1. Repairs

You will find that the older pieces are often time going to require some level of repairs. Take into consideration the added time & materials you will need to put into the project before getting too excited over what seems like a “great deal”.

Here is a list of the most common repair jobs you will find when shopping vintage furniture:

• Drawer slides broken or missing.

• Water damage

• Burn stains (cigarettes were more commonly used back in the day)

• Humidity swelling

• Stained/damaged bottoms of drawers.

• Chipped or missing veneer

• Drawers that push in deeper than the dresser face

• Missing or damaged hardware/knobs

• Missing or damaged wheels

• Missing or damaged wooden appliques

• Odors

• Dirt build up & pest evidence

Repairs are always going to be something to be considered in the furniture flipping world- knowing what your skill set level is key. Just because it CAN be repaired doesn’t mean YOU should repair it.

2. Painting: Added Value or not?

Some vintage furniture is worth more if restored rather than painted. If the vintage furniture is in pristine condition, you may not want to paint it.

Sometimes all you need to do is for a piece is give it a nice deep clean & a wood polish wipe down to rejuvenate. I use the following wood polish for these types of jobs. You can find my favorite products to use on this type of vintage furniture flip here.

3. Details & Wooden Appliques

Keep as many of the original details intact as possible. The added wooden appliques, hardware and wheels are small details that set vintage furniture apart- modernizing vintage furniture is okay but try not to lose the charm that made the original piece stand out.

4. Wood Tannins

If you are going to paint a vintage piece- use a good stain blocking primer or seal with shellac prior to painting! A lot of vintage & antique furniture has a particular tannin in the wood that will discolor your paint & will not go away or hide with another 10 coats of paint. The only way to prevent this is to seal this chemical reaction by adding a layer between the original wood & paint application.

I use two methods to prevent this problem- If I am in the middle of a paint job & notice bleeding starting to develop in my paint application: I wait for the paint to dry completely and then take this shellac spray to the affected areas- let this product dry completely and return to painting.

If I am smart & using my own advice, I prepare the vintage furniture prior to painting by first applying a base coat of Dixie Belle Paint Company’s BOSS primer.

5. Original Hardware

If you find a vintage piece with all of the original hardware present- this is a steal! Do what you can to salvage and re use the original hardware at all costs! Using the original hardware is going to maintain a level of authenticity & highlight an era of time which gives the painted look a charm like no other.