Furniture Resources
Posted by Peter under Furniture Resources on October 08, 2011
The term, "Duncan Phyfe style," is often thrown around in the furniture business. Like many terms, the meaning of "Duncan Phyfe style" has evolved over the years so that it has become perfectly acceptable to describe most simple double pedestal dining tables and dining chairs that match with splay or reeded legs and lyre or harp designs. While many purists may argue that furniture pieces made by Duncan Phyfe are considered adaptations of styles rather than a style itself, I feel the term has become used commonly enough to be considered a style. And besides, aren't all styles really just adaptations of what came before with new elements introduced?
Duncan Phfye was born in Scotland in 1768 and lived a relatively long life, passing away in 1854. At the age of 16 he emigrated to the U.S. and settled in New York. In 1794—at just 26 years old—he started his furniture making business in New York City. Mr. Phyfe quickly became one of the most renowned American cabinetmakers of all time. His store was known for quality furniture at relatively low prices. In the early years, the furniture was made solely from imported mahogany and sometimes emphasized with beautiful veneers. After 1830 his works were done primarily of rosewood. Duncan Phyfe was also responsible for introducing the factory method of making furniture to the American cabinetmaker industry.
The styles of his time heavily influenced his work. The styles that can be seen in original Duncan Phyfe furniture include Empire, Sheraton, French Classical, and most prominently Regency. More than any other decoration, Duncan incorporated carved lyres or harps the most into his pieces. Almost all of his legs were splay, reeded legs that ended in brass claws. The pulls and hardware were usually brass but he also used glass later in his career. Furniture pieces that were actually made by Duncan Phyfe are almost impossible to identify as he almost never labelled his furniture. There are a few pieces in museums and even something in the White House that have been proven made by him, but not many. Nevertheless, Duncan Phyfe certainly left his mark on American furniture and had a taste that even today people consider beautiful and elegant.
Tags: duncan phyfe
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Posted by Peter under Furniture Resources on September 14, 2011
Hardware is one of many design features that have changed along with the passage of different furniture periods. Still, there is a distinct lack of information on this topic, since most discussions on period furniture tend to focus on woods, inlays, construction, and carving styles. So, I've put together a useful compilation of which drawer pulls were most commonly used during different English antique furniture periods.
Jacobean (1603-1625)
I'll start with the Jacobean period because it is the first period in which ornamentation began to clearly take shape in hardware design. Previous to the Jacobean period, drawers were mostly hidden behind doors. However, at the dawn of the Jacobean period, the chest of drawers as we know it began to rise in popularity and complexity. Drawer pulls at the time were mostly small, single-post, brass, and shaped like teardrops. The back would also be brass and round or floral shaped.
William and Mary (1690-1725)
William and Mary period pulls were not much different from their Jacobean counterparts. They became slightly larger in proportion to the furniture but retained the single-post, teardrop style of the previous period.
Queen Anne (1702-1714)
The first two-post pull became popular during the Queen Anne period. Again made from brass, the pulls had a “batwing” shaped backplate and a curved handle between the two posts. Batwing backplates were usually a substantial size.
Georgian (1714-1820)
The Georgian period saw three of the furniture industry’s finest designers and craftsmen in Thomas Chippendale, George Hepplewhite, and Thomas Sheraton. Each of these men greatly influenced the period and had a pull style of their own. Chippendale pulls were a pierced, batwing-shaped pull, Hepplewhite pulls were a stamped brass, oval backplate pull, and Sheraton pulls were usually a round, stamped, brass backplate pull. The typical Georgian period pull was otherwise a simple swan-neck, two-post pull.
Regency (1800-1830)
While Georgian pulls were generally rather uncomplex, Regency period pulls were exactly opposite. Still made of brass, the Regency pulls were large and very ornate, following the general shift in taste that the Regency style embodied.
Victorian (1837-1901)
As you would expect from a long period like the Victorian period, there were a few different kinds of common pulls. Many Early Victorian pieces saw a return of the teardrop, single-post pull from the Jacobean and William and Mary periods, although Victorian teardrop pulls were generally larger than earlier precedents. The Victorian period was also the first period in which mass production was used in cabinetry. This process saw the introduction of turned wooden knobs as well as porcelain knobs. Still, more ornate, hand-crafted Victorian pieces had carved drawer pulls.
Edwardian (1901-1910)
Edwardian period furniture, with all of its clean and geometric lines, tended to feature simple swan neck pulls and smaller round ring pulls that complemented the satinwood and ebony inlays that were in fashion at the time.
