Maine Steamer Trunk Company

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Maine Steamer Trunk Company

Maine Steamer Trunk Company is a furniture and steamer trunk restoration company in Brunswick, ME!

07/02/2026

This piece is not for sale. This is a restoration project completed for a client.

First of all, I have to apologize for not taking a before photo. Believe me when I say this dresser was pink, and it had what felt like a quarter of an inch of paint on it in just about every color imaginable!

This turned out to be one of the biggest restoration projects we’ve tackled in a very long time. When we accepted the job, I thought removing all that paint would be the hardest part, and to some extent it was, but once the paint was gone, the real work began.

The biggest challenge was repairing the side and back panels, which had all split badly. Normally, panels are set into a frame and left free-floating to allow for seasonal expansion and contraction. Unfortunately, on this dresser the side and rear panels were made from solid boards that formed part of the structure itself, leaving no room for movement. Over time, that caused the panels to crack.

The only way to repair it properly was to completely dismantle the dresser, every single piece had to come apart. Once the panels were glued back together, we rebuilt the dresser from the ground up, recutting all the mouldings around the panels so everything fit correctly again.

We had hoped the dresser would be made from a beautiful hardwood like mahogany or walnut, but once stripped we discovered it was built from poplar. Poplar is a perfectly good furniture wood, but it has a tendency to develop green tones when sanded. To overcome this, we bleached the wood several times, sanded it again after the grain had raised, and carefully applied stain to blend everything together.

Finally, we applied three coats of lacquer and hand-rubbed the finish to achieve a beautiful, smooth result.

As you can see, all the time and effort was well worth it, and the customer was absolutely thrilled with the finished piece.

If you have a well-loved piece of furniture that’s in need of some attention, we’d love to help.

Thank you for your continued support.

Maine Steamer Trunk Company
📍 www.mainesteamertrunkcompany.com
📞 (207) 208-9043

Restoration services only – not retail.

05/18/2026

This was a fairly straightforward project on paper: the chairs had been refinished years ago and stained very dark, and the customer wanted them brought back to a natural finish. Sounds simple enough… strip, sand, refinish. Except these chairs were solid walnut everywhere except the backs, which were veneered front and back, while the tops and bottoms of the backs were a much lighter oak. To make things more interesting, parts of the veneer had been sanded through previously.

That created a challenge because we needed to stain the oak sections while keeping the veneered areas natural. We carefully masked off the veneer, which wasn’t easy since there were no clean lines where the veneer had been sanded through. We then had to custom-adjust stain mixes for each individual chair to blend everything properly and touch in the damaged veneer areas by hand.

Thankfully, it all came together beautifully in the end. The seat bases are now with the fantastic team at KHG Upholstery in Gardiner and should be ready sometime in June.

If you have a piece of furniture you love that’s in need of a refresh, please give us a call.

Thank you for your support.

This is a restoration service, not retail.

Maine Steamer Trunk Company
📍 www.mainesteamertrunkcompany.com
📞 (207) 208-9043

04/13/2026

This item is not for sale, this is a restoration project for a client.

If you’re going to have a sofa, have a sofa - and this one is definitely a statement piece. As rough as it looked when it came in, it was actually in pretty good condition. A bit wobbly and worn, but nothing we couldn’t sort out.

The worst part of the job? Removing the old upholstery. If you’ve never done it, take it from us, it’s not fun. Huge respect to upholsterers who do this every day, they deserve it. Once that was out of the way (three 33-gallon bags of horsehair and straw later), we moved on to making the frame structurally sound with a full re-glue and as many glue blocks as we could add throughout the frame.

From there, it was a more straightforward process, stripping, a couple of coats of finish, and hand-rubbed to a smooth result. Now it heads off to the customer’s chosen upholsterer for the final stage.

If you’re thinking about reupholstering a piece, make sure it’s structurally sound first. Once it’s upholstered, going back means removing all that new fabric again, we’ve seen it happen. If you’re considering a project like this, give us a call. We can handle the structural work and connect you with a fantastic upholsterer we trust. Thank you for your support.

Maine Steamer Trunk Company
www.mainesteamertrunkcompany.com
(207) 208-9043
Brunswick, ME

02/12/2026

This item is not for sale, this is a restoration story for a client’s trunk. We’re based in Maine and offer full restoration services for trunks and furniture.

It’s been a while since we restored a trunk, and this one was a real beauty. Apologies for some of the shadowy photos, these were taken early in the morning.

Thankfully, the trunk didn’t need too many repairs, just a few minor bits and bobs. Some of the original canvas had rotted out, so we replaced those sections. Once the structural work was complete, we gave the entire piece a thorough cleaning, then sanded down the wooden slats and the interior. The wood had developed a lovely natural patina over the years, so there was no need to stain it.

The client chose a beautiful grayish-brown paint for the canvas, which really gave the piece a timeless look. After painting, we applied a couple of coats of clear finish, then hand-rubbed everything to a smooth, polished surface. We finished it off with new handles and straps to complete the restoration.

As you can see, this is a wonderful piece that will fit beautifully into any style of home. If you have a trunk or a piece of furniture that’s in need of a little attention, give us a call, we’d love to help.

📍 www.mainesteamertrunkcompany.com
📞 (207) 208-9043

Thank you for your support!

01/14/2026

We’re kicking off the new year with a heartfelt thank you to all of our customers who trusted us to work on some truly incredible pieces of furniture this past year. It means the world to us.

A huge shoutout to Pistol Pete’s Upholstery and the ridiculously talented ladies at Mey & Co. for sending work our way - it’s been greatly appreciated. And a big thank you to Katie at KHG Upholstery for taking such good care of our customers’ upholstery needs.

And last but certainly not least, thank you to my wonderful daughter Lilly for all her help with media and marketing this year. She’s recently headed south for the next chapter of her life, leaving me without my night-out partner… Billy No Mates!

This has been the most challenging year we’ve had since starting the business during COVID. Between slower periods and the never-ending price increases on materials, it’s been tough at times. But even in a hard year, we met wonderful people and worked on some stunning pieces, and for that, we’re truly grateful.

Here are just a few odds and ends we worked on throughout the year. As always, if you have a treasured piece of furniture or a trunk that needs some TLC, give us a call.

Thank you for your continued support, and here’s to a brighter year ahead!

📍 www.mainesteamertrunkcompany.com
📞 (207) 208-9043

This is a restoration service—items shown are not for sale.

12/07/2025

It’s been a while since we restored a trunk, so we were excited to take on this unique piece.

Overall, the trunk was in good structural shape but needed some cosmetic repairs. The client wanted the trunk to look “on the newer side of beaten up,” so we gave it a fresh paint job while preserving its character.

After completing the repairs, we stripped out the rotted paper lining, scraped and cleaned the old exterior paint, and cleaned up the hardware and buttons. The interior was thoroughly sanded and prepped. Once painted, we let the trunk fully dry for several days before applying a clear coat. Finally, we installed new handles and hand-rubbed the entire piece to a smooth, polished finish.

This trunk belonged to the client’s grandfather, who escaped Germany during the outbreak of World War II, so it carried deep sentimental value. This is a restoration service, this trunk is not for sale.

If you have a trunk or piece of furniture with a story to tell, we’d love to help bring it back to life.

📍 www.mainesteamertrunkcompany.com
📞 (207) 208-9043

Thank you for supporting our work.

Address

The Waterfront Flea Market, 14 Maine Street
Brunswick, ME
04011

Telephone

+12072089043

Website

http://mainesteamertrunkcompany.com/

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