Georgians Keep Family History Alive By Restoring Heirloom Pieces

When Mary Martin, of Cumming, Georgia, saw her refinished table for the first time after getting it restored by ReVamped Furnishings, she shrieked with joy. “Oh my goodness. It’s beautiful,” she said. “I absolutely love it. [You] made it better than new.”

Whether is Grandma Ann’s sideboard or Great Aunt Jane’s dining table, Andrew and Deanna Cauthen, the owners of ReVamped Furnishings, believe that there’s something very special about restoring a piece of furniture that has been passed down by loved ones from previous generations.

“We have restored a variety of different heirloom pieces for several customers and it never fails to amaze me how happy they are when they see their furniture. It’s wonderful that we can do this for people. It gives us so much joy,” said Deanna Johnson Cauthen, who is the marketing and sales director for the business.

Dr. Vada Coleman, a retired high school choral director who lives in Stone Mountain, recently had a couple of end tables and a coffee table restored, and shared her delight on the ReVamped Furnishings Facebook page. “My coffee and end tables were in bad shape but still had much life to them... special thanks to the Cauthens for their professional expertise in restoring life to my pieces,” said Dr.Coleman.

Andrew, who actually does most of the furniture restoration, encourages people who have heirloom pieces sitting around to take time and get an estimate and see what it would actually coast to refinish a piece. “We talk to people all the time who tell us that they have had furniture sitting in the basement or garage for years because they weren’t sure what to do with it or how much it would cost to fix,” said Andrew. “The bottom line is, you won’t know unless you ask. It may not be as much as you think,” said Andrew.

Several weeks ago, ReVamped Furnishing refinished an heirloom sideboard for their repeat customer, Natalie Standard, who currently resides in Sandy Springs. “I’m so glad that I was able to have this restored. This piece was passed down to me from my dad and I plan to pass it along to my son when he’s an adult,” said Standard. ReVamped Furnishings has also refinished a cedar hope chest and an antique wood dining table for Mrs.Standard.

Lisa Pass, who also lives in Stone Mountain, had originally planned to throw out an old dresser and night table that she had received from her mother. “To think that I planned to simply toss them,” said Pass. “I'm excited to know that several pieces I got from my mother can be beautifully restored and remain in the family. I know she'd be so proud,” said Pass.

Deanna explained not all the heirloom pieces they refinish have been passed down from a previous generation. Sometimes a customer has a piece of furniture that they've kept it for a long time because it has great sentimental value. Such was the case for Jim and Angela Paul of Tucker, Georgia, who had a dining set restored.

"This was the first dining set that Jim and I bought and I really didn’t want to part with it. You transformed it into a lovely “new” set. It looks great in our sun room. We are so pleased,” said Angela Paul.

Deanna explained that ReVamped Furnishings offers a full range of services, including free estimates for repairs and restoration. “If you text or email us pictures of the piece, we can give you a rough estimate of how much it would cost to repair. Of course, in-person evaluations are more accurate, but we could at least give you a ballpark figure, said Deanna.

The Cauthens shared that ReVamped Furnishings provides pick up and delivery of furniture for a small additional fee. “We want to make the restoration experience as easy as possible for our customers,” said Deanna.

For more information about the services that ReVamped Furnishings offer, visit their website at www.revampedfurnishings.com.