Antique Carved Table Restoration

Some pieces arrive at our shop with a problem that no amount of refinishing can solve. This was one of them, so we did full antique carved table restoration to bring it back to its old glory.

A client brought us an antique table base that stopped everyone in the shop the moment it came through the door. Lion head corbels at the corners. Grotesque face carvings on the end pedestals. Acanthus leaf motifs at the bracket feet. Turned and fluted spindles running along the gallery beneath the apron. Egg-and-dart molding carved into the apron rail itself. Elaborate scrollwork threading through the entire structure from top to bottom.

• Full assessment of the carved antique base and existing finish condition
• Custom solid walnut top fabricated in-house to scale
• Edge profile and overhang proportion fitting to the carved apron
• ML Campbell conversion varnish finish applied to the new walnut top
• Finish maintenance and toning on the base to ensure cohesion throughout

Before any fabrication work began, we spent time with the base. Understanding a piece this detailed is not optional. It informs every decision that follows, from the wood species chosen for the new top, to the stain tone, to the sheen level of the finish, to the edge profile on the new panel.

The base is a trestle-style structure supported by two carved pedestals connected by a stretcher rail. Each pedestal features lion head carvings at the upper corbels and grotesque face carvings on the outward-facing panels, with dense scrollwork and foliate carving filling the surrounding field. The bracket feet are carved with acanthus leaf detail and scroll terminations. A turned spindle gallery runs beneath the apron between the two pedestals, and the apron rail itself carries a continuous egg-and-dart molding carved in relief.

We selected solid walnut for the new top based on several factors specific to this piece.

Tonally, walnut’s natural color range, a warm brown with darker streaking and grain movement, is compatible with the deep, dark-toned finish on the carved base. A pale wood like maple or ash would have created too much contrast and disrupted the visual weight of the piece. Walnut reads as a natural companion to a dark-stained hardwood base without requiring heavy pigmentation to close the gap.