Berkeley Parents Network: Furniture Refinishing & Repair

Berkeley Parents Network

Furniture Refinishing & Repair

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Berkeley Parents Network > Reviews > House & Garden > Furniture Refinishing & Repair

See also: Furniture Painting
Related page:Custom-made Furniture

June 2003

I have an old high chair circa 1930's that I would like to get refinished. Does anyone have a recommendation for someone that will take on a small project such as that? Thanks! roxanne

I had great luck with J & L Refinishing Corp, 620 Alabama, SF (415-826-2505). Melissa T

For wood furniture restoration, I can recommend Alpha Furniture Restoration in Emeryville (510 658 8579). They are probably not the cheapest out there, but they are real crafts people and do beautiful work. We have entrusted some treasured pieces to them and been very happy with the results. Claire

I very highly recommend Jennifer Torres for wood furniture or trim refinishing and repair. I hired her to repair and refinish my dining room set (antique, from Vietnam) and she did a fantastic job. She was so good, and so reasonable, that I asked her to refinish the wood trim in the living room of the bungalow we just bought -- something I thought would be prohibitively expensive. She has TRANSFORMED our living room: the redwood trim is now vibrant, warm, gorgeous. Everyone who has walked in the front door has commented on how nice it looks. Jennifer is incredibly reliable, responsible, and nice. She is a perfectionist and, on each job, has done MORE than I've asked, for no extra charge. In addition, I've found her prices to be MUCH lower than I expected, esp. given the amazing job she does. We have a lot of people working on our home, and Jennifer is by far the most reliable -- and we're getting the most bang for the buck. I have an infant and a toddler and Jennifer has been very conscientious about working with potentially dangerous materials (including stripping lead-based varnish). I would be happy to show off our new living room and/or dining chairs and table to anyone who is considering hiring her.

Jennifer's cell # is 415-412-5322. She mostly works on the weekends since she has a ''day job,'' but she has worked during the week for me to accommodate my schedule. I can't say enough good things about Jennifer (who is not a relative, I swear!) and will gladly answer any additional questions. linh

January 2003

We have some old furniture that is in need of some refininshing. It is in good shape and doesn't need repairs, just refinishing. Does anyone have any good recommendations? We are in the Oakland hills. Melissa

I used a husband and wife-owned company a few years ago called The Stripping Workshop (really, they just do furniture). I believe they are somewhere on the other side of the tunnel, like Walnut Creek, but I can't recall. They picked up a large bookcase at my house in Oakland and delivered it when finished, and did a beautiful job. I also can't recall the price, though I know it wasn't real cheap. I have nothing to compare it to, however, since it is the only time I've ever had this service done. If you can't find them in the yellow pages, email me and I will try to dig up my receipt, which I know I have somewhere. Tracy

November 2002

I have a large bed, somewhere between King and Queen sized, due to my ''measure once, cut three times'' method of woodworking. Building this bed myself was a pet project, and I was happy for several years to just sleep on a piece of foam cut to fit with wrinkled sheets. But now I need a real mattress, which means I need to finish the bed properly - i.e., make it an actual standard size, and install bed hardware so make the side rails fit against the head and foot boards. (Previously I just got out the screw gun to attach everything.) But this project is now out of my range of ability, and I no longer have a university woodshop at my disposal. Can anyone recommend someone to do this odd job? A custom furniture maker or woodworker who won't charge an arm and a leg? My back and I appreciate it. sh

One of the parents in my son's co-op preschool does woodworking and restoration: Christopher Merrifield, Clever Fellows Woodworking, 1501 Powell St. Suite F, Emeryville, CA 94608 510-923-0591 Blamonde

October 2002

Stop us before we buy new furniture!! We have some formerly beautiful furniture that has ''lost the old showroom shine'' and we're looking for someone to refinish the pieces so we don't have to replace them with cookie cutter new stuff. The archives have repair information, but our pieces are in good shape. They just need to be stripped and refinished. Thanks for any leads. Anne-Marie

My husband designs and builds custom furniture and recommends Alpha Refinishing in Oakland. He has the number at his shop and says he can bring it home if you want their number and can't find it. Jennifer

I can recommend Jennifer Ashley's, owned by Curt Bowles. Curt did two pieces for me several years ago and I would not hesitate to call him again. One piece was part of a set and he did a nice job of matching the colors and appearance. It appears he has moved his shop from Richmond: the listing in the phone book is 925-254-5119. Lori

I recommend M. Ferreira in Oakland for furniture refinishing (536-4973). They did beautiful work on my dining table and buffet (old family pieces). They come to your house to give you an estimate. They will also take the piece to their shop to do the work, and return it. Cathy

June 2002

I am looking for recommendations for people who refinish wood tables professionally. Thanks very much. Fabian

I have used M. Ferreira in Oakland (536-4973) to refinish my dining room table and sideboard. These are antique pieces and they did a marvelous job at a reasonable price. Cathy

2001

My mother's antique chair needs repair of the wood frame (top edge broke but we have all the pieces). Any recommendations for a woodworker or other wonderful (and not outrageously expensive) repair person. Thanks, merry

I highly recommend Regency Restoration in east Oakland. I've used Regency for restoration of a number of antique pieces, with great results. It's basically a one-man shop, and he takes great care with each piece. I had a limited budget and he was able to help guide me to decide what to do with the money I could spend. Tel no is 534-0603. Raissa

Grandma's table arrived from Oklahoma. It looks like hell! Most of it seems salvageable, except for the leaves, which are warped and water-damaged. Now we are looking for someone to custom-make one big, new leaf for the table out of oak to match the older table. It needs to match up in the three- or four-inch "skirt" along the side, too. Does anyone know a reasonably priced craftsman for the job? Thanks! Lynn

I recommend you speak to John Mercer, 845-8823, and Bob Barret, 549-1156. They are both respected woodworkers but neither has made anything for me so I can't make a direct recommendation. I've seen Bob Barret's work and it is beautiful. I spoke to John Mercer for his recommendation on some tricky repair work and was impressed. It's difficult to say what "reasonable" is, so get estimates. Someone who is very skilled and has a lot of specialized equipment can work faster than someone who is less experienced and doesn't have equipment that can speed a job up. Another issue that might come up is matching the grain of the new wood to the old. Our own cabinetmaker (who is no longer in business) told us about this. I think he said old oak has a tighter grain than new oak. Don't be surprised if the people you speak to bring this up. Fran

There's a very nice couple in Berkeley/Emeryville area (on Adelaine) who run a furniture refinishing business called Top Coat. I used their services to strip several pieces of furniture which I then refinished myself. The owners were very congenial and gave me lots of free advice about my project. Their prices were competitive. My neighbor sells restored antiques and often uses their services for refinishing. Lynn

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