Taking care of a furniture piece is as difficult as choosing the perfect furniture for your home decor design. Irrespective of the type of furniture you buy, signs of wear and tear will start showing on the furniture gradually and will diminish its appeal. It will come to you as a shock if you have such an experience with an expensive furniture piece. However, you should not worry as there are ways you can take care of such situations. Mentioned below are a few things you need to know for maintaining your wooden furniture:
1 ) Wipe the furniture with a piece of cloth
You do not want dirty furniture in your simple home design. One of the best and easiest ways to clean and maintain your furniture is by wiping it with a piece of cloth dipped in a mixture of warm water and a mild dish soap. There is a misconception that wiping with water will harm your furniture. This is not true. However, you should never soak the furniture with water. In case you are not being able to reach a few hard-to-reach corners, use a toothbrush. First, wipe the dirt off with a wet piece of cloth or paper towels and then dry off any residual moisture with another dry piece of cloth.
2 ) Use soft paste wax for the finish
Any furniture piece with a poor finish will diminish the appeal of your simple home design. Once you are done cleaning the furniture piece, the next thing you should consider is taking care of the finish. You can do so with the help of any soft paste wax. Read the directions shared by the manufacturer and apply the wax to the finish. In most cases, you just have to wait five minutes and then buff lightly using a piece of cloth or shoe brush. After 30 minutes to one hour, buff or brush the surface again and see its beautiful shine come back.
3 ) Do not expose to direct sunlight
People often leave their furniture on the deck or balcony. This can be very dangerous for the furniture piece if it stays exposed to direct sunlight during the entire day. You should always keep your furniture pieces away from direct sunlight to ensure that they last long. In a hot country like India, the temperature can go above the water boiling point during summers. Exposing the furniture piece for a long period of time can ruin its finish, colour, and overall appeal. It can start showing cracks and easily break. Always try to keep furniture away from direct sunlight.
4 ) Use a humidifier in dry months
In your home decor, always position your furniture pieces away from heating units and vents. Exposing them to dry heat for too long will cause the wood to shrink. Experts suggest using a humidifier during the dry months so that the moisture level is maintained.
5 ) Shoe polish is great for quick fixes
Scratches and chips can happen at any time. They can diminish the overall appeal of a furniture piece. You can use shoe polish for a quick-fix touch-up. Applying shoe polish helps in concealing the cracks and chips more effectively and bringing back the shine of your furniture piece. Use a matching-felt-tip marker first to hide them even better.
6 ) Detach metal hardware from the furniture before polishing
Over time, metal hardware used in the furniture piece starts showing signs of wear and tear. It will diminish the overall home decor design. Hence, polishing is required to bring back its original look. A common mistake that many people do while polishing is starting the process without detaching the metal hardware. You should avoid this at all times. First, take the metal hardware off the furniture and then polish and shine it. Once polishing is done, you can put it back on without scratching the furniture piece.
7 ) You cannot nourish or enrich your furniture
You cannot nourish or enrich the wood of your furniture. This is because while making the furniture piece, manufacturers apply a layer of a protective finish over the wood. So, irrespective of whether you use any oil or polish, it cannot penetrate the protective layer.
