Dusting

In order to protect the finish on your furniture, make sure to dust regularly.  Use a soft cloth, slightly dampened to help trap the dust instead of sending it airborne.  Avoid multi-purpose cleaners - these weren't made for the finish on fine furniture.

Protecting your Furniture

The best protection for your wood furniture is a wax polish.

To Use: Take a clean cotton cloth, sponge or brush and apply the wax polish in the direction of the wood grain. To obtain a uniform color, always wipe evenly, blending the wax over the whole surface area by exerting a small degree of pressure when applying by hand. Take care to lightly remove any excess wax immediately with a separate, clean absorbent cloth, again following the direction of the grain pattern.  Leave to dry for around 3 minutes, and buff to finish with a soft cloth.Re-apply about every 6 months.

Heat, humidity and hardwoods

Hard wood furniture is crafted from wood that is carefully dried, retaining just enough moisture for the furniture to properly acclimate to the relative humidity in your home. The wood in furniture continues to exchange moisture with the air, shrinking and expanding in response to changes in relative humidity.

Solid hardwood furniture's natural response to extremely dry air is to lose moisture and shrink a bit. This should correct itself as the relative humidity rises, and the hardwood absorbs enough moisture to expand slightly.