car seat saver mat

With all the sprays, polishes, oils, cleaners, and waxes available today, it’s no wonder that this is the most asked question by far. My response is always the same: “Do you just want a shine or do you want protection also”? Spray-on polish and oils, “time savers”, give a quick temporary shine in just minutes, but that’s all you get. The reason they “shine” is because they are WET. This “wet look” may produce a nice shine but offers little or no protection. These products became popular in the late 1940s and have increased in popularity ever since. TV commercials showing a house wife using product X on a dull table top, followed by her smiling beautiful face in the reflection gave proof of the effortless shine their product would produce. Well, that was nothing but a good marketing ploy to boost product sales. What house wife, even today, would not want to save a lot of time and good old fashion elbow grease? What they did not tell you, was that the silicone oils and petroleum distillates in their product would actually cause harm to your finish over time. In the late 60s and early 70s refinishing shops made a lot of money refinishing hundreds of table tops when there finish softened and turned into a sticky, gooey mess. These products are much improved today and can be good for the occasional quickie just before guest arrive, but prolonged use can still leave a gooey mess and still no real protection. It is easy to tell if a customer has been using these kind of polishes. You can make swirl marks in the wet oil with your fingers, or lift a cloth place mat from the table top to reveal a dull spot the same shape of the mat (the oil was absorbed by the mat). Because the surface is wet, it will actually attract and hold more dust and pollutants from the air.

Let’s take a moment and consider just what a finish is designed to do. First and foremost it is to seal the wood. Sealing the wood protects the wood from moisture changes, spills, stains, and surface abrasions. Second it is used to enhance the beauty of the wood grain. Have you ever heard someone tell how there produce “feeds” the wood. Unless your furniture is unfinished, or the finish has deteriorated, there is absolutely no way any polish, oil or wax is going to get through the finish to the wood. Another common misconception is that wood furniture is “alive” and need to “breathe,” so don’t seal the pores with wax. Wood furniture is not “alive” it can not “breathe” nor does it need to be “nourished” or “fed” with oily polishes. Just the very opposite is the truth! Continual changes in humidity, not the lack of “feeding”, cause unsealed wood to crack, warp, swell, shrink and glue joints to loosen.

PASTE WAX has been used for centuries as a finishing material itself and a finish protector. If used properly, paste wax will provide a thin, hard, lasting finish. Waxes dry hard so they do not smear and attract dust and dirt. Paste waxing typically lasts 3-5 years, depending on how much the furniture is used and how many coats are applied. Table tops and chair arms are an exception, generally needing to be waxed once a year, due to the extra wear they receive. Many people, especially antique lovers, prefer the soft sheen provided by paste wax. Also, waxes do not interfere with future refinishing like silicone polishes most often do. Paste wax is hard work. It will take 4-6 hours to paste wax a dining room set and if done properly will not need waxing again for years. It requires effort, but you won’t obtain a more durable, beautiful protection than paste wax. Remember, the wax protects the finish, the finish protects the wood. To dust or clean, just wipe with a soft damp, lint free cloth.

Economy 101 – A typical can of past wax cost less then $15.00 and if the lid is put back on properly after each use will last the average home owner 20 years or so. Now consider the advertisements that tell you to dust every day with there $3.00 per can spray polish. All right, now do the math. One $3.00 can a month for next 20 years ($720.00) verses one can for 20 years at $15.00.

Next consider the time factor. Lets say it takes 5 minutes once a week to use a spray polish on your dinning room set. 5 minutes times 52 weeks times 4 years: that’s a little over 17 hours spent giving your set a non-protective shine. With past wax it took 5 hours to wax the first time then you spent 1 more hour per year doing the table top and chair arms the next 3 years, that’s 8 hours spent giving your set a protective coating that has extended the life of the finish.

One more thing. Make sure you use a wax designed for wood furniture. Some shoe and car waxes can cause problems on some finishes.

Steve Nearman is a 40+ year veteran on the furniture restoration trade and operates The Master’s Touch furniture service in Fredericksburg, Virginia and is the founder of Professional Restorers International. His local clients include several historical sites like, Kenmore, Mary Ball Washington’s House, Rising Sun Tavern, Gary Melcher’s Belmont and many private collectors of early American furniture. View his PRI shop Bio page under the Virginia state directory at: Professional Restorers International

Prince Lionheart Car Seat Saver Protector Pad/Mat-Beige/Tan $22.99

Prince Lionheart Car Seat Saver BASIX Upholstery Protector Pad/Mat $16.99

We love ‘em and we’ve got to take ‘em with us. I’m talking about our kids of course. And when we have to take them with us in the car, we have to make sure they are safe.

Kids car seats are just a fact of life if your child is under 80 pounds and/or 58 inches.

For many of us that means we are going to have to go through three separate kid car seats before out child can safely buckle up without any assistance. What we hope to do here is give you an idea of what to get and when to get it to insure your kid has a safe ride.

Face it, babies need a lot of stuff. A short trip to the store can seem like you’re packing for a week in the woods camping trip. Diapers, wipes, bottles, blanket, towel, changing mat, baby food and who knows what all else. Oh and don’t forget the infant carrier.

Infant only seats are small rear facing seats that often times come with handles so they can be used to carry baby outside the car. Some infant seats come as a travel system and the seat itself is a part of a stroller. Infant seats can come with a base that is installed one time allowing the carrier to simply snap into the base and snap out. This is a huge time saver compared to having to actually install the seat each time you use it. Typically infant car seats are for children under 30 pounds. Read the manufacturer’s label for details.

The next step up is sometimes a convertible seat. This seat can be used facing backward or forward. As a general rule, babies should ride in a rear facing mode until they are at least one and at least 20 pounds. Once your child hits that milestone, you can “convert” to a forward facing mode with the convertible car seat.

Almost all convertibles can come with a seat base and again this is a great way to insure that the seat is tightly installed each time it is used. Additional bases can be bought separately for additional vehicles.

When you kid starts to complain about riding in a kids car seat, and if he or she is at least four years old and their head has reached to top of their current seat, it’s time for a booster seat.

Booster seats come with a back or backless. Smaller children will find the model with a back a better fit. The whole idea here is to elevate or boost the child so that they can safely use the seat belts that are installed in the car. Boosters do not have their own harnesses.

Hopefully you now have a better idea of what to expect from kids car seats and when to buy them.

Jessica Boyd writes about car safety and has a special interest in kids car seat but she also has opinions on Car Seats For Babies. Visit CarSeatsForBabies.org and you can find her take on the latest trends and ideas on Car Seats For Babies information.

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