furniture

  • Shell Lake Furniture

    Fireplace
    Wisconsin’s Beaver Manufacturing produces several lines of furniture under the name Shell Lake – including a number very attractive, sturdy & well-designed Mission Revival pieces. This slat bed, hall bench, bookcase and "gentleman’s chest" are some of my favorites, but all of their pieces are very nice.

    They also sell a line of Shaker-inspired goods in the Lakeside Furniture line, and take custom commissions on a regular basis. Should you be near Shell Lake, Wisconsin, please do stop and visit their showroom & factory.

  • a little Mission can go a long way

    27shop600_2

    The New York Times‘ Marianne Rohrlich had a nice article on contemporary furniture makers producing new pieces of Mission Revival furniture – some original designs & some based on historical patterns. Read the full article.

    In the early 20th century, between Art Nouveau and Art Deco, furniture
    was produced in the Arts and Crafts, Mission and Craftsman styles.
    Gustav Stickley, Frank Lloyd Wright,
    Greene & Greene and others from that era have inspired generations
    of furniture makers whose designs bear great resemblance to theirs.
    This heavy wood furniture — either the original pieces or the many
    reproductions — can be used to decorate an entire living space, or,
    used sparingly in eclectic homes, make a big statement.

    1. The Craftsman Three-Drawer Buffet with glass doors has a dark oak finish; $379 from (877) 537-8539 or homedecorators.com.

    2. A
    company called From the Source, with stores in Chelsea and Dumbo, will
    hold a sale in its Greenpoint, Brooklyn, warehouse from Oct. 5 to 12.
    Merchandise includes dining chairs, tables and cabinets, some produced
    in the spirit of Arts and Crafts. The teak chairs shown will be $99
    each (they were $185 to $215), and the teak chest, 59 inches wide by 22
    inches deep by 32 ½ inches high, will be $1,280 (regularly $1,600); 69
    West Street (Noble Street), (718) 729-3026 or fromthesource.us.

    (several other firms are profiled in the article)

  • looking for a Stickley #634 or similar

    0185
    Now that their kids have graduated from drawing on the kitchen table, a family in Culver City CA is looking for a reproduction Stickley #634 (the 5-leg dining table) or similar – a round, expandable-with-leaves trestle dining table.

    Know of a craftsperson who makes one? Seen one in an antique store recently? Email the prospective buyer.

    And if there’s something you’ve been hunting for, please do let us know and we’ll do our best to help you find it!

  • buyer beware: deception in the antiques trade

    A very interesting article in today’s New York Times explores the apparently shadowy world of antique dealers and restorers. Apparently this reputation-destroying article is the result of a bit of a war of attrition among big-name antiques business insiders:

    Michael Smith, a prominent decorator in Los Angeles, was staggered when
    a friend called from London in early April with the news: John Hobbs, a
    London antiques dealer known for superb English and Continental
    furniture, stratospheric prices and wealthy American clients, had been
    accused by his longtime restorer of selling fakes.

    Mr. Smith said he was panicked at the thought that two very expensive
    mahogany chests of drawers he acquired for a California financier in
    September — described on the invoice as a fine pair of English
    commodes, circa 1830 — might not be worth anything close to what he had
    paid.

    His fears might have been justified. Detailed workshop records and
    photographs provided by Dennis Buggins, Mr. Hobbs’s restorer for 21
    years, indicate that Mr. Smith’s commodes were designed and fabricated
    between 2004 and 2006, using materials plundered from several old
    wardrobes and a linen press. The cost, Mr. Buggins said, was about
    $55,000. The asking price was 365,000 pounds ($736,000 at the time), a
    retail markup of more than 1,000 percent, although Mr. Smith managed to
    pay $450,000.

  • April fools: Ikea not really absorbing Stickley-Audi

    Badblogger
    Note: the following was a not-particularly well-thought-out April Fools’ joke, and is totally untrue. I apologize to those of you who thought it was real news, and hereby retract it as requested by Stickley-Audi. I also apologize for the reference to Mr. Audi. I had no idea he had passed away, as I saw his picture and his name still listed as President on the Stickley-Audi website. Again, please accept my apologies. (I’ve now deleted the short article, which documented a supposed merger between Ikea and Stickley-Audi, as per Mr. Danial’s request.)

  • Charles Rohlfs chair rescued from garbage, sells for $198,000

    1009pow_rolhfs_2
    Nina West writes at Artfact.com:

    A rare Arts & Crafts chair made by Charles Rolhfs and rescued
    from the trash made auction history last week. Expected to fetch around
    $30,000, it sold for the record price of $198,000.

    Pulled from
    the neighbor’s trash, the chair was given an insurance value of $25,000
    by Sam Cottone, president of Cottone Auctions, outside of Rochester,
    N.Y., 10 or 15 years ago. The auctioneer’s advice to the owner was to
    take good care of it, since its value would appreciate significantly
    over time. The owner, living in a trailer home, decided earlier this
    year that it was time to sell the chair.

