Looking after furniture through an Ahmedabad summer

From April to June, Ahmedabad afternoons pass 42 °C and the air is very dry. Then the monsoon arrives and humidity jumps. These swings are hard on furniture, and a few habits protect it.

Keep pieces out of direct sun. Afternoon light through a west window fades teak and leather within a single summer and dries out the surface. Move a cabinet or armchair a metre back, or draw sheer curtains between 1 and 5 pm. Rotate cushions and rugs every few weeks so they fade evenly.

Wood needs a little help in dry months. Oil our teak pieces once in April with a teaspoon of teak or linseed oil on a soft cloth, leave it for twenty minutes and wipe off the excess. Keep furniture at least 30 cm from air-conditioner outlets and coolers, since cold, dry air blowing on one side of a table top can make it warp or crack. Cane dries and becomes brittle; wipe it with a damp cloth once a week in summer and let it dry in the shade.

Leather, like our arch-arm armchair, needs conditioning every two or three months, and more often in summer. Use a plain, colourless leather conditioner and test it on the back first. Marble does not mind heat, but the dust that blows in during summer is abrasive. Dust marble with a soft dry cloth before wiping it damp, so grit is not dragged across the surface. When the first rains come, open windows on dry days to let humidity settle gradually.