Porcelain Antique Restoration Shop in LIC: Hermitage Studios

Broken porcelain, art glass and bronze have been the daily work here since 1991, and this antique restoration shop is easy to miss from the street. Hermitage Studios, at 3718 Northern Blvd, Suite 519, is in Long Island City, Queens, and it works by appointment. Its phone line, is staffed Monday to Friday from 11 am to 6 pm and Saturday from 12 pm to 5 pm, and Sunday is closed. Most jobs begin with two photographs rather than a walk-in.

The studio describes itself as Hermitage Studios NY Inc., founded in 1991 and now marking more than 35 years of continuous practice. Its clients are auction houses, galleries, estates, institutions and private collectors, and its specialities page puts the pitch bluntly: it is frequently entrusted with objects that others consider irreparable. The house motto, repeated on the About page, is any material, any scale, any age, with the goal of making a piece look correct rather than new.

That philosophy has a practical meaning for anyone bringing in an heirloom. The studio lists reversibility where appropriate, material compatibility and respect for original intent as its rules, and says it does not take cosmetic shortcuts or trade structure for speed. In plain terms, an old repair that has yellowed will usually be taken apart and redone, and a missing finger on a figurine will be rebuilt in a way a later conservator can still identify.

Porcelain and ceramics lead the list, covering European and Asian porcelain, faience and terracotta. The work runs from fracture stabilization and precise realignment to loss compensation, where a missing rim or handle is sculpted back and painted to match the original glaze. The online portfolio shows a 19th-century Sèvres vase 40 inches tall, a Minton pâte-sur-pâte vase at 44 inches, an 18th-century Chinese vase and a Berlin KPM plaque titled Miriam and Moses.

Glass is the second big category: studio glass, Tiffany, Daum, French art glass, Venetian and Bohemian pieces. Here the treatments are cold working, edge refinement, chip mitigation and rebuilding fractured elements. The homepage shows the range, from a Venini fumé pitcher to a 2016 Lino Tagliapietra glass sculpture called Oca, and the gallery includes a 32-inch multicolored Murano chandelier and a pair of 19th-century enameled Continental glass vases.

The rarer specialities are what set this studio apart from a general repair counter. It lists plique-à-jour enamel and enamel on silver, copper and porcelain; French, Chinese and Japanese lacquer; and Shibayama, the Japanese inlay technique, where it recreates missing parts with micro-carving. One portfolio piece is a Marcus & Co. brooch in plique-à-jour enamel with a conch pearl and diamonds, and another is a Jean Dunand lacquer box from the 20th century.

Sculpture work covers bronze, marble, terracotta and ivory, with patina reintegration, marble infill and internal reinforcement so a piece can travel or go on display safely. For paintings, the studio offers surface cleaning, varnish reduction, tear repair and structural relining. It also treats modern design objects: the homepage features Shiro Kuramata's Miss Blanche chair in acrylic and an Yves Klein Blue Venus in IKB pigment on plaster, and the gallery even shows Hermès Kelly and Birkin bags.

The studio is honest about when it should be called. Its own checklist includes cracks that are spreading, old adhesives that are visible or yellowing, bronze with uneven corrosion, lacquer that is lifting, and pieces exposed to water, fire or smoke. It also prepares objects for transport, exhibition or sale and writes formal conservation proposals for insurance claims, which is often the reason an estate executor or a dealer calls rather than a single collector.

The Request a Quote form is the real front door. It asks for the size of the object, which is required, the material and the service needed, and it accepts two pictures of up to 15 MB each. Shoot the break straight on and then from the side, include a ruler in one frame, and bag every loose shard. The studio says it replies in less than 24 hours, and the next step is booking a visit by phone during the posted hours.

Be realistic about what is worth sending. A chipped everyday mug or a mass-produced figurine will cost more to restore properly than to replace, so skip it unless the sentimental value is the point. Where this studio earns its keep is a cracked Sèvres urn, a Tiffany shade with a broken panel or a lacquer box with lifting layers. If your problem is a stained Persian rug instead, Costikyan, also in Long Island City, handles textiles.

The studio moved to Northern Boulevard this year from an earlier space on 24th Street, so older listings may still show the previous address. Suite 519 sits in a large former factory building on the boulevard, and the nearest subway is 36th Street on the M and R lines, a short walk along Northern Boulevard. Bring a padded box and a hand truck for anything heavy, as you will be carrying it through a working office building.

Once the object is dropped off, the neighborhood rewards a detour. Head north up 35th Street into Astoria and you pass Kaufman Astoria Studios, where films have been shot since the silent era, and a few blocks on is the Museum of the Moving Image, with its permanent exhibition on how movies and television are made. Steinway Street, a little further east, has bakeries and cafes for an easy lunch before the ride back.

Address: Hermitage Studios, at 3718 Northern Blvd, Suite 519, Long Island City, NY 11101. Email: hermitage.ny@gmail.com. Visits are by appointment. Quotes: online form with object size, material and up to two photos, with a reply promised within 24 hours. Founded: 1991. Subway: 36th Street (M, R).

Best for: broken European or Asian porcelain, art glass from Tiffany to Murano, enamel and lacquer, bronze sculpture and modern design pieces with real value. Bring every fragment, the original box if you have it and any earlier restoration paperwork. Ask the Karpo APP for a lunch spot in Astoria or the quickest route back to Manhattan once your piece is checked in.