Furniture Refinishing Benefits

Should you put the dresser with the water rings and sun damage out at the curb, or attempt to refinish it?  Should you throw out that creaky antique chair or find a good furniture restoration service to repair and refinish it?  Here are some of the benefits of refinishing your furniture or hiring the best professional furniture restoration company in your area to do the job:

• New Chapter – Refinishing your furniture gives it a new chapter! Instead of dumping a piece of furniture just because it no longer looks brand new, find a great furniture refinishing shop in your area and let the technicians repair it and give it a new coat of stain or new upholstery.  You’ll fall in love with it all over again and it will have a “new life” in your home.
• No Landfill – When you choose to restore your favorite furniture instead of discarding it, that’s one less thing being dumped in the ever-expanding landfills. The best professional antique restoration companies can refinish your furniture and breathe new life into it again.
• Customize – One of the best things about hiring good professional furniture refinishing companies is that they can provide a customized look for your furniture. If you have a particular color of paint, or tone of stain, or pattern of fabric you’ve been dreaming of for your furniture, good furniture refinishers can make it happen.

If you choose to refinish your broken, faded, or worn furniture, the option that yields the best results is to find the best antique restoration service or the best furniture refinishing service in your area and trust the work to the trained craftsmen.  Jax Furniture Refinishing and Upholstering is the best furniture restoration service Jacksonville homeowners trust with their furniture.  Our craftsmen are trained and experienced and ready to take on your furniture restoration project, whether you are up in Riverside, San Marco, or downtown Jacksonville, or over at Neptune Beach or Atlantic Beach, or down in Mandarin or Sawgrass. Give us a call and we’ll take care of your furniture refinishing needs!

Protecting Wood Furniture

You love your wood dining table and chairs, the custom wood end tables you recently purchased, and the antique wood secretary desk that’s been in your family for ages.  When you care for your wood furniture the right way, it will stay in great shape for years to come, but how do you do that?  These 5 tips will help you care for fine wood furniture:

• Dusting – Regular dusting is one of the best and easiest ways to protect and preserve wood furniture. Just use a clean dry cloth and thoroughly wipe around each corner, leg, drawer, and crevice in your wood antique furniture.  Don’t wait until there’s a layer of dust on it; dust particles have jagged edges that can damage your wood furniture, so make a habit of routinely dusting your favorite wood furniture pieces before dust is even visible.
• Cleaners – We recommend using only a clean dry cloth to clean your wood furniture, but if you choose to use a cleaning product on your wood furniture, be highly selective and careful. Avoid harsh cleaners, including ammonia, bleach, and other cleaning solutions that could strip your wood furniture of its finishes and weaken it.  Avoid water, which could cause wood drawers, doors, or surfaces to warp.  If you choose to use a wood cleaning oil or furniture polish, vigilantly check the manufacturer’s label to be sure it is safe to use on your wood furniture.  If you believe your dresser, chest, dining room set, bench or other wood furniture needs to be cleaned, rather than use cleaning solutions, just hire a good professional wood refinishing service to restore your wood furniture!
• Protective Layer – Don’t set hot dishes on a wood table without a trivet or hot pad, utilize drink coasters, keep cotton or linen tablecloths on dining room tables, and otherwise protect the surfaces of your wood furniture. When water rings, dents, stains, and fading do occur on your wood furniture, find the best professional wood refinishing service in your area and trust the refinishers with your furniture.
• Environment – Help protect your favorite wood furniture by ensuring the environment is not too humid and not too dry, either of which could cause damage to fine furniture. Do not position your wood furniture near sources of moisture, heat, intense sunlight, or other such conditions that could pose damage to high quality wood furniture.
• Professional Refinishing – Restoring wood furniture is complicated, so when the time comes to repair your wood bookcase or armoire, or to restore your favorite vintage wood furniture, skip the DIY and instead rely on the expertise of good professional furniture refinishers in your area. Your heirloom furniture deserves high quality refinishing and care!

The best professional furniture refinishers know how to repair, protect, and preserve wood furniture with expertise, experience, and a keen eye for detail.  Jax Furniture Refinishing and Upholstering is the best furniture refinishing company Jacksonville FL residents have relied on for many years.  Our highly skilled craftsmen and our passion for restoring wood furniture make us the trusted antique restoration service in Jacksonville, Mandarin, Riverside, Nocatee, and Ponte Vedra, and the right choice for your furniture project too!