Tags: pulls
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Posted by Chris under Furniture Resources on June 03, 2011
Many people ask us for advice on which wood types to choose for their furniture. Basically, which wood you choose depends on the context: mahogany, walnut, yew, and elm, for example, are generally considered more "formal" wood types. Cherry, oak, and especially pine are usually used in country style furniture. However, these are only trends and guidelines—not rules. You can definitely mix different wood types as long as the style of the furniture and the color match (color is determined by the stain, not the wood). Of course, being able to identify wood types certainly helps.
Similar Wood Types
The first of the two following tables is mahogany, and the second is cherry. As you can see, they are both beautiful, formal tables and the wood looks relatively similar (the difference is in the grain). Thus, depending on the style of the pieces that you're dealing with, you can substitute cherry for mahogany and vice versa.
Similar Styles
In contrast, consider the following two tables, which are identical models but have different wood types; the oak table is also hand-planed and distressed, giving it a more country style appearance. Oak is also generally considered to be a "less formal" wood, although whether you'd use an oak table or a walnut table depends entirely on the style of your home and the furniture within it.
A Little Banding Goes a Long Way
Adding banding to the edge of a piece can make it look slightly more formal without overdoing it. So, as an example, consider the following two pictures. One shows plain cherry, and the other shows cherry with yew banding. A nice touch, isn't it?
More Common English Woods
Beyond these three basic wood types (cherry, mahogany, and oak), the other two most common woods used in English furniture are elm and yew, which are represented in the following bookcase and cabinet, respectively. Note how they don't really look all that different from the other wood types, at least insofar as color and style are concerned.
In Summary...
The most common English woods are mahogany, cherry, walnut, oak, yew, and elm. Occasionally maple, rosewood, pine, and ash are used; satinwood and rosewood are relatively common inlays. Knowing this can sometimes help identify "fakes" that are represented as genuine English furniture; for example, teak is highly unlikely to be used in English furniture, as it is principally an Asian wood. We hope that we've answered some of your wood type questions. As always, feel free to leave any additional questions and concerns in the comments section below!
Tags: wood, tips
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Posted by under Furniture Resources on May 27, 2011
This is a common enough question, but basically there is a standard set of elements to consider when determining whether or not your furniture is antique. Many people make the mistake of looking at one or two details while neglecting the rest, but judging antique furniture is a lot like judging a painting: look at the details, but also take in an overall perspective.
Hardware
For starters, look closely at the hardware—pulls, knobs, hinges, screws, nails, whatever. Does it shine brilliantly or does it look old? Keep in mind that hardware goes in and out of style just like everything else, so a large majority of antique furniture has had its hardware replaced at least once. New hardware can also be made to look antique, so don't draw too hasty of a conclusion: just keep it in mind. Also, if you can find screws (usually visible on the back, if at all), are they Phillips or flat head? Phillips screws are a 20th-century invention, so if your piece is supposed to be from the 18th century but has Phillips screws, they have either been added in a recent restoration or it's a fake.
Drawers
This ties into the hardware issue. If your piece has drawers, take a drawer out and look at how the handles are attached on the inside of the drawer. Nuts are more common for antiques, while screws are a newer convention. Also check to see if the hardware has been replaced: usually there will be marks or holes on the wood around the hardware.
Note whether the drawer has dovetails, and whether they are machine-cut dovetails or hand-cut. Does the back of the drawer have dovetails? This is usually a sign that the piece is indeed antique—and high-quality at that, since rear dovetails are very uncommon even in antiques.
Drawers (and backs) are also usually one of the cheapest components in furniture. Look at the wood used in the drawers. Most modern pieces—even high-quality reproductions that look very genuine on the outside—use plywood in drawer construction. The logic behind this move is simple: why waste expensive, solid wood (which has to be carefully treated and cured) on the inside of a drawer? Plywood, however, is another 20th-century invention, so if you're looking at composite wood and your antique is supposed to be Victorian, then that plywood was either added in a restoration or you've got a reproduction on your hands. Flip the drawer over too, as a true period piece will not only have a solid wood bottom, but that wood will be thick and beveled to fit into the grooves of the frame of the drawer.
Finish
This is an easy one. High gloss finishes and polyurethane are 20th-century elements. Antique furniture was usually shellacked, meaning that it typically had a duller finish. This isn't to say that antique finishes can't be shiny and reflective, but they're not going to be high gloss, either. Shellack finishes were very often quite thick (up to a quarter inch!), so that's another—albeit slightly more difficult—indicator to look for.
Style
This element is a little more nuanced. Basically, if you're serious about knowing whether your piece is antique, compare it to similar pieces that claim to be antique. Search the internet—or look at our inventory, which serves a very good benchmark for what English antiques should look like. Our reproduction furniture also exemplifies what a quality replica looks like, so be sure to learn the differences between good and bad antique imitations. You may also want to look up Asian furniture manufacturers: they usually produce caricatures of English or European styles, so you'll find, for example, that ogee feet become ornate and excessively curved, or you may even find Asian motifs carved into the wood.
