If you happen to have a lot of wooden furniture, you probably love the way they look with the vein of the wood showing through either varnish or oil wood stains. But if you have little kids running around, there is a great possibility that some of your wooden furniture will have to succumb to chipping, whether from accidental bumping with the sharp edges of toys or intentional: kids love acting out what they see, and if your preschooler has ever seen you use a hammer and chisel on something, he will likely imitate you and give you a headache at the looks of your wooden table or other furniture. But relax, all is not lost, as it is quite easy to restore the smooth finish of your wooden furniture:


Step 1. Examine the extent of the damage. You will need to see if the chip is quite minimal or is large enough to require you to find the missing piece. For the latter, it will also help for you to see what kind of damage was done: if it was a child that caused the damage, it is possible that the huge chip might not be found at all.

Step 2. If there is a minimal chipping, head on over to the local hardware store for some wood putty. The directions are usually straightforward; you will need a flat piece to spread it evenly, preferably metal. If the chipped off piece is rather large and you have the piece at hand, use some wood glue to set it back in place, and then apply putty to cover up any gaps. If the chipped off piece is missing, you can opt to find spare pieces of wood to cut into shape into its place, or cover the whole thing with putty.

Step 3. Apply the putty on the chipped are according to directions and also follow the set time for it to dry.

Step 4. Once it is completely dry, use some fine grade sand paper to smoothen off the putty. This will also make it more like a part of the wood.

Step 5. Proceed to treat that portion with the same finishing treatments that the rest of the parts of the furniture have. If the table is painted, it is easiest, as the putty will virtually disappear under the paint. If it is varnished, be sure you buy the same shade of varnish.

Step 6. If the table happens to be oil stained, you will need to consult catalogs to match the color of your table. This is because the tone of oil wood stains go by different names for different brands, so if you are unsure of the shade, be sure to buy only a little amount from the hardware store and test it on a spare piece of wood. However, staining will require several coats, so if you can find an exact match on the catalog to the color of your table, you might well be on your way.