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The most important thing to remember about any piece you have purchased is to enjoy
it, use it and do not worry too much about damage. Most furniture will be damaged
at some point in its long life, and it is nearly always repairable, so relax and
use your furniture.
EXERCISE COMMON SENSE, we cannot tell you all situations to avoid or what affect
something may have on a piece. The information below, while helpful, is in no way
purporting to be expert advice, just our suggestions based on our experience.
When in doubt, call us and we will try to help and offer advice in any way we
know how.
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TEAK, OAK, WALNUT, PINE and BEECH PIECES WITH OIL OR WAX FINISHES
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General Guidelines
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Teak, oak and walnut are very durable, versatile woods, but there's a few things you should be careful
of that can definitely cause temporary or even permanent damage.
USE COASTERS. Do not leave anything wet on an oil finished surface (or really
on any wood surface) as this will leave a mark which could be permanent and not
removable. If something is spilled on the piece, wipe it as quickly as you can until
completely dry.
examples of things not to leave on teak:
wet glasses
plants in pots that can leak or overflow
spilled water/liquids
cold bottles of any liquid that will get condensation due to heat
please be careful using any material that could soak up the oil or wax finish such as
leather, suede, felt and other similar materials
USE HOT PADS. Do not put any hot pans/pots/other cookware on the table
directly. Just as with moisture, this can cause permanent damage.
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General Care Instructions For All Oil Finishes (Teak)
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Purpose: oil finished pieces need to be re-oiled to replenish drying wood, which
improves the look of the piece.
Frequency: as often as you like, but typically every few months. You will not hurt
the piece by doing it more or less often.
Supplies necessary: Watco Teak Oil (not Danish Oil), 0000 Steel wool (finest steel
wool), good cloth or paper towel.
1. Apply the teak oil with the steel wool. To do this pour some of the oil onto
the piece and lightly spread with the steel wool. Do not rub too hard, nor try to
force the oil into the wood, it should be applied in a smooth motion WITH the grain
to avoid any scratching.
2. Leave the oil on the piece for approximately 5 to 10 minutes. DO NOT DO THIS
IN THE SUN. The oil should not get tacky to the touch, if it does you will have
to clean it off with paint thinner or similar and start the process again.
3. Completely wipe the piece down so there is no oil to the touch at all. Afterwards
you may see some spotting or sweating which is the oil coming out of the wood, simply
wipe it down again to get rid of it.
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What to do if you get a water mark or burn mark
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if you do end up with water marks, small scratches/other marks or burn marks, you
can do the following.
1. Try using a small amount of teak oil on a cloth at first to rub into the
area where the mark is. Typically this will take care of most minor issues. If not,
you can use the steel wool, in the manner described above. .
2. If this still doesn't work, you can try using a small amount of naptha or
paint thinner in the affected area (FOR WATER MARKS AND BURN MARKS ONLY, using a
cloth at first and steel wool if that doesn't work. THIS WILL TYPICALLY GIVE YOU
A DRY AREA WHERE THE WOOD LOOKS LIGHTER IN COLOR THAN THE REST OF THE PIECE, BECAUSE
YOU'VE EFFECTIVELY DRIED THE NATURAL OILS UP WITH THE PAINT THINNER OR NAPTHA. YOU
WILL THEN NEED TO DO THE OIL FINISH AS DESCRIBED ABOVE TO RESTORE NATURAL OILS TO
THE WOOD AND TYPICALLY, ALTHOUGH NOT ALWAYS, THE MATCHING COLOR.
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General Care Instructions For All Wax Finishes (Oak, Pine, Beech, other)
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Purpose: wax finished pieces need to be re-waxed to replenish drying wood, which
improves the look of the piece.
Frequency: as often as you like, but typically every few months. You will not hurt
the piece by doing it more or less often.
Supplies necessary: Howards Feed-N-Wax, 0000 Steel wool (finest steel
wool), good cloth or paper towel.
1. Apply the wax with the steel wool. To do this squeeze some of the wax from the bottle onto
the piece and lightly spread with the steel wool. Do not rub too hard, nor try to
force the wax into the wood, it should be applied in a smooth motion WITH the grain
to avoid any scratching.
2. Leave the wax on the piece for approximately 5 to 10 minutes. DO NOT DO THIS
IN THE SUN as it can dry out the wax which you don't want.
3. Completely wipe the piece down so there is no wax to the touch at all. Afterwards
you may see some spotting or sweating which is the wax coming out of the wood, simply
wipe it down again to get rid of it.
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What to do if you get a water mark or burn mark
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if you do end up with water marks, small scratches/other marks or burn marks, you
can do the following.
1. Try using a small amount of wax on a cloth at first to rub into the
area where the mark is. Typically this will take care of most minor issues. If not,
you can use the steel wool, in the manner described above. .
