Re-storing Mid Century Coffee Tables

My partner and I love mid-century modern furniture. Fortunately for us Chicago seems to have an abundance of mid-century pieces available in the thrift stores we frequent. The other day we scored big finding several pieces we loved during one of our shopping trips. We bought an awesome table with hairpin legs, a slatted bench, two Paul McCobb low coffee tables and a few other pieces. One of the McCobb's table had some water damage and I finally did what I have been meaning to do for several years, which was to use a pinterest trick to re-store the top wood finish.


There were two tips I found:
1. Mix olive oil with salt and make a thick paste. Let the paste sit over the hardware stains for 30 minutes then wipe.
2. Mix 3 parts olive oil to one part vinegar. Wipe all over wood to remove scratches.

Here is a before photo:

And after:

Needless to say, these results were not exactly what I have been dreaming up these past few years. It does look better so I am thankful for that. On the other pieces that did not have water damage the oil and vinegar mixture worked wonders! I definitely recommend using it and I will continue to do so in the future.

M.