We have the quintessential circa 80’s oak claw pedestal table. We’ve had it for for 30 years I’d say. Well, after five kids, numerous guests and thousands of meals, it finally needed to be refinished. I thought that I could get away with just doing the top. It was covered with water ring spots and marks from hot dishes (I assume).
Anyhow, one day we had a guy and his wife over for dinner. The man’s hobby is wood working. He suggested that I get something called Restore A Finish by Howard. I trusted this guy – but I really didn’t think anything but a complete refinishing would really do the trick. So, I procrastinated getting the Restore A Finish.
Months went by and finally I succumbed. I followed the directions on the bottle that says to put it on the table top with the finest grade (0000) of steel wool. I did it about five times. (You have to wait between applications.) Somehow, all those marks and discolorations disappeared. I wish I had taken a before picture – but I really didn’t think it would work. (By the way, this table is finished with some kind of shellac or lacquer. It isn’t oiled.)
On the bottle it suggests using something called Howard Feed-N-Wax to polish up the finished product. Well, I went back to the store to get a bottle of that stuff and also followed the directions. The results are amazing. I am no longer embarrassed by the table top. It looks so nice and I saved hours of time and hard work using these two products.
If you’re thinking it’s time to refinish something, you’ve got to try this stuff. The Restore A Finish comes in different shades so it will work with various kinds of woods. Hope your results are jut as great!