I was reading Easy Cottage Style by Liz Bauwens and Alexandra Campbell as I waited for my daughter today.  Listen to this:

If you buy or inherit a grand country house, live with the rooms for a while before deciding which ones you really want or need to re-decorate.  Because of their size, large country houses have been re-decorated relatively rarely, and it’s common to have paints and wallpapers that are up to a hundred years old.

New fabrics can make old paintwork look dirty and shabby, so collect and reuse fabrics-anything from old tablecloths to bedspreads and curtains-to cover chairs and sofas. 

 ARE YOU KIDDING ME?  I love history, and all, but this is disgusting advice.  Our family had a little hiccup 6 years ago.  We moved back home to Ohio for 8 months.  We bought a 60 year old house that TRUST ME had never been re-decorated.  Or cleaned for that matter.  I got this much dust off ONE wall with a broom.

If you want to use old sheets to recover your furniture, that is fine with me as long as you wash them first.  But do me a favor.  Leave the 100 year old paint for a museum.