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Marble Coffee Table with Gold Painted Flowers, Polished and Set on a New Base, Bed-Stuy

A 36 inch round Carrara marble coffee table with gold flowers carved into the top. It’s a family piece. The owner’s grandparents had it, and it was always used as a coffee table. Years of use left the top dull, with etches, watermarks, scratches and chips. The owner had bought a new leg for it, and the top had to go on that. All the work was done on site, at the owner’s home in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, NY 11216, Kings County.

White Carrara marble coffee table top with gold painted flowers, dull and etched, next to the same top polished and reflecting the light — *Before and after. Left, the top dull and etched. Right, the same top polished to a shine, the gold flowers still on.*

Before I came, the owner had two worries. Nobody knew what the gold leaflets were made of, and they didn’t want to ruin them. And they weren’t sure they wanted the same base forever.

Paint or metal, nobody could tell

From a photo I can’t tell what gold flowers on marble are made of, and most of the time not even in person. To me these looked like paint, and they were. The flowers are carved into the marble and the carved lines are filled with gold paint. The difference matters. Metal inlay, like brass or copper, is sanded and polished separately from the marble. Paint sits in the carved lines, and the polishing is a wet process that goes right over it. If the flowers are carved in and painted, the paint can come off partly or in full.

The table was made to be used with food, so the paint should be water resistant. Whether it would hold up to the polishing only shows once I start.

Round Carrara marble table top with carved gold painted flowers, the surface dull and etched — *Before. The marble dull and etched, with dust and dirt along the edges of the flowers.*

Matte or shine on a painted top

A marble top can be finished matte or shiny, and on a painted top the risk is not the same. The matte is done with water only. There is no buffing compound that can react with the paint, so it is much softer on the flowers. The shine is what puts them at risk. The price is the same either way, and I suggested the matte.

So I started on a small spot first and watched how the paint behaved before I went over the whole table. The paint held, so the whole top went to a shine.

The scratches, etches, dull spots, watermarks and chips all came out. Most of the yellowing came off too. Then the top was sealed.

Round Carrara marble table top with gold painted flowers, polished to a shine, a window reflected in it — *After. Polished to a shine, the gold paint still in place.*

A top on a leg the owner may change later

The new leg was assembled before I came, so the top could go right on it. There are three ways to hold a stone top on a base like this one.

New black metal coffee table leg standing on its own, two flat mounting plates on top — *The new leg standing on its own, before the top went on. The top sits on the two flat plates.*

Holes drilled into the back side of the top, with screws set in epoxy and nuts, hold the strongest. That is how I mounted the leg on a round marble coffee table. But it means holes in a family piece, and the owner didn’t want them. Epoxy alone, with no bolts and no brackets, is permanent. The top can’t come off the base later.

This owner wasn’t sure about keeping the base, so the top went on clear silicone. The silicone holds the top on the plates. If the base ever changes, the silicone is cut with a blade and what’s left cleans off the marble. Tape around the plates kept the silicone off the stone, so the edges stayed clean.

Marble table top upside down with the black leg set on its back side, tape around the plates — *The leg set on the back side of the top, on clear silicone, with tape around the plates.*

What to expect

These are the limits of the polishing and the mount.

On a top with painted decoration, the paint can come off partly or in full during the polishing. Nobody can tell beforehand. A test spot shows it. Paint restoration is not part of the polishing.
Yellowing that sits deep inside the stone can’t be removed. On this table most of it came off, not all.
Sealing gives limited protection. Sealed marble can still stain and etch.
Silicone holds the top more weakly than epoxy. Neither one makes the table as strong as one whole piece. Lift and move the table by the base, never by the top.

Round marble coffee table with gold painted flowers on a black leg, finished, in a living room — *All done. The table back in the living room on its new leg.*

Questions people ask about painted flowers on a marble table

Can a marble table with painted flowers be polished?
Yes, with care. The paint can come off in the polishing, and that only shows once the work starts. I begin with a small test spot. A matte finish is softer on the paint than a shine, and the price is the same.

Can a marble top be attached to a base so it comes off later?
Yes. Set it on clear silicone instead of epoxy. Later the silicone is cut with a blade and the residue cleans off. It holds more weakly than epoxy.

How do I know if the flowers are paint or metal inlay?
Send me close-up photos of the flowers. I may not be able to tell from them, and sometimes not in person either. Metal inlay is worked separately from the marble, so it changes the job. Decorated tops come in many kinds, like this round coffee table with a Greek meander border.

If your marble table has painted, gilded or inlaid decoration and has gone dull, send me a few photos: one of the whole top, a couple close up of the decoration, the size and your zip code. I’m based in Brooklyn and work across Brooklyn and New York City. Email info@marblerestoration.us.

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