Polishing your bronze headboard may take a lot of elbow grease.
There's a reason you can occasionally find antiques at a bargain basement price -- they may almost take more work than they're worth. If you've ever restored a piece of brass, copper or bronze furniture, then you may understand. While the materials it takes to restore an antique bronze headboard may be simple, the job does take a daunting amount of elbow grease. However, if your headboard is free of major rust or structural damage, you should be able to show off your hard work within a week or two. Does this Spark an idea?
Instructions
1. Clean the entire piece using a cloth soaked in vinegar. If the piece is really grimy, you can soak the entire thing in a vinegar bath for up to two hours.
2. Remove any rust. If your piece is old enough, you may encounter some parts that have accumulated some rust. If the rust is flaky and appears to only be on the surface, rub the area with a cotton cloth dipped in paraffin oil. Rub the area gently until the flakes start to come off. Use a toothbrush to brush away the gray flakes. When the rust is gone, wipe the area clean with white spirits and allow to completely dry. If you're in a wetter climate, drying could take 12 hours or more.
3. Replace any hardware and assess the headboard-bed connection. Over the years, the original hardware in your headboard may have been stripped out or may not exist at all. Take a look at the holes that would attach the bed frame to the headboard. If you have a bed frame already, hold it up to the headboard to determine where screw holes would need to be to secure them together. If you don't have a bed frame, buy one now or get measurements for the one you would like.
If the screw holes on your headboard are misshapen, drill new holes into the headboard at a location that will work with your headboard.
4. Polish the headboard. Use a soft cotton cloth or diaper cloth and a bronze polish to polish all parts of the bed. This is when you start to see the "true colors" of your bronze piece. Rub an area of a few inches square at a time. When you begin to see a darkness in the area, experts recommend rubbing the darkness into the area, as opposed to wiping it away with a clean portion of your towel, since the darkness helps further polish the area. After a time, you will begin to see a shiny area. When one area is shining, move on to another small area until you've polished the entire piece.
5. Set up the bed. Attach the bed frame to the headboard with the screw assembly.
6. Touch up the polish. Some metal polishes have an accompanying "finish polish" that fine-tunes the polishing you've already done. After you've had the headboard attached to the bed and placed it in its final location, do this fine-tuning so you can see the bed in all its glory.
Tags: your headboard, bronze headboard, cotton cloth, elbow grease, entire piece