Driscolls Antiques – Antique Furniture Blog

What a Versatile Antique Table

With most antique furniture they can have duel purposes. For example an antique card table can be used as either a side table, a card table, a tea table or even a small antique dining table. This week we have put up for sale a very nice example of a card table which could be used as any of the above uses.

Our card table is from the Regency period and is constructed from a beautiful rosewood. It can be used as an antique card table, antique games table or an antique side table and this particular piece is in the style and quality of the renowned maker Gillows. The antique card table has a rectangular top with rounded corners which swivels and unfolds to double in size. It has a green baise interior so is a real card table and not a tea table and this comes with the added benefit of a concealed games compartment. The card table stands on a tapered pedestal with a moulded edge, quadriform base and four unusual scrolled feet with small castors. It is a stunning piece of antique furniture and would look beautiful in any room and also can be used for several uses. Please see our website for details or to look at other designs of card and side tables.

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Removing a scratch from antique Furniture

If you have accidentally scratched your antique furniture, don’t panic as we might have a simple and cost affective solution. We stock a very good furniture restoration product called Rustins Scratch Cover and Polish and we supply two shades of colour, dark and light.
Rustins Scratch Cover is a mixture of beeswax, carnauba wax and other waxes with colour and it works on most light marks and scratches. It is easy to use as you only have to put the scratch cover to the scratches with a soft cloth and leave for several minutes before rubbing with a clean soft cloth. If it does not work first time then you may need to put on several applications. When the scratch has gone apply the scratch cover all over the surface and polish off with a soft cloth or duster so this will blend in the colour on the surface. To finish the piece off we recommend the use of fiddes furniture wax and we stock this under our restoration products page. If you need further advice on restoring antique furniture then please feel free to contact us about any other antique furniture restoration products that we stock and we will help in any way that we can.

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Where can I buy a Howard & Sons Chair

Howard & Sons made some of the best antique chairs, They made chairs in the Victorian period and are well known today as being one of the best chair makers of there time. You can see lots of Howard & Sons style chairs but it is rare to find an original stamped chair.
well this week we have found an original Howard & Sons antique upholstered armchair which was built towards the later part of the Victorian period and the castors are stamped Howard & Son London so it is an original chair. It is in a really nice shape and has a buttoned back, two scrolled arms and a padded seat. This antique chair stands on splayed back legs and has beautifully turned front legs with the stamp and has been newly upholstered in a neutral fabric with a piped trim so it will fit into most interiors. This type of antique furniture with the original makers stamp does not hang around as collectors search for quality pieces like this so please be quick in buying the chair to save any disappointment.

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Small Antique Chest of Drawers For Sale
Finding smaller antique chest of drawers is very difficult to find and they also usually cost a lot more than the larger chests if they are in original condition. If you need a smaller antique chest but you do not want to spend the earth then a good alternative is a later converted chest from a larger chest of drawers. This was done a lot in the Edwardian period and they look as good as the original chests. We have put a converted chest up for sale only this week and it is a small antique Georgian mahogany chest of drawers. This antique chest has a rectangular moulded top above four graduating cock beaded drawers with brass swan neck handles so it is just like an original chest and the sides are canted with reeded moulding on the sides and the chest stands on shaped bracket feet. This chest is up for sale at £795 but to buy a smaller chest of this size that is in totally original condition you would pay between £3000 – £6000 so this is a very good alternative. We always get unusual pieces of antique furniture and items which are of a unique small size so please always keep looking on our site or please email me with your requests and I will see if I can locate the antiques that you are looking for.

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Antique Painted Furniture

In today’s modern interiors it is good to mix in some old unusual pieces of antique furniture and what fits in really well is antique painted furniture. It is the preferred look for many interior designers and it does fit in with old or new properties. Driscolls antiques does stock good quality painted furniture and although it does sell really quickly we always try to have a good selection on our website. Our painted furniture goes really well with our antique upholstered furniture as the neutral fabrics that we use blend in very well. Only this week we have put on our website some very nice pieces of antique painted furniture and can all be seen in our painted section.

The items are an antique painted kitchen dresser which has three glazed cupboard doors, adjustable shelves and three drawers with moulded edges and brass handles. The dresser has three cupboard doors, stands on a moulded plinth and has reeded sides. We also have an antique painted glazed vitrine which has an arched top above two glazed cupboard doors and the interior has three fixed shelves with two drawers. It has canted corners, carved corbels and stands on turned bun feet.

We also have an antique painted pine chest of drawers with four graduating drawers and turned knobs and turned feet.

All these pieces of antique furniture are in neutral painted finishes and are usable yet sturdy antiques. We will be adding some more pieces of painted furniture soon so please keep on looking at our website for newly added stock.

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Antique bow fronted furniture

Antique furniture comes in lots of different styles and ways they were constructed through the different periods. Some antique furniture was built to stand out from the usual construction to make it more desirable. Some of these pieces were antique bow fronted furniture, which basically is a piece of antique furniture which at the front is in a bow shape. We always stock good examples of antique bow fronted furniture and if you are wanting a piece which is a bit different then these items could be for you. Only this week we have had some very nice bow fronted antiques which are now available on our website.

