Useful Information on Your Piece of
Charles Barr Furniture

All furniture requires some care to keep its appearance. Please read the following care instructions.

Cleaning your furniture

Dust your furniture on a regular basis using a soft clean cloth, always wipe in the direction of the grain and avoid circular rotating movements.

To remove any greasy marks on your furniture use a soft lightly damp cloth or a fine chamois leather can be used. The cloth or leather should be lightly damped with warm water.

For more persistent marks a solution of mild vinegar or mild detergents such as washing up liquid can be used in a warm water solution. The cloth or leather should always be used wiping in the direction of the grain. After wiping the table in this manner a soft dry cloth can be used to lightly buff up the surface, again wiping in the direction of the grain.

Very stubborn marks can be removed by substituting the warm water solution with white spirit or turpentine, again the same process should be carried out. After the table has been cleaned a soft dry cloth should be wiped over the surface to buff and polish the top.

UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES SHOULD ANY SILICONES OR SILICONE IMPREGNATED CLOTH BE USED

Waxing your table
The final finishing process of Charles Barr Furniture involves completely waxing your piece of furniture by hand, therefore all Charles Barr Furniture that leaves our factory does not need any wax applied to it for at least 9 – 12 months. When wax is applied to your Charles Barr Furniture a non-silicone based furniture wax should be used very sparingly. We advise customers to use a wax, which can normally be obtained in tins or jars. Spray waxes are not recommended as many incorporate silicone agents which when applied to any high quality polished surface will leave a silicone film that builds up and cannot be removed by normal methods.

Apply your wax always using a soft cloth and wiping in the direction of the grain. A second cloth can then be used to wipe over the surface before final buffing and removal of any excess wax.

Other useful information on Your Charles Barr piece of furniture
Many of the processes we use in hand finishing our furniture have been passed down through years, and stains like natural timbers will change colour if exposed to strong sunlight. Care should be taken by regularly moving ornaments on display to prevent discoloration of surfaces. Where possible dining tables which incorporate leaves should be turned two or three times a year, whilst leaves that are stored should be interchanged to avoid any surface colour changes.

We specialise in the use of cellulose lacquers. These lacquers give some degree of protection against heat and spirit staining, however our finish will mark if over exposed to water, spirit or alcohol solutions. Hot dishes will also mark our finish, therefore we always recommend that either heat resistant place mats or a suitable heat resistant table pad should be used on our dining furniture to give adequate surface protection.

Decorative veneers
There are many thoughts and views on veneered surfaces. At Charles Barr nearly all of our cabinet furniture contains some decorative veneers. These veneers are frequestly used on tops, cabinet door and drawer fronts, whilst plainer type veneers are used on cabinet ends and backs.

Natural timber in any form will move depending on its surrounding humidity and temperature etc. A veneered board such as a door will therefore limit any movement and thus provide a carcass that will not shrink or expand under modern day conditions. However, when using decorative veneers such as curl mahogany, burr yew or walnut it is almost certain that some veneer movement will occur. Cross bandings are also liable to some movement, however this movement which is slight should be seen as part of the overall ambience of our furniture. Indeed when looking at an original piece such as antiques of the period such timber movement can be clearly seen and is therefore regarded by many in the trade as an enhancement to the overall appearance of the furniture.

Download Full Care And Assembly Instructions In PDF Format