About the service
A sideboard that has stood in one family for fifty years arrives with the same small catalogue of ailments almost every time. The mortise and tenon joints have dried out, so the carcass racks out of square and the doors no longer meet in the middle. The veneer has blistered across the fronts and lifted along the edges, with chips missing at the corners. The old lacquer carries dark water stains and pale white rings left by hot cups. One glazed door is broken, a handle has gone missing, and the shelves sag under the weight of a dinner service.
I do not start with tools. I start by looking the piece over and writing an estimate: what has to be done, what is worth doing, and what is better left alone. Nothing irreversible happens without your consent. The finish is discussed separately, because a full sand-back and repaint destroys the value of an antique, and keeping the original shellac or lacquer is a decision we make before the work begins, not after. If old paint does have to come off, I keep in mind that sanding it can raise lead dust, so I work in a respirator and use a wet method; strippers and lacquers are only used with the room aired through.
The piece is collected and returned, and you get photographs at every stage, so nothing happens out of your sight.
— survey, diagnosis and a written estimate before any work begins
— dismantling with every part marked, so the carcass goes back exactly as it was
— joints re-glued with a reversible glue that a future restorer can undo
— lifted veneer laid back down, losses patched with matched inlays in tone and grain
— fronts squared up, hinges adjusted, doors brought back to an even gap
— broken panes replaced with tempered glass, edges ground and polished
— darkened lacquer removed, or the original finish gently refreshed if we agree to keep it
— losses toned in so repairs read as age, not as patches
— original handles repaired, or close matches sourced when they are gone
— shelves rebuilt to carry the real weight of stacked china
— collection and delivery, an agreed deadline and a photo report throughout
I do not start with tools. I start by looking the piece over and writing an estimate: what has to be done, what is worth doing, and what is better left alone. Nothing irreversible happens without your consent. The finish is discussed separately, because a full sand-back and repaint destroys the value of an antique, and keeping the original shellac or lacquer is a decision we make before the work begins, not after. If old paint does have to come off, I keep in mind that sanding it can raise lead dust, so I work in a respirator and use a wet method; strippers and lacquers are only used with the room aired through.
The piece is collected and returned, and you get photographs at every stage, so nothing happens out of your sight.
— survey, diagnosis and a written estimate before any work begins
— dismantling with every part marked, so the carcass goes back exactly as it was
— joints re-glued with a reversible glue that a future restorer can undo
— lifted veneer laid back down, losses patched with matched inlays in tone and grain
— fronts squared up, hinges adjusted, doors brought back to an even gap
— broken panes replaced with tempered glass, edges ground and polished
— darkened lacquer removed, or the original finish gently refreshed if we agree to keep it
— losses toned in so repairs read as age, not as patches
— original handles repaired, or close matches sourced when they are gone
— shelves rebuilt to carry the real weight of stacked china
— collection and delivery, an agreed deadline and a photo report throughout
