Strippers Furniture Restoration Blog

Thank you to A Look Into for writing this article about us.

When you hear a business name like Strippers you may be inclined to find it an easy target of a joke but the quality restoration work done by the little storefront on Selby since 1963 is anything but a playful jest.

The seriousness and level of skill that has gone into the likes of projects produced by Strippers is quite an impressive expanse and it begs no question as to why they’ve been so successful.

Now, nearing their third generation of ownership, Strippers has contributed to pieces in the Governor’s Mansion, the Historical Henry Sibley House and a number of cherished restaurants, churches and synagogues all around the Twin Cities.

Nearly every member of the Strippers family has started the work of restoration at a very young age. Whether it is learning to sand the legs of an end table or upholster a century’s old victorian couch, Strippers has succeeded in projects big or small with expert precision.

The oldest furniture restoration company in the Twin Cities, is also carving ornate pieces for local homes and churches primarily. Offering up expert detail work and restoring pieces that have been neglected, breathing new life into artifacts that desperately need it.

At Strippers the importance is behind the pieces themselves. Often important heirlooms left behind or pieces involving sacrifice for past generations, Strippers is in the business of keeping those important parts feeling important. Their attention to detail often adds significance to a piece and grants it new life to be passed along to the next generation–much like Strippers itself.

Hand Carving

We restored these old wooden Stations of the Cross. James did a great job hand carving the missing pieces.

Before – Notice the Missing Arm

Arm Being Carved

After – New Arm

Before – Notice the Missing Section of the Cross

After- With New Cross

Before – Notice the Missing Arm and Spear

During the Carving Process

After – With New Arm and Spear

We were able to get them finished in time for them to be displayed for Christmas.

Comments From Cynthia on Her Bird’s Eye Maple Dresser

I just picked up my Great Aunt Genevieve’s (b.1891, d.1981) Bird’s eye maple dresser from Strippers Furniture Restoration today. It’s beautiful!

When I took it in, it had many layers of white paint on it – and blue ceramic knobs. The layers of paint were chipping. My intent was to repaint the dresser with a “clean ” coat of white paint and take it to our farmhouse.

After the dresser was stripped, I went to pick it up and saw the beautiful bird’s eye maple that had been hiding under layers of paint. I did not have the heart to paint it. I had Strippers refinish the dresser and replace the knobs with ones more fitting that style and era of dresser. The results speak for themselves (see photo below). It’s gorgeous! Another store customer offered to buy the dresser from me if I decide I don’t want it.

Additionally, as George was working on refinishing the dresser, he discovered, tightly wedged beneath the bottom drawer, an 1898 Indian Head penny. Perhaps put there by the carpenter who made the dresser? George took the penny home, polished it up, and put it in a see-through “coin packet” to give it back to me. I was very touched.

I have used Strippers Furniture Restoration for many years, with many different pieces and types of furniture. I have always been pleased with their work.

I highly recommend them.

Sincerely, Cynthia W.

Dresser Before Stripping

Birds Eye Maple Dresser After Refinishing. Restored to its original beauty.

Strippers says:

Thank you Cynthia. We’re so glad you’re pleased. We enjoyed working on your dresser. It’s always fun to strip a painted piece and find beautiful wood hidden under the layers of paint.

We Strip & Refinish Molding and Doors

Remove your doors, molding, or cabinet doors and drawers and bring them into us to have them stripped and refinished.

Or if you’d like we can just strip them and you can do the refinishing yourself. Call us today for prices. 651-645-1394

Painted molding before stripping

Molding after stripping & refinishing

Preserving Old Wood

Refinishing furniture and architectural wood helps to reduce our demands on the environment by preserving furniture, doors and molding created long ago, and prevents cutting down and wasting trees growing today. It also helps us to improve our homes with updated fine quality pieces that might otherwise be overlooked, and clog our waste dumps and landfills. Fine, old trees were cut down in decades or centuries past, and utilized in the production of furniture that is eventually in need of maintenance, not discarding. Old furniture finishes, especially twentieth century finishes including lacquer, turn dark, translucent, and finally semi-opaque, hiding the beauty of the wood beneath. An old finish is then susceptible to whitish heat and humidity marks, becomes brittle and scratches easily. Keep in mind that the damages are just to the finish, and you will start over when the finish is removed. If the old finish is remove and a new finish is applied the furniture can display the original beauty of the wood. It will be as beauty as when it was created, but with an antique patina to the wood that is irreplaceable. The quality and species of wood available and used years ago was generally better than what is available today.

There is little comparison between craftsmanship of yesteryears and today’s shoddy manufacturing. Older furniture that was made more than twenty years ago will out last just about anything made today. Refinishing preserves old furniture and does not waste resources to produce new flake board, melamine, laminate, or MDF and their waste products in the production of new furniture.

We have a responsibility to tomorrows’ generations, preserving our heritage and the environment is something all can appreciate. The vintage antique, or designer furniture we admire from the 50’s, 60’s, or 70’s, including Eames, mid century modern, or Danish is often available in local thrift shops, Craig’s list, from yard sales, or flea markets. Often, you need look no further than in your own homes to find candidates for refinishing. Open your imagination to wider refinishing possibilities for such handsomely designed furniture.

Let’s face it; even if you can get the Ikea stuff put together, it’s not going to last for another hundred years.