of wax. Wax also helps prevent a lot of scratches occurring as it has a more slick surface. It will build the patina for your antique of tomorrow.

Lacquer finishes

Lacquering requires less maintenance but if it becomes scratched or worn, it can only be repaired by having the surface sanded back and re-lacquered (this can be inconvenient as this may take a few days). It is more resistant to moisture than wax but once the lacquered surface is worn, water can penetrate quite easily.

Oils extracted from plants on application, complement the oils in the wood itself, adding lustre and enhancing the beauty of the grain. It is the easiest finish to apply, as like waxing, your piece is immediately ready for use.

One of the biggest benefits of using oil as a furniture treatment is that a little goes a long way — making it both beneficial for your furniture and economical.

Oil is great for intricately-carved timber, thirsty Asian hardwood furniture and for feeding unpolished surfaces, such as drawers and the undersides of tables. Buffing off with cloth wrapped over a clean, soft shoe brush helps prevent oil residue.

There is a common misconception that oiled furniture attracts dust. Sadly, this due to the historic use of linseed oil, which does tend to bleed back out of the timber, regardless of whether or not it was buffed after application.

Our Orange Oil is a great penetrating polish, which moisturises the timber without leaving any residue. The active ingredient is a natural mould inhibitor so therefore ideal for furniture in humid areas. It is easy to apply and buff off, leaving a satin sheen and a wonderful aroma in your home. For an even richer feed, the other option is our Liquid Beeswax.

Click here for a video on how to use Orange Oil and Food Safe Wax (Orange Cream)

Leather lasts much longer than other upholstery and its good looks can not only be maintained but improve over time. Well-made leather furniture is an investment and a little care goes a long way in protecting it.

Most modern leather furniture has a protective coating of some sort. In the first few years of use, this should protect the leather in the early stages. At this point, keeping the leather clean is very important.

To clean accumulated dirt, use a slightly damp, soft cloth to wipe the surface. However before doing this for the first time, test in an inconspicuous spot to make sure the leather doesn't absorb it. Use only a dry cloth if the leather seems to absorb the water.

For spills, immediately use a dry cloth to blot and let it air-dry. It is important to blot instead of wiping, as you want to get all the moisture out instead of spreading it. Leather can absorb dyes easily, so avoid placing printed materials on it. The ink can transfer and leave stains.

Never use harsh soap, cleaning solvents, detergents, or ammonia to clean stains. Never soak the stain heavily with water. All these methods may actually be more damaging than the stain itself. For grease stains, blot excess with a clean dry cloth. The spot should gradually disappear into the leather after a short period of time. In case it persists, ask a professional leather specialist to clean the leather to avoid any potential damage to the leather itself.

Watch out for scratches. As leather can scratch easily, avoid using sharp objects in its proximity. Gently buff the surface with a chamois or clean fingers for minor scratches on the surface.

Over time cracks may develop as the leather becomes worn in and starts to dry out. At this stage, it is wise to start applying some form of moisturiser to avoid hardening and further splitting of the leather. At this point, our beeswax-enriched Leather Care will be of benefit.