Antique Furniture Trends

Most of us have acquired a few pieces of antique furniture over the years, whether by inheriting it from a relative, scoring it at resale shop, or other.  Does your favorite antique furniture work well with current design trends?  Here are the most popular styles of antique furniture right now:

1. MCM – The midcentury modern style, commonly shortened to MCM, continues to be one of the most popular revivals and trends in interior design and furniture design right now. This period, which spanned from approximately the mid-1940s to the mid-1960s was earmarked by warm wood such as Danish teak, and bold fabric colors.
2. Shaker & Colonial – The “Transitional Style” similarly continues to be popular in interior design. In this style, Shaker furniture, colonial furniture, and other antique styles are merged with contemporary design elements to create a welcoming and comfortable aesthetic.
3. Craftsman – The Craftsman style seems timeless, and with good reason; with a focus on quality craftsmanship and quality materials, furniture from this era remains highly valued and appreciated, and often able to be incorporated into numerous types of interior design.

Your favorite antique furniture deserves to be incorporated into your home and enjoyed.  If it’s in need of a high-quality custom refinishing job, reupholstering, or repairs, the first step is to find the best furniture restoration shop in your area and let skilled professional furniture refinishers spruce it up.  It’s easy to make your antique chest, dining table set, console, or chairs look great in your home by trusting good professional furniture refinishers to handle any restoration that may be needed.

Jax Furniture Refinishing & Upholstering is the best custom furniture restoration service Jacksonville FL homeowners have trusted for years.  We’ve restored innumerable antiques back to their original beauty and overseen countless custom upholstery jobs for customers throughout Mandarin, Ponte Vedra Beach, Atlantic Beach, and throughout Jacksonville.  Give us a call and see why we’re the trusted furniture refinishing company and the right choice for your furniture restoration project!

Choosing the Best Upholstery Service

Your furniture is an investment, so when the time comes for repairs or reupholstering, how do you find the best company to do the work?  Our tips can help!

• Experience – When looking for a good furniture upholstery service to take care of your favorite chair or beloved sectional, find a service company with experience. Specifically, find a high-quality furniture restoration service that has been in business for years, with craftsmen who have honed their skills over many
• Craftsmen – Great furniture refinishing companies rely on great craftsmen to lend their expertise and skills to get the work done! As you zero in on the right upholstery shop for your furniture repair or recovering project, ask after the upholsterers and craftsmen who will handle the work.  Are they skilled and experienced in working with many types of fabric and with all types of furniture?
• Craftsmanship – Be sure your furniture refinishing service provides the highest quality work and craftsmanship. Read the customer reviews.  Ask for references, if desired.  Make sure you have found a furniture refinishing service that takes pride in a job well done, and has a passion for working with fine furniture, doing quality work, and working with the customer to be sure the desired outcomes are achieved!

Northeast Florida is home to many good furniture repair shops, but Jax Furniture Refinishing & Upholstering is the best furniture upholstery service Jacksonville FL homeowners have trusted for years.  We’re passionate about furniture – contemporary or antique, teak or oak, silk or brocade, painted or stained, and everything in between.  We’ve worked with customers throughout Jacksonville, Riverside, Atlantic Beach, Ponte Vedra Beach, and all across the region, and we’d love to take on your furniture refinishing or reupholstering project.  Let’s get started today!

3 Tips for Enjoying Your Patio

Warm weather is here, and it’s the perfect time to gather friends and family and enjoy your outdoor spaces.  The first step in enjoying the warm Florida weather is to examine your patio furniture or outdoor furniture to make sure it’s ready for your family and for guests.  Here are pro tips for getting your patio furniture ready to enjoy!

