Oak Furniture Care
Oak Furniture
First of all, let's state the good news about oak furniture: this is furniture that is renowned for its durability, which is why there are so many examples of oak furniture pieces being handed down from one generation to the next, while looking barely any worse than the day they were first purchased. Indeed, it is this durability - combined with the natural beauty of oak furniture - that has built the reputation of this furniture type as a wise investment.
All of that is not to suggest, however, that such oak furniture as our own Avignon Solid Oak does not require some real loving care and attention from time to time... and there are certain key steps that you can take to ensure that your own oak furniture pieces always look good. One particular thing to bear in mind is that each oak furniture piece has a natural source of tannin, which means that stains can occur in the areas surrounding the furniture - although this almost always occurs with outdoor rather than indoor oak furniture.
Basic maintenance tips
If you have purchased untreated oak furniture, then you shouldn't normally have to do much more than wipe it down with a damp cloth every now and then, although it is basic teak oil, and not water, with which the cloth should be dampened. In the event that you are unable to find teak oil, Danish oil is a very good alternative. As a matter of fact, the "live" nature of oak furniture should make it fairly resistant to damage, although it's also true that this type of furniture can be quite vulnerable in the event of, for example, spillages that are not promptly cleaned up.
If you do find mild moisture marks left behind on your oak furniture as a result of something such as a glass of water, then you may wish to massage butter into the marks and leave it overnight, before waking up the following morning to wipe it clean and give it a final polish. Alternatively, the water marks or stains may be refusing to budge, in which case, swapping the butter or margarine for a paste consisting of a mix of olive oil and cigarette ashes could be a great help.
Repairing oak furniture
Over time, you may find that your oak furniture is gaining scratches and dents, and if you are to undertake any repair work on this kind of damage yourself, you are going to have to be exceedingly careful to avoid a terrible result. It's possible, for example, for you to soak a few water droplets into the dent or scratch before placing a clean cloth over the affected area and using a warm iron to gently iron it, although you could also burn your table in the process.
Oak furniture waxing
All of these are more 'ad hoc' oak furniture maintenance tips, however... and they bring us nicely onto the subject of something that you will need to do to your furniture every few months, particularly in the first few years of ownership: waxing. By using a clean cloth to apply wax in the same direction as the grain, before buffing with the grain to remove the wax, you can be assured of your oak furniture - whether it is from our Rustic Oak or Vermont Oak range or for that matter, something entirely different - looking great for a long time to come.
