Is it harmful to keep a clear vinyl table cloth on my Italian lacquer dining room table?
We’re more than happy to answer your question with an amount of detail we hope will clearly clarify this issue for you. Any modern day finish (within the last 10 plus years) should NOT have any form of plastic set on it for any length of time. Current finishes have chemical properties in them that can actually mix with the chemical composition of plastics (such as a plastic table cloth), causing what is called “plasticizer migration.” This is a chemical reaction between the two individual surfaces. This reaction leaves different types of marks on your wood finished surface, such as lightening the area affected with a cloudy look. Therefore, you should not place any type of plastic on a table top. This includes a plastic table cloth, plastic figurines or any type of center piece with plastic feet, plastic bottom place mats, plastic cups or saucers, plastic plates, etc.. You should always make sure there is some form of felt or cloth under any plastic that will be set on a table top surf
