You have a beautiful antique table or perhaps a dish that you inherited from you great aunt Sue that means the world to you and you would like to see it survive for many lifetimes to come. Here are a few tips for antiques care around the house that don't require a professional in attendance.
Porcelain - Rule number one never put antique porcelain in the Dishwasher. They didn't have dishwashers a century ago so they weren't really designed for that. The best thing to do is simply hand wash with warm water or a very mild unscented soap as soaps can have chemicals that don't play nicely with hand painted designs on your fine porcelain. Theres no reason it can't survive for another 100 years if cared for properly.
Glass -the first rule with glass is to always wash it after use and don't let water sit in it for too long as it will leave a cloudy ring and discolour the glass. We call this sick glass when it get cloudy inside and its very hard if not impossible to fix, not to mention it will completely devalue your piece. Always use a light soap and nothing abrasive as fine glass can scratch if not treated with care.
Wood - Antique wood adds alot of character to a space and carries a lot of memories. When cleaning antique wood you want to avoid excessive water or harsh chemicals that you get from the store. Over oiling or waxing can also be a problem as it will ruin the appearance of your piece. The best thing to do is to periodically wipe down your piece with a lightly damp towel to remove dirt and dust. This will keep your piece in good shape and reduces the likelyhood of unwanted stains as well as cracking and the occasional mildew. The second thing you want to do is to give your piece a light coating of wax or oil. This is a personal preference, but in each case you want to use a piece of non abrasive cotton cloth and test a small area on your piece first and make sure not to over apply it as too much of a good thing is indeed to much. Too much oil can also weaken the wood. This process only needs to be done once in a while as a good coating should last for a few years. Be careful of cheap products like orange oil that you get at the hardware or grocery store while they may work for some cases its best to go with as natural a product as possible to reduce the number of harmful chemicals that can damage your piece. Its best to consult with your nearest antique dealer to see what they use.
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