Antique restoration Surrey, restoring Massey Ferguson tractors!

In a recent Post I referred to the extensive range of skills required of anyone undertaking quality antique restoration in Surrey.  The sheer range of items that need repairing and the array of problems that a restorer encounters means that he has to be a master of many trades or at least have a number of craftsmen within his workshop skilled in different areas of repair and restoration work.  That is what separates the ‘best from the rest’ – to coin a modern phrase! Certainly, at Snelling Associates, we have the capability to undertake most of the work that is brought into us for attention.  However, what we are less well known for is the restoration of Massey Ferguson tractors! Well, the truth is that this is something of a private passion as I have long admired (and worked with) Massey Ferguson tractors which have been the work horses of…

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Furniture repair and restoration in Surrey, specialist work

The complexity of furniture repair and restoration in Surrey (or elsewhere for that matter of fact!) is often underestimated.  In fact, people who work in the furniture repair and restoration industry are usually notable for their extraordinary skills.  This is because so many different talents are needed when restoring furniture – and particularly antique furniture. At Snelling Associates we receive a bewildering array of different items to restore or repair.  Indeed, it is not uncommon to have delivered to our workshops, during the average week, items that range from ornate antique mirrors and pine blanket boxes to 17th Century chairs, clock cases and walnut sideboards – with the occasional huge mahogany dining table thrown in, just to keep our French polishing skills ‘up to scratch’ (pun intended!) Well, of course, almost every item that we repair has a different problem, whether it is a broken lock, lifting or lost veneers,…

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Furniture repair Surrey, veneer repair and restoration

As I have said many times, there are certain furniture repairs that a reasonably skilled layman can do and there are other repairs that need real, time honoured skill, if they are to be completed satisfactorily.  French polishing is one of these together with veneer repair or restoration. Certainly, a considerable amount of our furniture repair work in Surrey involves veneer repair and restoration and rarely is it completely straightforward! There are several reasons why veneer repair and replacement is awkward and a task only for the skilled.  One reason is that veneers differ in thickness with old veneers generally thicker than new veneers.  This can present a furniture repairer with obvious problems particularly when he is tasked with matching in new veneers with old veneers. The second problem is that veneers are often laid onto their surface to create a pattern – most obviously a mirror effect between the…

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Furniture restoration in Surrey, pine furniture and boxes

Not all fine furniture has to be ‘brown’ (mahogany, oak, walnut etc.)! Indeed, pine furniture can look superb, particularly if it is aged and does not have the horrid (almost orange) lacquer common to much modern, mass manufactured pine furniture.  In fact, the antique restoration in Surrey that we undertake frequently involves pine furniture – which can be made to look fantastic! Of course, a lot of pine furniture has been painted (sometimes not very well) which completely hides the colour and texture of the wood.  This is sometimes a shame as, once stripped and properly restored, antique pine furniture can look magnificent.  Indeed, it is often the perfect type of furniture for flats and houses that lack a lot of natural light. Sadly, many people throw away perfectly good pine furniture because it is heavily painted and looks terrible!  This is a shame as the restoration of pine furniture…

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Furniture repair in Surrey, tables and chairs

Most of the furniture repair in Surrey that we undertake relates to tables and chairs.  This, of course, should come as no surprise as tables and chairs get constant use throughout their existence, irrespective of whether they are relatively new or genuine antiques. Repair of tables and chairs tends to centre on two distinct areas: construction problems and surfaces Construction problems are often where a table or chair has become unstable.  Over time glues can lose their adhesion and sometimes woodworm can eat into joints and the legs of tables and chairs.  The latter problem can be particularly awkward to resolve as new turnings frequently have to be made and fixed to the sound part of the table or chair concerned by using dowels and hidden screws.  This involves very skilful work – if the furniture repair, once completed, is to be invisible! Needless to say, the surfaces of tables…

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Furniture repair in Surrey, how much will it cost?

Of course, the concern of anyone who needs furniture repair in Surrey (or elsewhere!) is: how much will the work cost? Well, unfortunately, there is no easy answer to this question – as so much depends upon the objects needing repair and the extent of any damage.  Equally, antique restoration can sometimes be more expensive than a simple chair repair, for example, or the repair of an item that does not have delicate filigree or require the specialist turning of some ornate spindle. Certainly, no-one skilled in antique furniture restoration would ever be able to give a standard list of prices for his work.  Usually that can only be done by seeing an individual item, assessing the work required and then providing a  cost for the repair or restoration.  Certainly, there are few occasions when a skilled artisan cannot give a fixed price – but this really is reliant upon…

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Furniture repair in Surrey, French polishing

French polishing is an almost daily part of our furniture repair in Surrey and it is, of course, an essential skill for anyone involved in antique restoration in Surrey – or elsewhere! French polishing is a ‘dying’ art and a skill that is particularly difficult to master.  It became popular in the 19th Century together with mahogany furniture and was used extensively for a long time.  However, it is very labour intensive and requires extensive training to achieve a satisfactory finish.  This meant that French polishing became uneconomic as furniture making moved into the mass production age. Certainly, by the 1930s French polishing was being replaced by all the major furniture manufacturers by sprays and lacquers.  These were much quicker to apply, required less skill and, generally, were more robust. However, few people would deny that wood that has been sprayed or lacquered looks as beautiful as a piece that…

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Antique restoration in Surrey, it is all about patina!

One of the problems if you want antique restoration in Surrey is: who to use?  This is a vital question to ask yourself when you require restoration of an antique that has significant value – whether sentimental or monetary.  After all, the last thing you want is for your item to be repaired poorly or, almost as bad, unsympathetically. In fact, the repair and restoration of antiques is exceptionally challenging because the work involved goes well beyond ‘repair’ in the normal sense of the word.  Indeed, the actual ‘repair’ of an item can sometimes be the easy part of the work.  Much harder can be ensuring that the repair is invisible and that the orginal texture and patina of an item are recreated so that the value of the whole piece is preserved (both aestheically and monetarily). Of course, everyone knows about the importance of patina and the critical part it…

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