We have a Regency mahogany antique bow front mirror which has reeded side supports with an unusual acorn finials. The lower section is bow fronted with rosewood banding and it has three oak lined drawers and small shaped bracket feet.

We also have a Regency antique mahogany chest of drawers which is cross banded and bow fronted. This antique chest has cock beaded drawers with original turned handles and again stands on bracket feet. This chest and the mirror go together really well.

We also have a pair of regency antique mahogany console tables which are bow fronted ebony banding on the bottom edge. This antique table stands on beautiful turned legs with brass cup castors.

All these items of antique furniture are good examples of bow fronted furniture and we get more antiques like this on a regular basis.

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What is the difference in solid wood or Veneered wood on antique furniture

Antique furniture comes in two main type of construction, solid wood or veneered wood. The earlier pieces of antique furniture were mainly constructed from solid wood like the period coffers or refectory tables, but as time went on, cabinet makers improved there techniques of constructing and decorating the antique furniture. This was mainly caused because of the new method of applying veneers which basically means thin pieces of wood which is cut very finely and this gives several different grain effects and is a very good cost effective way when dealing in expensive woods. It allowed the furniture cabinet maker to create different effects from the different grains and figuring of the wood for example flamed mahogany is mahogany but cut on an angle on the tree trunk..
Veneered furniture has a carcass usually made from a cheaper wood and was mainly veneered onto pine but some of the more expensive pieces were veneered onto a solid oak carcass.
veneered antique furniture was first produced in the walnut period, when the decorative effects were produced with more rare woods and fruit woods. The veneers were hand cut and were very thick which is different to the Victorian furniture veneers which were thinner.

Antique furniture can be as good quality if it is a veneered piece or a solid piece, just as long as it has good veneers used on the piece and it is still in good original condition.

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Did you know that we are LAPADA and CINOA. Members

Driscolls antiques has been established for over 30 years and are members of LAPADA and CINOA antique associations. The LAPADA and CINOA membership is only open to those antique companies who meet the Associations strict requirements so you know we are a trusted antique company. To become a LAPADA and CINOA member we had to prove we have the experience in antique furniture and have the best quality stock, we also have the knowledge of antique furniture. We became members to show our customers we have the experience, deal in the right stock and to give you the confidence to buy our antiques over the internet. Also to help give you the confidence of purchasing over the internet we offer a 28 day money back guarantee in place. If you buy antiques from Driscolls antiques Ltd you can be assured you are buying a quality antique furniture which has been cleaned and restored using traditional methods plus we deliver to your house using a two man delivery team and we also assemble where necessary.

We try to describe our items fully including old repairs etc. and we also show clear pictures and clearly show the price, but if you need any further information on any of our items then please either call us or email and a member of our staff would be glad to help.

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Antique settees
Antique settee or also known as antique sofa is basically seating with upholstered seats, back and arms. Antique settees are large enough on the seats for the minimum of two people to sit. The very first settee was basically a settle which has been used for a very long time, but some came with upholstered cushions.

From the late Georgian, Regency periods, of antique upholstered furniture was being made in a all new styles with more and more upholstery being used. the antique chesterfield was the first settee that was upholstered all over.

Different variations of the antique sofa was made in the Victorian period but earlier examples such as the daybed or chaise lounge, which is a long upholstered seat usually on turned legs and either have a fixed or adjustable head, were made in the regency period. This week we have come across a very nice example of a regency settee, it is made from mahogany and was built around the 1820s. This stunning piece of antique furniture has a scrolled mahogany back with scrolled arms and the piece has a rounded moulded front which stands on four splayed mahogany legs with scrolled feet and brass castors. We have had this settee newly upholstered so it is ready to go into your home. It is difficult to find such quality antique settees now but we do get them in and we only supply the best quality. We have some more upholstered chairs coming in soon so please look on our site more details.

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Antique Victorian Furniture

In the early Victorian period, antique furniture was made with comfort in mind. middle class was on the rise and therefore more antique furniture was needed. This led to new styles and more pieces of furniture being made.
Unlike earlier pieces, Victorian furniture was built more larger, rounded, and had more carving decoration, with French polished finishes. This led to some new styles like the Gothic Revival, Rococo Revival and decorative Paper Mache furniture.
The Victorians used these styles from earlier periods like Gothic, Tudor, Elizabethan and Rococo.

Mahogany, Oak and rosewood were the main woods used in constructing the furniture.
Lots of earlier designers had there designs copied in the Victorian period like Chippendale and hepplewhite designs.

In the late Victorian period as more machines were used to help in the construction of furniture other movements arrived, like the Arts and Crafts movement (Aesthetic movement) and the Art Nouveau movement. The idea was to come away from the mass produced furniture and construct items using hand built techniques, keeping straight lines and solid timbers.

Victorian antique furniture is a good period to collect as there are many of the same styles you can find on the market so if you want all your pieces in the Chippendale style or you want all rounded corner pieces then it should be easier to find than earlier period pieces.

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