BUYING OLD FURNITURE

Evening Star, Issue 21934, 22 January 1935, Page 2

BUYING OLD FURNITURE

WHAT TO LOOK FOR AHO WHAT TO

AVOID The present is a peculiarly favourable opportunity for picking up simple pieces of antique furniture at prices which are extremely low. Owing to the economic depression, the small antique dealer has been badly hit; his stock, bought some years ago, hangs o]fr his hands, and he rs glad to sell, even at a loss. True, he will seek to make a profit, but he will generally be willing to accept an offer. The judicious buyer, therefore, ■will look out for the small shop which is not doing too well, and. haying picked out his piece, will boldlv name his price. If lie avoids the “collector’s piece,” which still commands a fictitious price, and chooses articles which at the moment are not in demand, he will get some astonishing bargains (writes C. W. Cunningham, in English ‘ Homes and Gardens ’) . The antique “ tallboy ” which was so sought after ten years ago is now neglected, and its value is less than a quarter of what it was. All large pieces are at a discount, owing to the modern habit of living in flats or in smaller houses where only small pieces arc wanted

EARLY NINETEENTH CENTURY PIECES.

The very late George IV. or William IV. period of furniture has not yet “ arrived.” It lacks, as vet. the full bouquet dear to the fastidious collector's palate; but it is rapidly ripening., and the moment conditions improve, this will be the fashionable period, if for no other reason than that the earlier antiques will be increasingly difficult to obtain. As an investment, then, furniture of that epoch is worth considering. Recently I saw a rosewood wardrobe, with pedestal ends .and drawers between, some 4ift wide, waiting for a purchaser at 50s; a l)-end mahogany dining table (to seat eight), of about the same period, was offered at £5: ami a mahogany club foot table, seating four, at 30s. It is this class of sound but unpretentious furniture which . has temporarily fallen so ruinously in value. It will appreciate again, of course, the moment the present slump passes and the,casual buyer- of antiques comes once more into the,.market. \ OAK FURNITURE. = In choosing dak pieces the inexperienced must co more warily. In the first place, ” old oak” is very easily reproduced from old wood originally used for humbler purposes; and its age is difficult to ascertain 'V'-""'-- > ■■■> hogany is confined to tho last two cen turies (having been discerned him rears ago), oak may be.of any age. ami, in farmhouse pieces, of any style. Eighteenth or even seventeenth century traditions were handed down and used by the village carpenter until comparatively recent years, so the style docs not necessarily indicate the period. On the other hand, simple oak pieces have seldom been worth the cost of faking, and therefore the inexperienced buyer is safe so long as he does not aspire to picking up “ for a song ” some extraordinary rarity. Those who are to-day entering the market ns novices should bear in mind that during the 11 boom years ” imraodiatelv after the war the demand lor this kind of furniture was enormous, and the countryside was scoured by astute dealers who left but little behind

them. Every farmhouse was ransacked ; y cottagers were tempted by fancy prices to sell their heirlooms. So. to-day. it is extremely unlikely that the casual visitor will find anything worth buying in such places, in the familiar resorts of England or Wales.

But, while quantities of such antiques have gone for ever from the countryside, a considerable residue lias been left in the hands of small dealers caught unawares by the slump. It is m that direction, rather than to the cottage home, that the buyer of to-day should turn his steps.

SURFACE QUALITY AND TONE. fu considering a piece of old oak, perhaps the most important thing to examine is its surface. The charm cl old oak depends mainly on this. A piece which has been varnished or painted, and subsequently scraped, has lost much of its merit. We like to see the evidence of years of honest rubbing and elbow-grease, producing that peculiar surface polish known as “ patina.” Once destroyed by injudicious “ doing up,”, it cannot ho replaced; and. of course, n piece which has had a coat of paint pickled off by chemicals can have no patina. Indeed, it is the one ellcct of age and wear which tlie laker has not yet learnt to reproduce. So. in choosing old oak. the tone of its surface, especially in those parts which normally receive most wear, should he critically examined. The colour of old oak may vary widely. It is important to realise that, when originally made, it probably re-