1. Make Repairs – Check your outdoor dining table, chairs, ottomans, and other deck furniture for anything that needs to be fixed. Rusted metal, moldy plastic, broken wicker, and wobbly chair legs are all nuisances, and beyond that, can be dangerous for anyone who uses them.  Find a highly rated furniture repair service to restore your outdoor furniture so that you can enjoy it again.
2. Inspect Upholstery – Carefully inspect your outdoor upholstery to be sure there is no mold or mildew. If there is, tackle it!  You can use a mixture of warm water and dish detergent and remove most mold, mildew, and insect infestations with a soft scrub brush.  If a stronger cleaning solution is needed, remember to always check the upholstery label to find out what types of cleaners are safe to use on your outdoor upholstery.  Or, you might choose to start fresh!  Find the best furniture upholstery service in your area and trust the professional furniture refinishers to reupholster your outdoor cushions in a bold new pattern or color!
3. Add “Flavor” – Once you’ve taken care of any repairs and reupholstering that need to be handled, add a little “flavor” to your outdoor space. And adding flavor doesn’t have to refer to cocktail hour or grilling out!  We suggest incorporating something new for the season.  You might find a few new upholstered pillows in a bold fabric, or add a large umbrella to the layout.  Maybe you’ll incorporate a beautiful outdoor rug, or just add something as simple as bright new flowers in the landscaping.  Whatever “flavor” you add, have fun, bring in colors and textures you love, and create a space where you can relax and enjoy your family and friends.

Here in beautiful Jacksonville, it’s always patio time.  With a little help from high quality furniture refinishers, your deck furniture will be in great shape, always ready to be enjoyed.  Jax Furniture Refinishing & Upholstering is the best furniture restoration company Jacksonville FL homeowners have relied on for years!  Our expert craftsmen can handle any repair, restoration, and reupholstery project you need for your patio furniture and more.  We’re the trusted furniture refinishing service for discerning customers in Ponte Vedra, Mandarin, Riverside, San Marco, and throughout Jacksonville, and we’re here for your furniture restoration needs as well!

Refinishing Supplies You Need

Good quality wood furniture will last for generations with the right care and can make great furniture refinishing projects.  If you’re thinking about refinishing your favorite wood furniture but aren’t sure where to start, we can help!

Here’s a list of the wood furniture refinishing supplies you need to have on hand when you want to refinish your wood coffee table, dining room table, chest, or bookcase.

1. Space – Working space may not qualify as a supply, but you definitely need adequate work space for any wood furniture refinishing project.
2. Dropcloth – Spread a sizeable drop cloth over your work area. A drop cloth is great to set your supplies on to protect your flooring, and also helps contain all dust, sawdust, and other mess that may be generated during your furniture restoration project, making cleanup that much easier.
3. Sanding Materials – Depending on the type of DIY wood furniture refinishing project you’re embarking on you may need sandpaper in various levels of grit, a power sander and sanding discs, or all of the above.
4. Tack Cloth – Nothing beats tack cloth or a soft, clean towel when it comes to cleaning your furniture. Whether you’re removing longterm dust before applying a varnish, or removing the sawdust from recent sanding, you’ll need several clean towels or tack cloths on hand.
5. Screwdriver – Keep various screwdrivers on hand to remove drawer pulls, knobs, or other hardware.
6. Topcoats and Applicators – Have an ample supply of your chosen lacquer, varnish, or stain on hand, as well as the requisite applicators: brushes of varying sizes, cloths, etc.
7. Protective Gear – Wood furniture refinishing seems like an innocuous task, but in reality, you’ll generate dust and sawdust and handle sharp tools, and potentially heavy or damaged wood pieces. Protect yourself with – at a minimum – protective eyewear and a dust mask.  You may choose to wear work gloves and additional protective gear too.

Restoring and refinishing the wood furniture in your home will allow you to continue enjoying it for years to come!  Many people enjoy working in the garage on a DIY project refinishing their wood furniture, but more and more homeowners throughout Riverside, Mandarin, Ortega, Nocatee, and Ponte Vedra are hiring good local wood restoration companies to do the work.  Jax Furniture Refinishing & Upholstering is the best wood refinishing service Jacksonville FL residents rely on, and we’d love to take care of your wood furniture refinishing project too!

Tips for Buying Antique Furniture

Antique furniture can be a highly worthwhile investment.  You may already have several pieces of fine furniture that have been in the family for ages, but when you want to buy a piece of antique furniture for you home, what do you look for?  Our tips can help you recognize high quality antique furniture to buy.

