Antique High Chair Wooden Baby Vintage high chair

I have to share with you my lovely little antique high chair now that it has been well cleaned and a little considerate.

When I bought it at "The Yard Sale" it was pretty dirty and had some old layers that basically peeled off. But I like the outdated look it has and is meant to maintain it. Since I plan to return this chair to work, I know it needs to be protected somehow so that spills don't just seep into the wood. However, I don't want to be shiny, which polyurethane will do. 

Using a liquid sealer over raw wood will inevitably cause some changes in the appearance of the wood. Try brushing a little water to see if you like the look of the wood when it's wet. The sealer will most likely cause the same type of effect (perhaps a little lighter) although of course the water will dry out soon whereas the sealer will penetrate the wood, lock in moisture and provide a barrier (usually shiny), thus removing stains and maintaining a richer look.

Danish oil (sometimes called Scandinavian oil) is your best choice for liquid sealers because it has a much more natural and refined finish than poly. Another option is to try beeswax. Beeswax penetrates less than liquid sealers so it will retain silver in your wood better though, while it closes well when done right, the seal is not as effective as a liquid-based sealer.

So that I have no doubt that Danish oil is the right way to go. Although I really like the "silver" look of the wood, I don't want to risk using something that might not close it from food stains. I am very, very happy with the result!

You can see that the wood is given a richer overall and slightly darker look, but I don't mind at all.

There are still variations in the wooden tones throughout the chairs that give it a lot of character. I also like that Danish oil does not add any shine to the wood. In some places it looks almost raw, but I know it's protected.

Since the tray had split in several places and had been "fixed" with some kind of glue before I bought it, Danish oil caused the glue to stick and remain sticky. My solution is to slightly sand the entire tray with fine sand paper, then just wipe some satin polyurethane. It removes stickiness and makes me feel like the tray (which will obviously be the most used part of the seat) gets a little extra protection. (Isn't the little leather strap adorable? It is attached to the bottom of the tray and locked at the bottom of the seat. Funny!)

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