reived a surface dressing which contained 'a' certain amount of stain, and this -stain may have been ol various tints. Thus, we find light as well as dark oak, equally old, dependent on the original treatment. It would be a mistake to assume that a light colour is necessarily n sign of modernity, or a dark colour a sign of great age. In each case the original varnish, such as was certainly used in Welsh oak furniture in the eighteenth century, had a waxy composition entirely ’unlike the hard shiny gloss of modern shellac. ( Other woods besides oak wore used for farmhouse furniture, and these, such as beech, elm, and fruit woods, have their own delightful tints. Pieces

made from them blend harmoniously in a room and help to relieve the monotony of oak. i OLD FURNITURE IN MODERN ROOMS.

In utilising, for a modern room, furniture which originally served some entirely different purpose in farm or cottage. a certain amount of license is permitted. Indeed, there is a piquant humour to be got by a faint touch of incongruity. The larmhousc dresser, promoted to the dignity ol a “best piece ” in a dining-room, has never looked so well, garnished with pewter or blue aiW white earthenware. But ona would hardly go so far as to cover its'plain shelves with Sevres or Chelsea china.

Berlinps a Bible-box from a cottage home may now contain all those odds and ends which have to he popped out of sight somewhere handy. lint we can press the use of the antique too far. A corn-hin, even Jacobean, does not make a lady-like dressing-table. It seems fair enough to modernise the corner cupboard into a receptacle lot the loudspeaker; and the telephone at least, the old-style instrument—may well ho hidden in a similar fashion.

There will be mom, of course, for a “ grandfather ” clock, whether ol oak or mahogany. Tot it be noted that of these there are two kinds—the eightday and the thirty-hour, and that the value of tin; former is perhaps five times more than the latter. BUREAUX.

Assuming that oak and oilier English woods gravitate naturally into the din-ing-room, we shall probably be inclined, to'nsc mahogany and walnut (for they mix well together) in the drawing-room or its modern equivalent. _ The mahogany bureau of, approximately, the Hepplewhiie period is still fairly easily found, hut its perpetual utility prevents its ever becoming cheap. It is true wc don’t write letters nowadays, but wc have to write cheques. The old secretaire-bookcase has fallen on evil days, and its value is now small. Whether this is because the secretaire drawer always wobbles as you write on it, or because no one has enough hooks to fill its shelves, is uncertain. However, for those who seek a bargain, a well made speimen is not difficult to obtain for less than £TO. CHAIRS. If these important articles have been left to the last, the reason is not far to seek. The plain fact is that, while antique chairs are delightful to look at. to feel, to arrange, and of course, to offer to a discriminating guest, lor one’s own use they seem to lack something. They are no{ comfortable. Round a dining-room table, whore the business in baud demands an alertness of body, nothing can he hotter than sound specimens which have, in their day. supported generations of hearty eaters. Certainly the early nineteenth century mahogany chairs must have stood up well to their duties; but today we make less demands of them. Such substantial supports against the heat and burden of the day seem uncalled for; we seek comfort- rather than security. The Victorian dining-room suite seems to suggest “ Safety First.” Elsewhere in the homo wo want chairs iu which wc can recline in unconventional attitudes, and the antique chair fails us in this respect. I A QUESTION AND ITS ANSWER. There remains this question in the mind of the hesitating purchaser of antique furniture. “ Suppose,” ho says, “I don’t want or can’t afford more than just a few old pieces, how will they go in a room mostly furnished with modern pieces? 1 am not aiming at making a period room. Will these old pieces, picked up because I suddenly fancied them, blend with the rest of my possessions?” The answer is, there is no problem. The problem only arises when the majority is antique. Then the difficulty is to blend with them the one or two modern pieces. But the peculiar feature of an antique is that it, is not aggressive; it does not shout at the rest; it merely whispers. It is content, to await notice, ami is quite accustomed to being overlooked by the nndiscerning. If has done so for a century. Eo, if you I lirusL it info your modem room with those queer angled .affairs, it will make no obvious protest, ft is too well bred.