Wood
This one has limited application but can be a life saver in some situations. We've already written a great piece on distinguishing between different woods, so you may want to check that out. Basically, however, English furniture is usually mahogany, walnut, oak, pine, yew, or cherry (sometimes with rosewood and satinwood, usually as inlays). In contrast, English furniture is almost never teak, which is a favorite of Asian furniture manufacturers because it is a fast-growing hard wood.
We hope that we've answered your questions, but if anything is lacking, please feel free to post in the comments section below!
Tags: tips
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Posted by Chris under Furniture Resources on May 24, 2011
The concept here is pretty simple: a visual timeline of English antique furniture periods. You might notice that we've excluded 1650, which coincides with the English Interregnum, a tumultuous time at best. As a result, a distinct, post-Jacobean furniture period didn't really emerge until the turn of the 18th century. Click on the image to view it in full size.
More information about English furniture period history can be found at the following links:
Medieval, Tudor and Elizabethan Furniture (pre-1485, 1485-1603)
Jacobean Furniture (1603-1625)
Queen Anne Furniture (1702-1714)
Georgian Furniture (1714-1820)
Regency Furniture (1800-1830)
Victorian Furniture (1837-1901)
Edwardian Furniture (1901-1910)
Tags: timeline, history
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Posted by Chris under Furniture Resources on May 05, 2011
One of the most common questions that we get is, "Can I mix different styles of furniture?" The short answer is a definitive, "Yes." However, there are some subtleties that have to be negotiated before deciding on what styles to use together.
My own approach to eclectic furniture style is a little like the Rifleman's Creed: "This is my style. There are many like it, but this one is mine." This is another way of emphasizing that there are standards for mixing styles, but there is still room for your own personal touch. As they say, however, seeing is believing, so to illustrate my point, I'm going to pick a group of pieces for my lovely, imaginary office.
Continue reading...
Tags: style, design
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Posted by Chris under Furniture Resources on April 16, 2011
We get this question all the time: "Can you tell me how much my _______ is worth?" Most of the time we have to say no because that's not our expertise. While we can tell you the style and probable origin, your best bet is always to go with a professional appraiser. (We actually discussed this issue in a previous post: How to Determine the Value of Your Antique Furniture.)
Well, we're happy to say that we know of a very good appraiser with a scholarly knowledge of antiques. John Werry at Rare Victorian provides an excellent and thorough appraisal service for just $40! Good luck out there!
Tags: appraisal, tips
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Posted by Chris under Furniture Resources on March 19, 2011
This is a question that we get fairly often. Selling furniture—and especially antiques—can be a very simple process, provided that you know what you're doing and you have the resources to do it. If not, then what is often a pleasant learning experience can turn into a frustrating push to dump unwanted furniture. To help, we've put together a few useful tips that should help avoid this problem.
1. Know the value of your piece. Luckily, we've already written an article on just this subject: How to Determine the Value of Your Antique Furniture.
2. Be patient. We have 15,000 square feet and it's absolutely full of furniture: we can afford to wait if it means getting a fair price on our antiques. Individuals, however, usually don't have the luxury of constantly moving furniture in and out, so it can sometimes feel like an eternity. Depending on the uniqueness, beauty, and price of your piece, it could take several months to sell it...which brings me to my next point.
3. Value and price are never the same thing. For one thing, value is relative: before the recent market crash, antiques were selling at slightly higher prices than they do now, because people expect a deal when times are tough. So even if you do all of the right things and get your antique(s) appraised, you probably won't sell them at the maximum possible value. This is why market research is so important to the selling process: if your piece is just a few hundred dollars lower than the average, you are substantially increasing your odds of selling the piece in a reasonable period of time. But since you determine what is "reasonable," that means striking a balance between how long you want to wait and how much money you want for your piece.
4. Take great pictures and write a great description. In our experience, pictures make a huge impact on whether someone decides to buy or not—especially over the Internet, where a picture is often the only thing the customer has to go on. Likewise, a detailed description of the piece—including, if applicable, history, wear, special features, etc.—can go a long way towards telling the customer that you care about the sale and you know what you're talking about. This is another reason why research is so important, and it's also another of countless examples of the old adage, "Practice makes perfect."
5. Diversify! This is a lot like saying, "Location, location, location." List your piece in as many places as possible: Ebay, Craigslist, GoAntiques, whatever it takes. Of course, dealers have a much wider range of venues to sell their furniture, but that shouldn't keep you from occupying enough marketplaces to make the sale happen. Many of these venues and platforms require listing fees, so this is another example of balance: if you expect to get a lot of money for your antique(s), then you might not mind at all whether you're paying $10/month to maintain your listings. If your piece is cheap, though, you may want to consider minimizing where possible so that you don't wind up selling at a loss.
