Antique Victorian Sideboard Restoration

Apologies for the long hiatus since the last updates. There is a backlog of over a dozen projects to post, but it takes a long time to prepare the photos and posts.

This was a sideboard that we restored a while back (end of 2015). It had a lot of veneer problems, shrinkage cracks, loose sections, damage to the finish, and all the drawer bottoms were broken. There were also issues with worn drawer runners.

I don't have any proper before and after photos, because the piece came into the shop in pieces. This type of sideboard is called a "pedestal sideboard". Originally it had a back-splash, probably with carved accents. The centre drawer has the original retailer's label from Hewetson & Milner London (at Totterham road, indicating a date after 1882). In addition to this, the brass hinges were stamped with the maker's name William Tonks & Sons (active between 1851 - 1891).

Here are some in-progress photos of the repairs.



The shellac has bloomed due to poor storage conditions from moisture.



Some of the MANY veneer repairs.









A few of the small mouldings were missing, and had to be replicated.



A crack caused from the sub-frame assembly.



This was the worst section.





All of the thin wood drawer bottom needed repairs. Some had previous repairs, and some had thick masking tape applied to them. The bottoms are barely 1/4" thick, and they are quite fragile.



You can see the label on this half of the centre drawer.



The top has several worn and damaged areas in the finish. This side also had some damage to both front corners, so we replaced a full thin sprip and re-cut the cove profile.



The base with all the veneer repairs, AFTER repairs and refinishing.



Finished sideboard.















The top is a solid wood board of mahogany. It's about 5/8" thick, and 2 feet wide. The length was around 6 feet.



In the client's home:

3 Piece Antique Settee Set - Red - Project of the Month (November - December 2014)

Here is another nice settee set found at auction, and in desperate need of repairs. The new owner (same as the previous 4 chairs) wanted the old upholstery removed, with new foam installed, and to have the frames stripped down, repaired, and have the fragile veneer patched and repaired as best we could. The set is likely from around the 1890s or early 1900s.

Here are the before photos:





















The upholstery that was on these chairs was a complete mess.



A complete mix of disintegrated old original stuffing, plus newer foam tossed over the older stuffing.



The 3 pieces were completely dismantled for repairs and refinishing.



A lot of time was spent doing the repairs to the veneer, and regluing loose veneer that was lifting around the edges.







New webbing, followed by new foam (the owner did not want the springs reinstalled).



Here are the three pieces completely repaired, refinished, and upholstered in a lovely dark red/burgundy.





















The chair was the piece that needed the most severe veneer repairs, but I think they came out really well, and the client was very happy with them.