Polishing my fingernails the other night, tipped the bottle over. I managed to right it fairly quickly but got three pencil lead sized drops on my cherished antique table. How do I get this off without damaging the finish?
Call your nearest art museum that has a conservator on staff. They are trained in such matters, and good library staff are willing to help. If the table is truly valuable that’s what I’d suggest.
Fingernail polish is tough to get off furniture finishes. If you want to try to do it yourself rather than calling in a professional, you will probably wind up with a not-entirely-flawless finish, although the damage may be minor enough to be unnoticeable.
The methods I’ve seen recommended are prying up the nail polish drip with a flexible plastic putty knife (not a metal one); rubbing the drip lightly with denatured alcohol; or rubbing it lightly with 0000-grade steel wool. All of those methods will mess up the finish if you’re too vigorous with them, so gently does it.