Here's Why I Quit Using Howards

Every Flipper I Know Uses Howard's. Here's Why I Quit.

For two years I used Howard's products on every piece that came through my garage. The listing photos looked incredible, but not the reviews.

By Edith Thompson - (80+ Pieces Restored & Resold)

Last updated Aug 2, 2026

Howard's Looks Great (for a few days)

If you flip furniture, you already know the routine.

Pick up a dry piece. Hit it with Restor-A-Finish. Follow it with Feed-N-Wax. Take listing photos under garage lighting. The piece looks rich. Glossy. Ready.

Then about two weeks later, the shine is gone. The color flattens back down. On older pieces, especially dry mahogany and walnut, the dye sinks unevenly into damaged areas.

Dark patches. Blotches. Places that never showed in listing photos but showed up in someone's living room.

I found out when a buyer left me three stars on a console table. "Looked great in the photos. A little uneven in person."

She was not wrong.

The Finish Died. Not The Wood

Another flipper explained it to me in about thirty seconds.

Every finished piece of wood has two layers working together. Resin is the armor. Oil is what keeps that armor flexible.

Over 15 or 20 years, heat and cleaning strip the oil out. Once the oil is gone, the resin goes brittle. That is why old furniture looks dry even when the wood underneath is perfectly fine.

Howard's puts a dye and a temporary shine over that dead finish. It looks alive for a week. But underneath, nothing changed.

Where the finish is driest, the dye sinks unevenly.

That is your blotching. That is your three star review.

Oil Feeds It. Wax Seals It

The fix is pretty simple. A restoration salve made from natural beeswax and oils.

The oil feeds the dried out finish and brings back the depth and richness the wood lost. The beeswax smooths the surface and becomes the new protective layer on top.

No petroleum. No silicone. No dye sitting on top pretending to be color.

The result does not look overly polished. It looks healthy. And it still looks honest when the buyer gets it home, not just under garage lights.

Twelve Minutes Changed My Whole Business

Every hour you spend sanding one piece is an hour you are not sourcing or listing another.

My last sideboard: $30 at an estate sale. About $3 in product. 12 minutes to work it in and wipe it down. Listed with two photos. No filters. Sold for $325 in under an hour.

When you can restore a piece and have it photographed the same morning, the math changes fast. More flips per month. Faster turnaround. Better margins on every piece.

The goal is not doing less work. It is avoiding work that was never necessary in the first place.

Try This Before You Sand Anything

I am not saying this replaces refinishing. If a finish is peeling or the wood is seriously damaged, it still needs proper restoration.

But if a solid piece simply looks dull, faded, dry, or worn, this is the first thing I try.

The salve is from a brand called Oakora. They make it in small batches and sell direct. It is not on Amazon, trust me I've looked.

If you flip furniture, try it on one of those pieces sitting in your garage right now. The one you have been putting off because you thought it needed a full sand down.

You might be surprised how much life is still hiding underneath.

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If the piece looks dull, dry, faded, or worn, try this before turning it into a full refinishing project.

Work it into the wood, let it sit, then wipe away the excess. The conditioning oils help bring back richness and depth, while beeswax leaves the surface looking smooth, natural, and cared for.

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