Restoration of old furniture with your own hands

Many believe that it is better to quickly get rid of old furniture and get a new one and do not even know that furniture can be restored. Of course, the restoration of the old furniture with your own hands will take a lot of time, and the result the first time will not be as perfect as new factory furniture, however, you need to strive to ensure that the work is done in compliance with the technology and as neatly as possible.

About the methods of restoration of furniture

In the restoration of old furniture, there are such methods for decorating surfaces made of wood or chipboard:

1. Decoupage.
2. Craquelure.
3. Painting with paints.
4. Owl or lamination.
5. Covering with adhesive decorative tape.
6. Coating varnish or stain.

People who have mastered several restoration techniques often try to combine them. For example, along with decoupage, the Krakelura technique is used, since both methods involve painting with paints.

Let us separately consider the popular methods for decorating old furniture, but first we learn how to prepare old furniture for restoration.

How to prepare furniture

The main point in the restoration of old furniture is thorough and unhurried preparation of furniture. It is necessary to prepare each part:

1. Without damaging the boost, wash the surface with a sponge and soap solution. Make sure that the water is not hot.  It is advisable to take soap with the maximum content of natural components.
2. If there are decor elements in the old chest of drawers or other furniture: metal pens and other objects, they must be cleaned with a small brush (an old toothbrush is suitable). Inaccessible surfaces are cleaned with a toothpick or awl.
3. The remaining plaque can be cleaned with an emery sheet. Use “nulevka” - it will not damage the surface and will not leave scratches on it.

How to return the life of an old stool

This type of work is also attributed to restoration, because the old stool, although it has lost its attractiveness, but it is still functional.

You can breathe life into it in this way:

1. If your stool is wooden, and its sitting is covered with a dense fabric, then it can be repainted either and replace foams and casing with new ones.
2. If the chair has a soft seat, it can be removed and sheathed with new ones using fabric or leatherette. It is undesirable to make hard from a soft stool, since it will not look aesthetically pleasing.

3. The stool is completely covered with any fabric. This type of alteration is called "drapery fabric." It differs in that even a teenager can update the old stool or chair.

If we plan to leave a wooden seat, then it must be thoroughly cleaned with an sandpaper, and then painted in any color, preferably monophonic. After that, paint the place of seat with paints. Here you need to rely on your skill and imagination.

After the painting, the chair is covered with varnish, which will serve as a protective layer and will allow the subject to operate a long time.

You have an old stool, which has a soft seat, but it has already become disheveled and uncomfortable. You can do as follows: if softness suits, then it is advisable not to touch the old sheathing and foam. Using a furniture stapler, directly attach a new fabric on top.

If the foam rubber is spoiled or lost, then it is necessary to replace it. To do this, you need to cut out of the new foam rubber the piece desired in size, only with a margin, because the edges of the chair should be soft. Remove the old sheathing with the old foam rubber and beat the new one. You can work with both a furniture stapler and a hammer. On top of the foam rubber is laid and attached. If the first time you could not work with brackets and a stapler, then it is easy to remove the damaged bracket, and put a new one in its place.

If you have several damaged stools or chairs, it is advisable to decorate them in the same style.

Restoration of old furniture before and after look at the photo:

The update of furniture using fabric is performed in a short time. The edges of the cut of fabric of the desired size are treated on a sewing machine. Depending on the type of fabric and the selected color, the appearance of a stool or chair will depend. If your fabric is light and shines through, then the chair will seem airy. If the fabric is heavy - then the chair will be more massive.

How to restore a chair with a back

The ideas of the restoration of old furniture include the full scope of your imagination. If you figured out that your chair will have an extraordinary coloring, then do not deviate from your dream.

Your chair has a soft seat and a hard back - it is undesirable to make soft backs soft, since such work will be difficult for beginners.

To update the old chair, it must be cleaned with sandpaper, and then covered with paint. And not necessarily the color of the paint should be brown. Return from these rules and add more bright colors to your interior!

After the surface of the chair is painted, you can proceed to the upholstery.

This simple master class on the restoration of old furniture will allow you to cope with the tasks yourself:

1. In front of you is a chair - the back and legs must be cleaned with sandpaper, removing the top layer of varnish.  To make the work look neat, the seat must be removed.

2. Bake dust and wipe the surface with a soft cloth.

3. Color the purified surface in the chosen shade of the paint or open it with a stain and varnish.

4. We proceed to the upholstery of soft sitting: the old fabric can be removed if it is dense. Just the old fabric will serve as a pattern for a new sitting, plus a few centimeters should be left on the bend.

Take the fabric and with the help of a stapler we will score it to the base. We fix the seat in the chair.

The result of the work can be seen in the photo:

This photo shows the option of upholstery of soft sitting with fabric and braid.

By the same principle, you can restore a hard stool - paint and make a painting. If desired, you can make the seat soft or leave as it was.

