Teak, cared for straight.

Is it okay to oil my teak furniture?

Kingsley Bate does not recommend oiling teak furniture (using oil-based products). If done improperly, oiling can cause mildew or irregular colouring & is not covered under warranty.

Teak wood should not be lacquered.

How should I care for teak if it’s used indoors?

If teak furniture is used indoors, we suggest it could be useful to periodically apply a thin coat of wax (e.g. Johnson’s Wax). Doing so provides the teak with additional protection from natural body oils, dust and dirt that may come in contact with the furniture.

Do I need to clean my teak furniture before using it the first time?

Yes. Before placing cushions on your new teak furniture, remove any dust from the manufacturing process by wiping the furniture with a damp cloth. Teak has oil that occurs naturally in the wood. Expect some of this oil from the surface areas to bleed away during the first few rainfalls. To protect your cushions in the early days, bring them inside before the furniture gets wet so the cushions are not marked from the natural oil on the surface of the new timber. If you have sling-seated chairs, likewise move them away from under table surfaces during the first rainfalls. Once the furniture has started to acquire its natural silver-grey patina, it is no longer necessary to bring the cushions indoors or move sling chairs.

How can I protect my teak table from food & drink stains?

Kingsley Bate’s Teak Shield is a completely transparent product that makes it difficult for stains from red wine, salad oil, & coffee to penetrate wood, so that fresh spills can be wiped away with a damp cloth. Teak Shield can be used on clean, naturally weathered wood, or on furniture that has been treated with our Teak Protector. We recommend applying it two or more times per year depending on use and exposure.

Do I need to bring my cushions indoors?

If your furniture is new — see the note above. Bringing cushions indoors is recommended but high-quality cushions can withstand a lot so it comes down to personal choice and practicality. Bringing cushions in when the furniture is not in use will prolong the lifespan of the cushions, and keep them looking fresher for longer. In higher rainfall months, in dusty environments, if there is a lot of soiling from birds or other animals, or foliage dropping from trees, the cushions will benefit from staying away from these elements during those times. Out of season, or for extended periods of non-use, it would be logical to put the cushions away undercover to keep them fresher for when they will be used next.

How does teak wood weather?

Teak wood furniture, when exposed to the outdoors, will form a handsome silver-grey patina. This process will take approximately 9 months, depending on the amount of sunlight and rain exposure.

During the weathering process you may notice “checking” or small cracks that appear in the wood. This is perfectly natural, as wood expands and contracts slightly when left outdoors. Checking is cosmetic only and in no way affects the structural integrity of the furniture. Checking is not covered by warranty.

A lifting of the grain may occur on the top edges of the arms and legs. The grain will return to a smoother finish, closer to the original finish, after the initial weathering process. To aid this process, simply clean the furniture with a soft-bristle brush or sponge as indicated in our cleaning instructions.

Water spots or other discolouration may also occur during the weathering process. These will even out over time and with periodic cleaning, and with longer exposure to the elements the furniture will achieve a uniform silver-grey.

How can I prevent my teak from turning silver-grey?

If you prefer to keep your teak wood a golden colour, you can use a product such as Kingsley Bate Teak Protector. This is a purely cosmetic application related only to the colour. There is no need to maintain the timber itself. This product will simply help retain the original wood colour for approximately one season. It can be reapplied as needed. You should wait 2 weeks before applying the protector to newly assembled furniture. We strongly recommend you try it on a small area of your furniture first — e.g. the back of a leg or underside of a chair — to ensure you like the results before applying it more generally.

Accredited interior designers, architects & specifiers — please email us with your company letterhead & credentials and request to become an industry trade buyer.

Are the lead times shown on a product page a guarantee?

They’re estimates, not guarantees. Every piece carries a commitment band — In Stock (Australia), Quick Ship, Next Container, Made to Order or By Quotation — set from the freight lane that piece actually ships on, never a single site-wide promise. The band tells you what to expect; the desk confirms the date.

Can I reserve a piece before it arrives?

Reserve appears only once two things are both true: the piece sits on Next Container — confirmed on an incoming shipment with a dated ETA window — and the warehouse has confirmed stock against that SKU. Pieces on other bands, or not yet confirmed, are quoted rather than reserved.

Can a catalogue piece be resized or made to a custom dimension?

Within our banquet & bespoke capability, yes — dining tables, banquettes and bar or lounge seating are sized to a floor plan and made to specification, with drawings and a material schedule agreed before anything is cut.

Start a brief through Custom & Contract →

What does the trade programme include?

Specification support, container reservation and the customer’s-own-material cushion programme — each usable directly, and gathered under one trade sign-in so a practice’s schedule, reservations and cushion requests live in one account rather than one browser. Accredited designers, architects and specifiers are welcome to apply with their company letterhead and credentials.

Trade sign-in →

Can I download a technical sheet or spec drawing?

Where a sheet exists for the piece, the product page opens it directly as a PDF, with the printed page it came from noted so you know which edition it is drawn from. Where one has not been prepared yet, the page offers a direct request to the desk instead — sheets are issued per piece against the current supplier revision, so what you receive matches what will be built.

How do I request a dimensioned drawing or other documents for a piece?

Through the documents desk in your trade account. Name the piece, choose the document — specification sheet, dimensioned drawing, fabric card or care guide — and log the request; it is saved to your account with the date filed. We do not run a self-serve document library, so every document is issued this way, per piece.

Open the documents desk →

Is cushion specification the same across every brand?

No — each house dimensions cushions its own way. Varaschin publishes a thickness on the product sheet’s own elevation, piece by piece. Kingsley Bate uses a published three-step grammar — the piece, the fabric grade, the edge style — across four edge styles and two fabric tiers. iSiMAR pads are accessories with their own reference codes rather than integral upholstery. All three are made to order through our supplier workshops.

Commission cushions through Custom & Contract →

Can I supply my own fabric (C.O.M.)?

Yes, on eligible pieces — customer’s own material is a standard part of the brief. Send your fabric and the cushions are specified to it, with meterage returned on the spec sheet so what you send is what is used. Where a piece is not already marked C.O.M., ask and the brief will confirm it rather than assume.

Start a C.O.M. brief →

Three ways into the cushion programme, open to anyone: Custom fabrics on hand, Cushions from the ranges and Supply your own fabric.

How is an iSiMAR frame finished, and what about a touch-up?

Every iSiMAR frame is a texturised matte polyester powder coat over galvanised steel or aluminium, specified by name and RAL code rather than a screen colour — the maker’s own note is that colours are approximate on screen and physical finishes should be checked. For a touch-up match, work from the physical sample, not a photograph.

Request finish samples →

What is the difference between iSiMAR’s porcelain and compact HPL tops?

Porcelain tops are a quartz-based porcelain, 12mm, across seven printed colourways. Compact HPL tops are a 10mm high-pressure laminate core in eight colourways. A separate designer-edition programme runs printed MDF/HDF tops in sixteen patterns, five colourways each.

See the surface library →

Does teak need special care as it weathers?

Yes — and Kingsley Bate’s own guidance for it is on this page already: how the silver-grey patina forms, what checking is (and is not), and how to hold the golden colour if you prefer it. This section does not repeat it.

Jump to The weathering process ↑