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Ad Rates / Articles / Classified Ads / Editorial / Home / Links / Showtime   Antiques and Collectibles Articles   Follow the arrows to other stories Antique furniture is just that: Used. By Della Walker A lot of it has travelled many a road, and the going has not always been smooth.   As new styles evolved throughout the centuries (usually as each new generation reached adulthood), "old" furniture lost its esthetic appeal and got relegated to less important areas in the homes and to other places to serve different functions. To cite some examples, when water pails were a common commodity in use to carry and store household water supplies, pails were often lined up on pail benches. When cisterns became common and water pumps were kitchen appliances, pail benches became plant stands or firewood. With the advent of mass manufactured furniture, dining room and bedroom suites that matched replaced open and glass door dish and food cupboards (whose final demise was caused by kitchen built-in cupboards.) No longer treasured household furnishings of past generations, pieces that survived, were often altered, often painted, and some were converted into something else. Large pieces from the 18th and 19th centuries were built for homes with higher ceilings and larger scaled rooms. As a result, who found use for family furniture often "adjusted" it to conform to currant usage.   Lamp tables often had their legs lowered in order to act as bedside or lamp tables beside the currently fashionable lower bed and sofa. Some large, tall chests of drawers also lost legs, or one or two lower drawers.   Back boards from chests of drawers and sideboards were often removed for moving the piece and got lost in the shuffle, or, to some, simply were made more visually pleasing minus these boards. During the war years emphasis was put on conservation. Manufacturers were needed to make war supplies, and trains were needed to ship them.   Books and Magazines abounded with "how to" articles that taught the handyman to alter pieces to make their form resemble the new. (The Pictures in the article are from a 1952 CIL Guide to painting.) Candle and parlor tables were lowered by cutting a piece out of the pedestal or simply shortening legs. Chests of drawers often lost legs in order to give them the 'boxy' look of the 1940's.   Many early pieces have altered hardware (pulls, generally). Much of this is simply maintenance as pulls often broke and had to be replaced.   To determine missing parts, look for "shadows" or filled in spots where splash-boards may have been. Removal of bracket, bun or turned legs will leave obvious marks where they were cut off. Drawers will reveal replaced pulls when one looks inside them; holes from earlier ones will be evident. A general rule is to be aware of the potential for alteration and become familiar with forms and proportions or bygone eras, you will be able to trust your instincts as to how pieces should look.   Sometimes, repair on a piece of furniture is part of it's history. Our ancestors did not "get another one" as we do today, as another might not be readily available, or be much more expensive than getting the original fixed. Early repairs should not be altered.   Written by Della C. Walker, Lyncreek Farm Antiques, 128 Jonas St., RR1 Lyndhurst, ON, K0E 1N0   Other articles by Della Walker Venetian Glass     Return to top of page   This Is Livin' Publishing © 2007 581 8th Line West, RR1 Hastings, ON, K0L 1Y0 Phone/Fax: 705-696-1833   webmaster