People usually spend an awful lot of time and money to decorate each and every corner of their house with different pieces of wood furniture. And since they are used on a regular basis, it is necessary to keep them intact and get rid of any stains or scratches on it.
You can do this by removing the scratches yourself using the following steps which will spare you the trouble of buying new ones or taking it to an antique store.
Is It Absolutely Scratched?
It is totally important to make sure if the wood is actually scratched or not. You might not be aware if the scratch is on the wood or the wax buildup.
It is possible that you may have bought an old piece of furniture from the antique store and the previous owners may have waxed it. Afterward, the salesman might have used a furnishing spray to top it off as brand new. So simply remove the wax buildup and then clean off the scratch!
Colour in very light scratches:
Light scratches include those which you can see with the naked eye but cannot feel it when touched.
Light Wood: For light wood, you can try using a nut like pecan or walnut as both of them can conceal the scratches on the wood. The oil from the nut obscures the wood and helps the scratches to vanish from the surface. Stick the nut to the scratched surface for a couple of times and place your fingertip to let the warmth of your skin enable the oil to penetrate into the wood.
Dark wood: You can use the exact method stated above with a slight little change of coffee beans instead of walnuts or pecan.
Cherry or mahogany wood: For cherry or mahogany wood, you can use a blob of cotton dipped in an iodine solution.
Ebony-finished wood: For ebony-finished wood, rub off the scratched surface with a gluey mixture of chimney powder and water.
Colour and fill deeper scratches:
These include the scratches that can be felt when touched. Hence you need to find a way to fill in and colour the surface to remove the scratch.
For this method, you will need a crayon box. If you have children, it is possible that you already have them in the house. If not, they are available at any stationary stores. Rub onto the scratch with a shade that coordinates with your furniture and use a credit card to clean off the excess of the edges. Wipe off the surface with a clean cloth to top it off.
However, if you do not want to use crayons as an option, you can try using scratch repair sticks which can blend in easily.
Using moist heat for dents:
Using wood filler for dents is one of the easiest and efficient ways of removing scratches. But if you are still unwilling to give up, you can try out this method:
- Take a thick towel of white colour and dampen it. Squeeze it to remove the excess water.
- Keep the dampened towel on the dented surface.
- Iron the spot for a maximum time of 30 seconds and then switch to another spot. Keep on ironing until you have covered the whole area.
- Repeat the same method again after a day’s break if the dent is still present.
- Rub off the surface with an oil-based cleaner or olive oil after letting it air dry for another day to get rid of any blur.
However, you should know that it may not work out on the first try as the wood grains would need some time to expand and loosen up. So you can try carrying out the same process again to finally get the job done.
