I wanted to share with people a cedar wash stand that we worked on not long ago. It is a lovely piece in original condition, a rare survivor. When it came to us it was covered in a thick coat of dark wax and or grime. We spent many hours carefully removing the grime to reveal the original French polished finish which was in very good condition after some 170 plus years. The piece required some small repairs, cracks in the top were consolidated from the underside with dovetailed blocks. Other minor losses were filled with old cedar closely matching the grain and colour of the original material. A French polishing rubber was used to rebuild areas of the original French polish that was thin or worn through. The final process was a coat of clear hard wax which acts as a sacrificial coating that protects the French Polish.