Restoration of the coffee table

As a rule, over the years of operation, the legs and countertop spoil the coffee table faster. This is because such a table is not customary to cover the tablecloth.

Restoration by the Mosaic Laying method will allow you to get an updated coffee table.

It is difficult to do independently, without certain skills, without certain skills. Therefore, in order for your old table to become what, as in the photo, you need to come up with a drawing and a color scheme, and entrust the work to professionals. But here you need to be prepared for the fact that the restoration of old furniture will have a high price.

An example of this work will inspire you to new ideas. You can perform restoration yourself. To do this, clean the surface and cover with the main color. With the help of a stencil, which can be made independently (from oilcloth or dense cardboard) or purchased in an art store, you need to “fill” the drawing. After the paint layer dries, the surface is covered with colorless varnish.

Alteration of the chest of drawers

Did you get an old, bulky wooden chest of drawers from your grandmother? Do not rush to throw it away, it can be restored so that even your family will not recognize it. The chest of drawers can be updated in the following ways:

1. Photo printing.
2. Decor.
3. Artistic painting.

Photo printing on a chest of drawers looks unusually. The main thing in this case is to choose a suitable drawing that will like and harmonize with your interior.

In order to make photo printing on a chest of drawers, it must be measured with a furniture roulette and ordering self -adhesive murals in a specialized store. If you purchased a regular option, then sticking paper with a pattern on a chest is not difficult. You need to work with PVA glue and a brush, and after drying, cover the surface with transparent varnish.

You can restore the chest of drawers to the color of the room, or the color of your furniture. By the way, this option is suitable for frequent crossings or if repairs are to be. To embody the idea, you will need a roll of wallpaper (or the remaining strips). They glue the front surface of the chest of drawers. During work, you need to be careful: measure and cut off the wallpaper with maximum accuracy, because if the drawing does not match, the work will look sloppy.

After the wallpaper is glued to the chest of drawers, it must be covered with colorless varnish.

Restoration of the cabinet

To restore the cabinet is a big responsibility. Moreover, it will not be easy to throw away even a very old cabinet because of its bulky and considerable weight.

The work is carried out according to the same principle as the restoration of a stool, a coffee table and a chest of drawers. First, the surface is thoroughly cleaned and painted in any selected color.

Then, directly on the surface with the help of paint and brushes, a pattern is applied. You can work with both a stencil and manually. After completing the work, the cabinet is covered with varnish and left until completely dry.

And the wardrobe in this photo was restored in this way: cleaned, painted and varnished. And in order for him to get shine, he was additionally wiped with a furniture polish.

As you can see, it is not so difficult to get a new one from the old furniture at a minimum of costs, the main thing is not to be lazy.

How to get rid of small furniture defects

As if neatly did not use furniture, and small flaws will still appear on it.

So what to do if:

• is a scratch, a crack or a chip on your wooden furniture? Buy iodine in a pharmacy and cover a scratch or chip. This method will be effective if your furniture has a dark shade. Iodine can be replaced with paint, and choose the tone in accordance with the color of the furniture. After processing, the crack or chip is covered with colorless varnish;
• if the crack is deep, then it is necessary to use special furniture wax. According to the instructions, it must be heated and rubbed into the surface;
• instead of wax, you can use your own cooking mastic. Its recipe is as follows: melt four parts of wax over low heat, add three parts of the turpentine and mix. Fill in the resulting mass of the crack and leave until completely absorb;
• if the chip or recess has a large area, then you can correct the defect using a special wood putty. By the way, it has different shades, so choosing the desired shade will not be difficult. Experts recommend that you do this: to purchase a light shade putty and add water to the furniture paint of the shade you need. After the surface is completely dried, the place is polished with an emery sheet and treated with furniture varnish.
• if only the upper layer is damaged - varnish, then the surface is emphasized and covered with transparent varnish on top. It must be remembered that transparency can be achieved by using only a certain varnish: acrylic or cellulose. It is undesirable to use polyurethane, since over time it will begin to turn yellow;
• if the scratches on your furniture are small and superficial, they can be painted over with a marker of a suitable color;
• if your furniture is covered with veneer, and you shed tea or juice, then you can eliminate bloating like this: take the needle and carefully grind the bloating. Pick PVA glue in the syringe and enter a little into the cavity, then cover the place with a cloth or thick paper and put the load on top. To speed up the process, through paper a place is allowed to warm with a warm iron;
• a film was peeled off on the facade - apply the glue “moment” or “liquid” nails and leave under the press;
• so that the facades are not exposed to temperature exposure, for example, in the kitchen near the oven - such places are covered with a protective thermoplane;
• if a white spot has formed on a wooden table or chest of drawers, it is necessary to apply a little car polishing on the spot and grind;
• if your cabinet is old and the boxes are poorly advanced, then the edges of the box must be greased with a candle or dry hard soap.

The restoration of old furniture can be seen on this video: