Cleaning and Restoration
of
Your Old Wooden Toy
Sometimes our toys need some help. Missing parts may need to be
added or badly damaged areas need to be repaired. Schoenhut circus toys and
other wooden toys may need restringing or respringing to display properly. These
are our recommended toy restoration experts.
Jim Kramer
Our recommended restorer and restringer of Schoenhut and like wooden
toys is Jim Kramer.
Jim will restring Schoenhut circus animals
for $5.00 each and the circus people for $8.00. Jim doesn't have Email but he
likes to talk to people so call him. Prompt service.
Jim is a very good artisan and can make
nearly undetectable restorations.
Jim's address is:
6315 Lee Highway
Arlington VA 22205
Jim's phone number is: 703-536-9668
Paul Warner
Paul is an expert wood turner here in Charleston, South Carolina. He has made several replacement wooden toy parts for
me and a lot for Richard Mueller - the pull toy professor.
He can make replacement wooden parts for you. Paul can be reached at (843)
270-6954
Randy's Toy Shop
Another of our recommended restorers is Randy's Toy Shop of
Noblesville, Indiana. Randy and his team of local artisans will restore your
wooden, tin, iron and any other toy or toy box. He can do tin parts
replacements, celluloid parts fabrication, and mechanism repair.
Randy can be contacted by Email at: randy@randystoyshop.com
His Web page is at: http://www.randystoyshop.com
His phone number is: 317-776-2220
We are often asked about care and restoration old wooden toys. We believe
that old toys should be preserved in a way that does not destroy their old
patina. Cleaning should be aimed toward removal of potentially damaging material
from the surfaces of the paint and fabric. This includes dust that inevitably
collects on displayed toys. Here are a few ideas that we hope will help you
preserve your old toys.
Dusting
We use the Lord Sheraton dusting brush. It is a good sized brush
(about 11 inches long with thousands of very soft goat hairs about 2 1/2 inches
long) that works perfectly on Schoenhut animals and performers. Here is their
description:
Lord Sheraton Dusting Brush
Hand made from the finest, soft goat
hair and hard beechwood, the Lord Sheraton Dusting Brush is the easy way
to remove unsightly dust, from those hard to reach places that your
regular duster just can't get to.
It
safely and effectively cleans objects such as figurines, carvings,
clocks and precision equipment, protecting them from scratches and
leaving them as good as new! |
 |
We understand that these brushes are available from:
Edmund Industrial Optics Tel: 856 547 3488
101 East Gloucester Pike Fax: 856 547 4549
Barrington
NJ 08007-1380
Cleaning and waxing
Sometimes, the paint and fabric of the toy needs cleaning to remove
material that can cause ongoing deterioration of the piece. Recently,
Michelangelo's paintings on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel have been cleaned
of the hundreds of years of smoke and dirt accumulation. The result was the
restoration of Michelangelo's original colors and the stabilization of the
paint. If you want to try cleaning your toys, do so at your own risk. This is
what I do:
To remove surface dust, I use the Lord Sheraton brush above. For deeply dirty
fabric, I mix a solution of water and a mild laundry detergent for the fabric
and gently wash. I don't use bleach - not even Clorox II as I have heard that it
can fade older Schoenhut fabrics.
For the painted surfaces, I mix a tiny amount of car wash detergent (it is
safe for car paint) and use a brush gently over the surface, blotting with paper
towels. I am careful that the paint has good adherence or I could find it in the
paper towel.
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To protect the paint, brighten its sheen, and deepen its colors, I
use a wax product called Renaissance Wax. Click on the photo of the wax
to read a complete description of this wax.
|
Displaying
Protect your toys from UV light! UV light is a component of
most light sources especially sunlight. It is high energy light and will damage
fabric and paint. Fabrics will fade and become brittle. Most museums protect
their toys and dolls by using light sources with UV filters and limiting the
duration of light exposure.
Place your toys behind UV glass or in areas of
rooms with no direct sunlight exposure. North facing rooms are good in the
Northern hemisphere.
Contact me for more
information about old wooden toy restoration.
