Preparation

When re-working furniture you want to start with a clean surface (wood or metal).  This might be easily accomplished by lightly sanding and then using a tack cloth to dust. . . or it might involve stripping the whole piece followed by sanding and necessary repairs.

It should be noted, that you do not have to strip a piece of furniture if you plan on painting it. Just be sure the surface is smooth and there are no oily or greasy spots. A basic cleaning and preparation plan for prerparing wooden furniture to be painted is:

1.  Wash with mild detergent (don’t soak the wood and allow to dry)
2. Rub down all surfaces with mineral spirits (or turpentine) if there is a waxy build-up
3. If the surface has already been painted or varnished – you’ll need to give it an overall sanding to rough up the surface so the paint will hold
4. Remove any metal hardware & clean before returning to the piece

Also, if there are any gouges in the wood that need filling – now is the time to use a good commercial wood filler making sure to follow the manufacturer’s directions.

Painting

Painting furniture can be accomplished using a brush or spray painting. In either case, you will want to use two coats of paint. If you are working with metal furniture to be used outside, once the piece has been sanded and re-painted - or decorated, you can use one or two coats of varnish to protect the surface from the weather.

Methods & Projects

There are many ways to use old furniture and furniture pieces.  You are limited only by imagination. We’ve listed a few methods and projects below to give you some ideas.

Methods:

• Use antique glaze to create an antique effect on any piece of furniture  (these can be purchased at your local hardware store or hobby center)
• Paint or stencil old wooden chairs with colorful designs, or cut out your favorite pictures and glue them on to the painted surface once it has completely dried; then cover with 1-2 coats of varnish
• Sponge glaze tables or chairs for a quick new look
• Tole painting is a good way to dress up sections of a table or chair. Use acrylic paints on a solid background and then paint over design with polyurethane
• Dress up the inside of a cupboard, cabinet or old trunk by lining the inside with fabric or colorful paper.

Projects:

• Use old splash boards or headboards for towel racks or attach some vintage coat hooks for hat rack you can hang on the wall, porch or deck.
• Use old sideboards for garden tables (be sure to weather and water-proof).  These can be painted or decoupaged with cut-outs, and then varnished.
• Convert old piano bench, trunk or linen press bottom into tables.
• Old iron beds and metal springs make great garden trellises – paint or leave natural
• Old porcelain cook stoves make great tables and plant stands
• Old trunks with flat tops make great tables are are  useful to hold and hide a multitude of objects.
• Birdbaths are good for holding potted plants or hanging baskets when you’re going out of town – just fill them up and set the plants into the water.

We all probably have bits and pieces of furniture around the house that could be transitioned into something other than what it is, and if you don’t, most often those bit and pieces can be had at garage sales, flea markets and estate sales for a minimal price.

• Furniture
• Glassware
• Clocks
• Copper & Brass
• Iron Toys
• Plates
• Porcelains
• Blue & White wares
• Figurines
• Dolls

Interestingly, some of those circa 1970 reproductions are still making the rounds out there. So what do you look for when shopping for an antique to tell if it is an original or reproduction. Obviously it depends on the item, but we’ll cover a few basic things to watch out for when shopping.

Furniture

The most common types of furniture reproduced were accent pieces like coat racks, fern stands (some with marble inserts), wooden easels, vitrine tables (tops opened for displaying items), corner what-not shelves, shaving stands, towel rails, china cabinets, small lamp tables, as well as some miniature pieces.

Samples of Furniture Reproduced c1977

What to look for:

1)  While a few pieces were oak colored or had a dark, almost black finish, most of these reproduced wooden items had the same evenly applied light walnut colored finish with a very thin coat of clear sealer – that did not wear well.

2)  Wood used was very light in weight without a visible grain that can be attributed to the quality woods of oak, pine and walnut. Know your wood grains! 

3)  Construction was often sloppy with the joints being glued (often over-glued) and/or the prominent use of Phillips head screws.

Tip: When looking for old furniture look for dove-tailing, flat-head screws, square head nails and good quality wood. Some of the very fine old furniture used good wood not only for the outside but for the insides of the drawers as well.

Cast Iron – Banks & Toys

Some of the more popular antique banks and toys were reproduced to look similar to their original counterpart. This is another situation when you need ‘to know your stuff’. The difference between an original and a reproduction can be something as minor as a 1/2″ difference in the length. Then other times, you’ll see that the paint job and construction of the reproduction has been poorly done. And too,  there are those that would try to pass off these replicas as old by burying them in the yard allowing them to rust and age.

Samples of Toys Reproduced c1977

 What to look for:

1)  Construction is the top thing to look for. Most old toys were very well made. You’ll not see any grind marks, seams will be tight and the mechanism will work well.

2)  Look for names and numbers, most authentic, good cast iron items will have some sort of mark.

3)  The use of Phillips head screws, bolts and other modern hardware used to hold the piece together is a sure sign of a reproduction.

Glassware

Glassware is probably one of the most difficult reproductions to determine.   Just because glass looks like an ‘old type of glass’ doesn’t mean it’s old. Some of the old types of antique glass reproduced were Cranberry, Mary Gregory, overlay glass with cut designs, Satin glass, hand-cut lead crystal, pattern glass, ‘gold encrusted’ art glass, and depression.

Samples of Glass Reproduced c1977

What to look for:

Aside from being familiar with the type of glass you plan to collect, look for mold marks, size and scuffs on the bottom of the piece. Remember – even if an old piece of glass was set on the shelf for 100 years, it would have been picked up and set back down to dust so you’ll see scuff, scratch marks on the bottom. If there are no marks at all – the piece may be new.

Porcelain

Many porcelain pieces were produced including hat pin holders, tea sets, cookie jars, cheese dishes, jewel boxes, hair receivers, figurines and bisque piano babies. Most of these are very pretty and well done. Some were even marked on the bottom to imply a well known manufacturer. So again, ‘know your stuff’.   Become familiar with actual marks and items produced.

Samples of Porcelain Reproduced c1977

What to look for:

1)  On items with metal banding or ormolu, look for aging or discoloration to the metal. If the metal is bright and clean, inspect the item closely.

2)   Check the marks on the bottom. Are they stamped on? Under the glaze? Are all the words spelled correctly? Some actual names were misspelled intentionally so as to appear similar to the real thing.

3)  If the item is ‘hand painted’, use a magnifying glass to look for brush strokes. If the decoration is composed of tiny dots, it is a transfer.

These are just a few tips to help you while you’re out there antique shopping. There’s nothing wrong with buying a replica IF you know that’s what you’re buying and you don’t mind . . . and the price is right.