Antiques are incredibly beautiful. Regardless of the kind of antique in question, these items ooze history, depth of character and incredible beauty that we do not get with a newly bought item.
However, due to various reasons, you may not want to display your antiques. Nor would you want to discard them for their sentimental value.
So how do you store them properly? This guide from The Abbey Group will give you some tips.
Packaging
Packaging is one of the most important considerations to have in mind when storing your antiques whether on a long-term or short-term basis. You should not just move the antiques into a storage facility and leave there as is.
You need to pack them in the highest quality packaging materials.
As such, you should use heavy-duty bubble wraps and pack the antiques in corrugated cardboard boxes. Corrugated cardboard boxes are the most secure packaging material. They are also the least likely bend or break. The combination of these two characteristics makes them the best choice for storing your antique.
Storing Your Antique
When storing extremely fragile antiques such as mirrors, clocks, glass-topped tables, and other similar antiques, you should consider wrapping them in felt and thick blankets. After wrapping the item, you should use heavy-duty packing tape to secure the wrap around your antique. However, make sure that the tape is not exposed to the antique, as it will ruin the surface, whether it is leather, fabric, wood, etc.
If it is antique furniture you want to store, you should examine it and determine whether you can disassemble it. Storing furniture in its various components rather than as one piece reduces the strain placed on the overall furniture piece. Moreover, it will be more secure and, therefore, better placed to retain its value.
Cover the sensitive parts of the furniture in bubble wrap or blanket to protect them from dents, scratches, and other accidental damages. While storing the pieces, do not stack large and heavy on top of each other. You risk damaging some pieces.
Another variety of common antique that people store is artwork such as drawings, oil paintings, mirrors, etc. When storing these items, ensure you store them upright. Such artworks are not designed not meant to handle any weight. Furthermore, at the time of storage, make sure you wipe them using a clean cloth and thereafter, you wrap each artwork individually with a thick blanket.
Choosing Your Location
Considering that, antiques are generally vulnerable to environmental and location impacts, you need to choose the storage location very carefully. Here some of the considerations that you need to keep in mind when choosing the storage location.
The Environment – Antiques such as artwork (oil paintings) and wood furniture are quite sensitive to environmental factors, especially humidity and heat. As such, when storing such items, you need to climate control the storage space. A climate controlled space will help maintain the integrity and safety of the antiques.
Conversely, a poorly controlled storage space will leave your antique susceptible to warping, yellowing, and fading. If it is not possible to control the climate inside the storage space, choose a dry space with little temperature fluctuations.
Insurance
Antiques, by tier nature, are valuable assets. You need to take steps to protect your assets by taking up insurance cover for them. When choosing a storage location, ensure that the insurance cover will be valid for that particular location. Moreover, before moving the antique into storage, have it valued to make sure you have insured them for the right amount.
Access
Although you are storing your treasured antique, this is not to mean that you do not want to see it again. Of course, you do. In addition, as such, ensure you choose an easy access location and somewhere convenient – not hundreds of miles away.
With the above in mind, many antique owners will choose an off-site storage unit rather than a garage or attic. Such facilities offer better climate control, security, and usually meet insurance standards. However, when choosing a storage unit, do some exploration. Do not settle on the first unit you find.