Taking Care of Your Antiques the
Based on this site's niche you probably would like to buy or already have some antique furniture. This type of furniture should be dusted regularly with a soft cloth as you would with your other furniture. You can either use a plain lint-free cloth or quality beeswax on the cloth, but you should not use store bought products such as Pledge. These products can cause lines and streaks on your furniture which would take away from its value.
You also want to be careful where you place the pieces in your home. Placing them out of the sun's path would be best and allow for minimal fading. Furthermore, if possible an area should be chosen that has little temperature changes or is not weather affected, as humidity or extreme dryness can easily ruin an antique piece.
When moving your antique furniture, ensure that you do not drag it as you would possibly do to other newer pieces. This is easy to forget sometimes, but it is called antique for a reason and the older things get the more likely something could break or scratch. Lifting it, preferably with another person is very important.
Pottery or glass pieces can compliment the furniture pieces and if you have any antique pottery or glass pieces they should be cared for carefully as well. Washing with warm water instead of hot water is best, as hot water can cause chipping or stains. Also do not place them in the dishwasher or use the hose outside as again these types of actions could cause damage. Using a gentle cleanser in a protective basin area is recommended for your glass, pottery, and/or porcelain pieces.
You will find it is a wonderful opportunity to have antiques and taking extra care of them will help you increase your investment value if you are a collector and/or enable you to pass them on to the next generation so they can enjoy the same privilege and joy you received of owning such treasures. Antiques can be great reminders of heritage as well as other cultures and taking care of them properly shows respect for both.
Included within has been a few ways of caring for your antiques. If you have specialty needs or need further tips and ideas, you can contact local antique stores to help you as well as there is other information resources available online. Happy Antiquing.