    Cottone advertised the
    chair with the low estimate of $30,000 to $50,000 in hopes of creating
    good auction buzz. The battle for the chair among 10 phone bidders and
    multiple floor bidders was won by a Washington, D.C., antiques dealer.
    It is unclear if he purchased the chair on behalf of a private client
    or for his own store inventory.

    read the full article at Forbes.com

  • Architectural Salvage VI

    Given the seemingly endless popularity of the DIY movement, awareness of green practices and recycling as parts of the design/build process and the high cost of new materials, salvage businesses continue to thrive:

    and in the UK, where architectural salvage is a way of life:

    • Cheshire Demolition "offers one of the biggest salvage and reclamation yards in the North West. They offer everything from reclaimed doors to fireplaces."
    • The Salvage Doctor specializes in the "reclamation and restoration of cast iron architectural salvage and antiques," and carries an extensive range of radiators (cast iron, school- / hospital- /column- style, etc.), fireplaces & surrounds, woodburning stoves, rainwater systems (guttering, downpipes & fittings), gates and railings. They are located in Horsham, West Sussex.
    • In Situ trade out of their Manchester ex-pub warehouse and studio. They keep a large stock of the usual – with attention to fancy pavers, lighting, glass, flooring, entryways and doors / door furniture.
    • Cox's Architectural Salvage has operated their 12,500 sq ft covered warehouse in Moreton-in-Marsh since 1992. They are one of the largest Victorian ironmongers in Britain, and also refinish and sell their own line of nickel plate and brass hardware.
    • Toby's Architectural Antiques has shops in Exeter and Newton Abbot. They carry a wide range of exterior detail – gates, ironmongery, roofing, slate, stone, water features – as well as kitchen materials, doors, light fixtures etc.
    • Park Royal Salvage at the Lower Place Wharf in London sells everything from building materials, doors, windows and reclaimed plumbing to doors, windows, fireplaces and other old house parts.
    • Robert Mills Architectural Antiques are one of the more specialized shops of their kind, with an especially large stock of architectural woodwork, mainly panels, columns, balustrades, mouldings and friezes, window frames, etc.

  • auction news, September 2007: Stickley desk for $214,500

    20070911__084129image1
    Andrea Valluzzo, over at Antiques & The Arts Online, has the full story:

    Holbrook, MA: It’s not every day a Stickley desk like this comes along.

    On a recent house call to look at some collectibles, a
    cannonball, a gun and similar merchandise, Kelley Auctions’ appraiser
    Michael Lynch spotted the circa 1904 desk with original ebonized black
    finish and rare Grecian urn inlay and asked the owner about consigning
    it.

    The woman, who was selling some of her recently deceased
    parents’ items to finance some needed car repairs, suggested he buy it
    outright for a few hundred dollars.

    Instead, the specially made Stickley desk was consigned
    to auction and after weeks of presale advertising and building
    interest, it crossed the block on September 5, attaining $214,500,
    including premium. The desk, now one of six known examples to exist,
    was unknown prior to the auction. Each desk is numbered; this one is
    marked #3.

  • Craigslist: Stickley, July 2007

    Plenty of Stickley – some contemporary, some antique, and some needing a good amount of TLC – available on Craigslist this week. As always, be careful that you are buying the real deal and aren’t being taken to the cleaner; unless you are confident in your ability to discern authenticity, stick with buying from a reputable dealer.

    • very pretty rocker with Nouveau inlay design; Rhode Island – $595
    • spindle-sided Morris chair; Palm Springs – $750
    • more spindle-sided Morris chairs, these with leather cushions; Los Angeles – $650 for two
    • Morris-style rocker; Niantic CT – $850
    • rocker & armchair, cushions need work; Palm Springs – $1500
    • #729 drop-front desk; Santa Barbara – $2999
    • slat-sided Morris-style recliner with custom southwestern upholstery; San Diego – $100
    • L & JG side chair, simple design, circa 1910. Seat needs reupholstering; Reno – $385
    • #818 server / sideboard; Portland OR – $950
    • Quaint Furniture rocker, needs refinish & arm repair; Seattle – $125
    • #89 / 91-224 spindle-sided love seat / small settle; Washington DC – $2000
    • red label (Stickley Handcraft) rocker, original  seat, needs cleaning; Hudson Valley area – $350
    • Stickley Bros. metal tagged armchair, slat back, sturdy; Richmond VA – $475
    • set of 4 ladder-back sidechairs, Fayetteville stamp; Long Island – $300
    • set of 4 wicker-seat sidechairs, need refinish, partially recaned; Brooklyn – $40 each, all for $150
    • contemporary Harvey Ellis series cherry, copper & maple dresser; Albany NY – $1500
    • red / gold Fayetteville (Stickley Bros.) label drop-front desk; Pittsburgh – $990

  • craigslist & ebay: library card catalogs are great!

    I’ve always liked library card catalogs – the old wooden ones with dozens of tiny drawers. Something about the grid or all the little nooks and crannies appealed to me. As a kid, my parents had a wooden filing cabinet, previously used to hold criminal records and fingerprint files, that they had bought at a police auction; it still had a number of old mugshots in it when we brought it home, and I guess the promise of hidden treasure is another reason I like these types of items.

    If my house wasn’t already crowded with furniture, I’d seriously think about picking up one (or more) of these:

    and here are a few on ebay

    One thing I’ve noticed is that even the starting bids on Ebay are far higher than what folks selling via craigslist hope to get. Part of that is that Craigslisters want to sell to locals – they won’t deal with shipping, and don’t bother asking – and some of the Ebayers are willing to crate & ship. Another, something borne out by my own experience, is that people who use community sites like Craigslist are simply less predatory than vendors on Craigslist.