Howard Restor-A-Finish Trial: Mahogany Tables

Another gorgeous day– perfect for an afternoon on the front porch. And since the Mrs. can’t sit still for any length of time, she was soon joined by the set of mahogany tables found last week at the thrift store. The price was right, the condition questionable. Fortunately, an internet search turned up quite a few recommendations for Howard Restor-A-Finish. Results weren’t perfect, but still very impressive.

Table top before–lots of wear through the finish. The leather top is a problem. These were $32.50 each- solid mahogany, dovetailed drawers.

The back and legs before:

Pretty good shot showing the condition of the tables overall.

Both tables were cleaned with Clean-A-Finish (also by Howard) and left to dry. Then dd3 taped off the leather insert with blue painter’s tape.

And after: the wood looks so nice it makes the leather look even worse– especially from this angle.

But look how nice the entire table looks~amazing!

After applying the Restor-A-Finish in mahogany using 0000 steel wool, scratches visually disappear, but any flaws in the wood are still visible if you get right up on top of things. The final step is a coat of Feed-N-Wax (wipe on, wait 20 minutes, wipe off, buff to a shine.) I’m thinking this could be a great option for rehabbing woodwork and kitchen cabinets.

Now, I have no idea how to fix the leather tops which are cracking slightly, peeling up and discolored with some sort of alien speckled pattern. If anyone has any ideas, I’d appreciate the help.

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