1. Check the construction. Examine the joints of every antique chair, table, or other handmade piece.  When considering a chest, dresser, or antique desk, pull out the drawers and examine how the piece was constructed.  For example, dovetail joinery typically indicates high quality, well-made furniture that will be worth your investment.
2. Look for labels. Look over the antique furniture you are considering and check for labels, stamps, or signatures that can help shine light on the history and quality of the item.  Vintage handmade furniture is occasionally stamped with the name of the city it was made in, or the year of construction, both of which can increase the value of the furniture in certain cases.
3. Assess damage. Check the antique furniture for damage and determine whether repairs will be possible, and if so, whether they could be costly and worthwhile to you.  For example, if you particularly love the upholstery on a particular antique sofa or chaise but notice a tear in the fabric, this may be able to be mended.  Extensive fading, however, cannot be mended, and you’ll need to hire a high quality furniture upholstery service and plan to have the item reupholstered.  Scratches, water marks, finish wear, dents and dings, caning damage, and many other issues can generally be repaired by a good professional furniture restoration service, so don’t be deterred if the antique furniture you want has sustained damage.  Just assess the damage in order to plan for the appropriate repair.
4. Plan the location. Have a plan for where you’ll incorporate the antique rocker, chest, trunk, or other item in your home.  Avoid the temptation to acquire more and more antique furniture without ample space to arrange it.  High quality handmade antique furniture pieces are treasures of history that deserve to be refinished or repaired by professional antique refinishing companies and then arranged in your home with care and consideration.
5. Find a good professional antique restoration company. We strongly advise that when planning to purchase antique furniture, you locate a professional furniture restoration shop in your area.  Each piece of antique furniture has its own story but also almost always comes with a few scratches, tears, dents, or missing hardware that will need to be mended and restored with great care by highly rated professional furniture refinishers.

When you acquire antique furniture, you’re sharing in its history.  Good local furniture restorers will help you enjoy your antique dresser, table, hutch, or other item by helping to keep it in good shape.  There are many good local furniture repair shops, but Jax Furniture Refinishing & Upholstering is the best furniture restoration service Jacksonville FL homeowners rely on for their heirloom furniture and favorite antique furniture.  We’ve provided truly outstanding service to the Jacksonville area, including Riverside Avondale, San Marco, Ortega, Southside, and along the Beaches, and we’d love to provide our services to you too.

Protecting Outdoor Furniture

One of the most exciting parts about living in Northeast Florida is that we get to experience every type of weather!  We certainly enjoy the warm and wet springtime, the hot and sunny summer and fall, and we even get chilly weather in the winter.  What this means for your outdoor patio furniture is that you need to take care of it in order to protect it during all types of weather.

Many of our customers in Ponte Vedra Beach, Atlantic Beach, Southside, and Riverside ask us how to take care of outdoor furniture and protect it from extreme weather, so here are our tips:

1. Store unused furniture in the off-season. If you know you won’t be using your outdoor furniture during the winter months, or if you’re away on a long vacation, it’s best to store it out of the elements, such as in a seldom used sunroom or the garage.
2. Clean and check the furniture before storing it. Before you wrap or pack away outdoor furniture, be sure to properly clean it. If you don’t wipe away insect nests before putting the furniture into storage, the insects will just move right on in with the furniture.  And if you don’t clean away built up grime or mildew from your outdoor furniture, it will sit on the furniture in storage and continue to do damage.  Be sure to also dry your patio furniture thoroughly after you clean it; you don’t want moisture trapped on the furniture if you wrap it or put a covering over it.  Also take the opportunity to examine your outdoor furniture as you clean it and prepare to pack it away.  If you find broken or damaged pieces, discard them, fix them, or make arrangements to have them professionally remedied by a good furniture repair service prior to putting them in storage, otherwise you might forget about the damage and cause an accident when the furniture gets put back into use.
3. Hire professional furniture refinishers. Good professional furniture restoration companies are important to have on hand to help care for your patio dining table, deck chairs, and other outdoor furniture.  If you find that outdoor furniture is damaged, you’ll need to hire professional furniture repair technicians to fix and restore the furniture.  After furniture has been in storage, it often needs attention from highly rated professional furniture refinishers who can apply fresh coats of stain or brand-new upholstery.

To keep up with the weather in Jacksonville and make sure your outdoor furniture stays in tip top shape, call on Jax Furniture Refinishing & Upholstering.  We’re the best furniture refinishing company Jacksonville FL homeowners trust with their favorite furniture, and we’d love the opportunity to provide outstanding service for your favorite furniture as well, from sectionals, overstuffed chairs, upholstered ottomans, and easy chairs, to dining room tables, headboards, and antique chests!

