Expert: Eileen Cronk - 1/4/2006

Question
Dear Eileen,

I just bought a 16-pane, one piece Pennsylvania walnut corner cupboard at an auction.  Looks to be in fully original condition.  The finish is showing real signs of wear (and also has a couple of small white paint blobs).  I'm interested in knowing if I will decrease the value of the piece if I 1) refinish the inside of the upper glass portion and 2) dry scrap the exterior and use a tinted wax to help create a more uniform finish.

Thanks you,
Tammy  

Answer
Hi Tammy
Nice to hear from you.
This walnut cupboard sounds lovely.
I'm afraid the answer is yes to both your questions if this is a true antique cupboard.
But lets take a different approach to this and let me ask you a couple of questions
1..Did you pay a lot for the cupboard?
2..Will you be happy living with it the way it looks now?
If the answer to both of these questions is no, then I would certainly do what will make it pleasing to you.
The way I see this is you are the one who has to live with the cupboard and the decision should be yours.
And if the cupboard is solid walnut it will be beautiful refinished in my opinion LOL (so you know the way I'm leaning in this)
If you leave the cupboard as is Tammy, the paint globs should be easy to remove.
Hope this helps and thanks for a great question
Eileen