The Furniture Bible - by Christophe Pourny (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

A Wall Street Journal Top 10 Crucial Home & Design Book for Beginners

A Library Journal Best Book of the Year

An Amazon Best Book of the Month

Christophe Pourny learned the art of furniture restoration in his father's atelier in the South of France. In this, his first book, he teaches readers everything they need to know about the provenance and history of furniture, as well as how to restore, update, and care for their furniture--from antiques to midcentury pieces, family heirlooms or funky flea-market finds. The heart of the book is an overview of Pourny's favorite techniques--ceruse, vernis anglais, and water gilding, among many others--with full-color step-by-step photographs to ensure that readers can easily replicate each refinishing technique at home. Pourny brings these techniques to life with a chapter devoted to real-world refinishing projects, from a veneered table to an ebonized desk, a gilt frame to a painted northern European hutch. Rounding out this comprehensive guide is care and maintenance information, including how to properly clean leather, polish hardware, fix a broken leg, and replace felt pads, as well as recipes to make your own wax, shellac, varnish, stain, and more.

Review Quotes

Wall Street Journal, 10 Crucial Home Design Books for Beginners

Library Journal, Best Books of the Year

Amazon, Best Books of the Month

"A guide for the pros, DIYers and furniture aficionados eager for tips from the expert. Pourny's practical advice on all things antique is coupled with historical notes."
--Time

"A comprehensive but accessible guide to restoration that lays out everything you need to know about making over wooden furniture."
--Martha Stewart Living

"Authority wafts from [Pourny's] handsome how-to book like the sweet smell of lemon oil."
--New York Times

"A practical, visual guide for anyone who wants to restore a cherished heirloom or simply correct a water stain."
--San Francisco Chronicle

"Pourny's book will serve brave DIYers as well as design aficionados wishing to hone their connoisseurship."
-ArchitecturalDigest.com

"It's really everything you wanted to know about furniture but were afraid to ask."
--WWD.com

"Whether you want to refresh your mother's outdated bureau, refinish a set of vintage Danish Modern chairs, or restore antique marquetry to its former glory,
this volume's got you covered and then some."
-Design*Sponge

"Encyclopedic in coverage . . . deftly illustrated and defined . . . a fantastic go-to source for furniture care."
--Library Journal, starred review

"A thorough and practical guide for the furniture expert as well as for the novice restorer. . . . This guide will find a wide audience among those who simply want to learn about and appreciate good furniture, as well as those who are more hands-on."
--Publishers Weekly, starred review

"This is a very useful and important book for anyone who owns furniture--antique, modern, or new--or anyone who plans to fix or restore it."
--Martha Stewart

About the Author

Christophe Pourny is one of the most esteemed furniture restorers in the business. Descended from a long line of artisans, he was reared in his father's atelier in the South of France and apprenticed at his uncle Pierre Madel's legendary antiques shop on rue Jacob in Paris. Today, Pourny restores furniture out of his own atelier in Brooklyn, New York.