New to furniture collection

[Harlequin]

I am deeply curious about furniture (as an aside - 18th century English furniture - Chippendale, Sheraton, Hepplewhite - has particularly piqued my interest - though this is not based on any particular knowledge, it’s just me finding it nice to look at!), and I want to learn more about furniture design.

I’d really like to do a general survey of furniture design, get a sense of the various periods/movements/styles. And then see what period or style interests and appeals to me the most.

Can you recommend some good resources for that? If there is no single resource, I’d be glad to read any number that would give a good overview!


Also - once I do have a period/style/design in my mind, which I love, can you recommend a process/way to find good resources (books, articles, etc.) on that?

Lastly - are there any serious furniture collectors on the forum? It would be great to connect - I would be very interested to know about how you started collecting furniture, the style and period of your interest, any interesting pieces you have collected, etc.

[drcollie]

You'll need to go to books, you won't find much about the topics in-depth that you can read on-line. Depending on where you are located, you also go to Museums and speak to the conservators, go to better antique shops, and better auctions. Seek out knowledgeable people and listen to what they have to say. I know quite a bit about those topics, but am far from an expert. The US State Department Diplomatic Reception Room in Downtown DC has one of the finest collections of American antiques (not English) as does the Metropolitan Museum of Art in NYC. I have spent hours in each. And there are hundreds of smaller museums where few people are curious about such things and you can have learn a lot if you seek it out. Get a subscription to https://www.themagazineantiques.com/. Buy out-of-print reference books from Amazon in the category that interests you. Follow auctions and go to high end antique shows.

It will take you about five years to get a good working knowledge of styles, the history, and what makes a good piece, an excellent piece, and then a Masterpiece. You have to get good at spotting repairs, because when you start buying items, that's important. I have a sharp enough eye that I can pick out trash from treasure fairly easily but it's an acquired skill.

American Antiques from that period are far more rare and more valuable than English. America in the 18th Century was a dangerous place to live. Most exceptional craftspeople did NOT come to America for that reason and stayed in England where it was safe and they had more demand for their products. As a result, fine American made furniture was an adapted form from the English antiques but in that adaptation the furniture developed its own unique design that was lighter in form factor and more desirable. You can even tell what region the piece was made when you get good at identifying things based on secondary woods used, the style of joinery, etc. A piece made in Pennsylvania in the 1700's doesn't look like one made in Boston, for example.

The really good news is this - the 18th Century look is very much out of favor right now, so you can buy top tier antiques for pennies on the dollar. Something that used to be $ 30,000 in 1996 is worth $ 2,000 in 2021. It's a perfect time to start a collection. 18th Century is cyclic, and will come back in style again but it may not be for another 40 years. Right now, prices are near rock-bottom, you almost surely will make money on them in the future.

These two books are the Bibles for people who follow American Antiques (not English). Both long out of print. Every serious cabinentmaker has them, as does The Keeping Room. The Nutting books (there are four volumes, printed in two books) went out of print in the 1930's and at one time were worth $ 500 a book. Now they are nearly free

https://www.thriftbooks.com/w/furnit...dition=3624570

Same for Sack's book

https://www.thriftbooks.com/w/the-ne...dition=4391899

It's a good hobby. Develop a sharp eye, and you get an excellent collection for not much money. Pooks is a good auction house to follow, their format is easy to follow. Have fun ! https://pookandpook.com/

[Harlequin]

Thanks a lot, drcollie!
This was a tremendous help.

Thanks a lot for the books you recommended, I’ll definitely check them out.

Do you also have book recommendations for books which give a broad survey of all of furniture design, so that I can understand about the various periods and styles that there are? Including modern furniture.
Or any specialised books on various periods or styles you happen to know of.

I think before I set out to buy, I want to educate myself about this as well as I can.

[Casey]

My late great aunt Ruby and her son Gary used to own an 18th century antique store in Centreville, MD. Gary and one of his staff members went on buying trips to England and Italy to build their inventory for the store and shows. Ruby and her husband Herbert, whom I never met, did quite well as our family is from the Kansas City area and moved to the Eastern Shore in the 80s to be the big shows and port of entry for products. I think it's been about 7 years since Gary retired and closed Young's Antiques and sold the building. There's probably some articles and other web pages that include some photos of his furniture pieces and former catalogs.