2. If this still doesn't work, you can try using a small amount of naptha or
paint thinner in the affected area (FOR WATER MARKS AND BURN MARKS ONLY, using a
cloth at first and steel wool if that doesn't work. THIS WILL TYPICALLY GIVE YOU
A DRY AREA WHERE THE WOOD LOOKS LIGHTER IN COLOR THAN THE REST OF THE PIECE, BECAUSE
YOU'VE EFFECTIVELY DRIED THE NATURAL OILS UP WITH THE PAINT THINNER OR NAPTHA. YOU
WILL THEN NEED TO DO THE OIL FINISH AS DESCRIBED ABOVE TO RESTORE NATURAL OILS TO
THE WOOD AND TYPICALLY, ALTHOUGH NOT ALWAYS, THE MATCHING COLOR.
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PIECES WITH LACQUER FINISHES (typically ROSEWOOD/MAHOGANY/WALNUT/OAK/BEECH/TOLA WOOD)
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General Guidelines
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Lacquered pieces of most wood types are also very durable, yet there's a few things you should be careful of, just like teak, that can definitely cause temporary or even permanent damage.
1. USE COASTERS. Do not leave anything wet on a lacquered wood surface (or really
on any wood surface) as this will leave a mark which could be permanent and not
removable. If something is spilled on the piece, wipe it as quickly as you can until
completely dry.
examples of things not to leave on lacquered pieces:
wet glasses
plants
spilled water/liquids
cold bottles of any liquid that will get condensation due to heat
2. USE HOT PADS. Do not put any hot pans/pots/other cookware on the table directly.
Just as with moisture, this can cause permanent damage.
3. DO NOT PUT SHARP METAL OBJECTS DIRECTLY ON THE WOOD. Along with this, be
careful of anything that could essentially scratch the finish such as stone, sharp
plastics, keys, purses dragged across the surface, etc. All of these things will
very likely scratch the lacquer finish, although not deeply and will not damage
the wood typically, it will show cosmetically.
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General Care Instructions
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Purpose: Lacquered pieces are fairly resiliant, but do scratch, and sometimes show
cloudy areas. Our lacquers are, by California law, water based, thus can be more susceptible
Frequency: as often as you like, but typically every few months. You will not hurt
the piece by doing it more or less often.
Supplies necessary: Wax Free Pledge and a good soft cloth.
1. Apply the pledge as directed on the can, in a smooth motion WITH the grain
to avoid any scratching.
2. Gently wipe it off with a dry cloth until you have ve wiped it clear and
it has a polished appearance.
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What to do if you get a water mark or burn mark
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When a lacquered piece is damaged by either water or heat, you typically need to
have the piece professionaly refinished. Once damaged, lacquer is not easy to repair.
Cosmetic scratches that do not disappear with the application of Pledge can be removed
many times with a professional polish, but we advise to have a refinisher do this
rather than you attempt at home.
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UPHOLSTERED PIECES - FABRIC
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General Guidelines
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Nearly all of our seating has been reuphosltered and has new foam and new webbing
or support in it. We purchase our fabrics from a source that typically does not
have fabric content information, so it is very difficult for us to tell you how
to care for each fabric type. We are not professional fabric cleaners, and have
faced the challenge of cleaning our own fabrics that have become dirty in our warheouse
and showroom and it can be challenging to get stains out. We do not have any solid
advice on cleaning, but we do suggest a few general rules to follow.
1. FOR LIGHTER COLORED FABRICS, SCOTCH GUARD. We suggest to Scotch Guard fabrics
to protect them, although WE HAVE NEVER DONE THIS PROCESS OURSELVES SO WE ARE NOT
FAMILIAR WITH INSTRUCTIONS ON HOW TO DO IT NOR HOW EFFECTIVE IT IS.
2. Do not use soapy water or get a piece very wet. We typically try to clean
things with a dry brush, in a gentle manner. If you do it to roughly, you can damage
the fabric fibers and it can be permanent.
3. Do not use bleach, simply not a friend of most fabrics.
4. If you end up using a cleaning solution of any type, test it on an area
that does not show before you use it on the area affected. (bottom of the cushion,
backside of a sofa, etc...)
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UPHOLSTERED PIECES - LEATHER
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General Guidelines
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Leather is a very durable material, and outside of a vegetable dye leather, will
hold up well to most factors. A few tips we offer our clients include the following.
1. FOR LIGHTER COLORED LEATHERS, be careful with indigo died denim, it can be a
killer.
2. If you spill something on your leather, like wine, wipe it up quickly. If your
leather is not vegetable dye (if you don't know, ask us before doing anything) you
can wipe it off with a damp cloth and then follow that with a dry cloth.
3. Do not use bleach, simply not a friend of most leather ever. period.
4. We use Lexol cleaner and conditioner for our leather goods, and we like the
results we get from it. There may be far better products out there that we do not
know of, but we have been satisfied with Lexol, which you can find in most stores.
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