GURKHA TABLE RESTORATION COMPLETED
Of course, at Snelling Associates, we specialise in antique restoration in Surrey but that should never put you off bringing your beloved objects or furniture to us for repair or restoration. In fact, some of our most enjoyable and rewarding work has been returning someone’s possessions to their previous glory – despite the items concerned not being technically antique.
In truth, I have always been a little disparaging about the word ‘antique’ when referring to furniture and objects over 100 years old. This has always seemed rather arbitrary to me and ever more so as the years have rolled past and items that would have been dismissed when I was young now having come well within the over 100 year ‘antique’ classification. As I am only 20 years off a centenary myself, you can see my point – which is that age does not always define quality!
Actually, what has always counted for me is the quality of the workmanship of furniture and objets d’art rather than their age. Indeed, some contemporary items are of the highest quality and some ‘antique’ furniture and objets d’art nothing less than dreadful (both in terms of design and build quality!).
Frankly, just because something is old does not mean that it is ‘good’, let alone worthy of being called an antique, with all that word’s connotations of ‘lost’ but (supposedly) brilliant ‘olde worlde’ standards of craftsmanship. In fact, like any experienced restorer I have seen a great many ‘antiques’ that were cheaply made at the time, are of poor construction and that were never meant to be anything more than basic utility items with a short intended life span.
My point, of course, is that our furniture repair and restoration in Surrey encompasses a wide range of items from modern through to very old. However, for us as restorers of furniture and objets d’ art, the key thing is the inherent quality of the pieces brought to us.
Certainly, there is nothing more difficult or frustrating than the repair and restoration of furniture in Surrey where the original quality of the piece was poor. This can make our work almost impossible, as we strive to make a ‘silk purse from a sow’s ear’, whilst using skills that the piece concerned really does not technically justify!
However, I understand the sentimental value that items can have for everyone. I am no exception to this and have items of my own that have no real value beyond certain memories, perhaps of the person who gave them to me or maybe of a particular time. Like anyone else, I should be devastated if they were damaged and would immediately restore them!
So, if you look at Snelling Associates and think that we only deal in antique restoration in Surrey then do not be put off should you have something that needs repair that is not an antique. More than likely we can restore it to its previous condition and rare would it be for us to turn a quality item away – just because it was not more than 100 years old!
Peter Snelling