Wood Furniture Restoration Tips

Refinishing your wood furniture successfully requires planning!  When your favorite wood chest, dresser, or dining room table needs a repair or fresh coat of stain, the right planning and preparation can make all the difference in ensuring the project succeeds.

Here are wood furniture refinishing tips you probably haven’t heard yet:

1. Double Time – Estimate the amount of time you’ll need to refinish your wood furniture, and then double the amount. This will help you account for the unplanned trips to the hardware store and other time required by issues that can crop up during wood furniture restoration projects.
2. Adequate Space – You’ll need ample space to spread out while you work. Plan to set up shop in the garage or take over some other room for the length of the project.
3. Clean Workspace – Keep your work area as clean as possible for the duration of the project. Any dust or wood shavings can make their way onto your freshly applied stain or varnish, and you’ll need to backtrack to fix the issue.
4. Lots of Light – Professional wood furniture refinishers recommend looking at the furniture in full, natural light while working, in order to see that the surface is getting evenly sanded or coated, and to see drips or skipped areas so you can fix them as you go.
5. Quality Coatings – Resist the urge to save a few dollars by buying the cheaper stain or lacquer. In wood furniture restoration projects, high quality products deliver high quality results.
6. Test Areas – Always test your stain or varnish in an inconspicuous area of the furniture to see how it looks before applying it everywhere.
7. Product Prep – Prepare the paint, stain, or other finish to be applied by stirring the liquid rather than shaking.

Restoring your wood furniture takes planning, time, money, and patience, but it’s usually worth it!  If you don’t want to spare the persona time, or if you don’t feel you have the space or patience, call on a good professional furniture restoration service in your area and trust the work to the professionals.

Jax Furniture Refinishing and Upholstering is the professional wood furniture refinisher Jacksonville FL homeowners trust with their heirlooms and favorite furniture.  We’ve served Mandarin, Riverside, Ortega, and downtown Jacksonville customers for many years, providing high quality dining room table refinishing, reupholstery services, furniture repairs, custom furniture restoration, and more, and we’d be honored to be the best furniture refinisher for your favorite furniture too!

Sun-Damaged Furniture

Fine furniture is susceptible to fading, whether from age, sunlight, or both.  In northeast Florida, we’re known for sunny weather almost all year, meaning if you live in Riverside, Atlantic Beach, Ponte Vedra, or elsewhere in the Jacksonville area, your furniture could be exposed to more frequent and more direct sunlight than in other parts of the region.

Use these tips from our professional furniture refinishers to address fading and sun damage in your furniture!

• Appearance – Fading and damage from sunlight can create an interesting appearance, causing a weathered or antique look. (Some antique collectors like this, but you should be aware that intense sunlight can also cause the furniture to become weak or brittle.)  Sun fading can also cause unevenness and an unkempt appearance.  If you don’t like the appearance of your faded furniture, find the best furniture restoration service in your area and schedule an appointment to have your furniture repaired, re-stained, reupholstered, or otherwise restored!
• Restoration – Depending on how much free time and resources you have at your disposal, a DIY furniture restoration job can be enjoyable. You’ll need a clean workstation, adequate space, stripping and sanding materials, protective gear, and then of course the best stain or paint for your furniture.  For most folks, when it comes to restoring furniture that has been faded, the best option is to hire high quality furniture refinishers to restore the furniture.
• Arrangement – The best way to prevent fading in your furniture is to arrange the chair, end table, dresser, or other item out of direct sunlight.
• Check-ups – Even when you have your furniture arranged in a way that protects it from direct sunlight, be sure to occasionally check the furniture from all angles to be sure no fading is occurring. You can do this during routine cleaning of your furniture.

Caring for high quality furniture is important if you want it to stay in great shape.  This entails routinely wiping away dust and debris that builds up, keeping it out of the path of sun and UV rays, preventing water marks and other dents and dings, and then scheduling professional furniture restoration when fading, water marks, dents and dings do appear.  Jax Furniture Refinishing and Upholstering is the best professional furniture refinishing company Jacksonville FL homeowners rely on for their fine furniture, and we’re here to provide outstanding service and craftsmanship for you too!