6. Think about shipping: this is always a big plus, as it opens up new markets. You may not be able to ship yourself, but you can always call blanket wrap delivery companies—which, although expensive, still provide essential services. Ever see a gorgeous antique on Ebay that sells for $150 and doesn't have shipping? That's why. Again, this is one of those issues of balance, but on average, you will fetch a higher price for your piece if you can make it available to the most people possible.
7. Enjoy yourself! Selling furniture is definitely a learning process, but the world of antiques—especially online—is constantly evolving and there is always more to do and more to sell. Good luck out there!
Tags: selling, tips, online furniture
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Posted by Chris under Furniture Resources on March 12, 2011
Whether you are looking to sell a recently inherited antique, or whether you'd just like to know how much your furniture is worth, it is always important to know the value of antique furniture. However, acquiring that knowledge can often be the most frustrating part of selling or inheriting furniture, but knowing how to determine value and, more importantly, knowing what value actually is, makes all the difference.
Value is of course relative to market trends, taste, region, time period, who is buying and selling, etc. Still, there remain three general types of value that more or less apply to every circumstance. Under ideal conditions, the retail value describes the highest possible amount that a piece of furniture can sell for—but antiques seldom sell at their maximum value. For dealers, antiques sell most often somewhere between their retail and wholesale value, which is the amount that dealers and designers typically pay one another. Finally, the "quick sale" value describes the lowest possible value that a piece could sell for in a small amount of time while simultaneously maximizing the seller's gains. For instance, if the wholesale value of, say, a particular mahogany bookcase is $500, then the quick sale value might fall somewhere around $300-350. This is the amount that you could expect to receive if you sold this hypothetical bookcase to a dealer or if you lent it on consignment.
If you are serious about selling your furniture and you know it's worth a pretty penny, then we suggest contacting a certified appraiser in your area. Appraisers are the best option for determining the value of your piece, and in addition to offering detailed information about the age, origin, and unique features of your piece, they usually provide the three values described above. However, appraisers also usually cost several hundred dollars, which may not be an option for everyone. Still, if you're confident that you have in your possession furniture of significant value, getting an appraisal is certainly something that you should do as soon as possible. As an added bonus, insurance adjusters often require these appraisals, so if you get one done, make sure that you keep your records in a safe place.
Luckily, there are a number of other ways to determine the value of your antique if you don't want to hire an appraiser. We recommend searching the Internet for similar pieces: try looking on Ebay, GoAntiques, and Ruby Lane. This is often the best way to determine the going market value of your antique—but be sure to pay attention to the seller and, if applicable, their reputation. For instance, someone who has, say, an 800 positive feedback rating on Ebay (or a Top-Rated Seller) will probably have a better idea of the value of their furniture than someone with only a 1 or 2 rating.
We also recommend trying sites like worthpoint.com and auctionwally.com, where you might be able to find an appraisal for your antique in their archives.
Finally, you can try showing your antiques—or pictures of them—to dealers. This approach meets with wildly varying degrees of success, since many dealers will not provide this type of assistance free of charge, while others are happy to share their knowledge. Even so, keep in mind that it is nearly impossible to accurately determine the age, period, origin, or value of a piece without seeing it in person.
We hope that we've answered some of your concerns about evaluating your antique furniture—but as always, if there's more that you'd like to know, please feel free to leave a comment below!
Tags: selling, tips
2 comments.
Posted by Peter under Furniture Resources on December 31, 2010
Recently, we have started carrying a large variety of beautiful leather sofas, chesterfields, and chairs. Both the vintage and replica English leather pieces we are carrying have a great look. As with any new line, we have been asked several questions about how to care for the leather, so I have compiled this list of suggestions for keeping your leather purchase in tip top shape.
-First and foremost leather is very susceptible to fading in direct sunlight. Leather pieces should not be keep in direct sunlight.
-Also, dry heat will cause leather to crack and dry out prematurely.
-All leather crackles over time. This is part of the natural aging process and can really add character to your piece. The key to keeping the crackle from becoming splits or worse is to keep your leather conditioned. Leather conditioner can be found in a variety of places including the hardware store and most automotive stores. Use a quality leather conditioner twice a year to ensure the leather stays pliable.
-Leather can be dusted or vaccumed regularly, however, use only a soft cloth, slightly damp if need be. Avoid dousing the leather in water, as it will leave spots.
-Light scratches can sometimes be buffed out with a clean finger. Small nicks can be colored in with some leather dyes (see your local automotive store). Larger or deeper scratches are almost impossible to repair and you will need to have a professional take a look at them.
As with any piece of furniture, prevention is much easier than repair. The above tips should help you keep your new sofa or chair in wonderful condition, so it can be enjoyed for years to come.
Tags: leather, chesterfields, furniture care
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