Antique How

The business of antique furniture is a very lucrative one. There seems to always be a market for chairs, dressers, couches and settees, beds, and virtually every other piece you may be able to find. As a matter of fact, the craft of artificially aging furniture is one that has become big business itself with designers and manufacturers learning ways to make all these pieces just look old.

And with that thought in mind, what should you be looking for when inspecting so-called antique furniture? Of course certain models and manufacturers had their own marks and distinguishing characteristics, there are other things to keep in mind when looking at pieces.

The nails are one thing that distinguish antique pieces of furniture from new ones. Decades ago nails were made of iron and by hand, as opposed to the mixture of metals they use today at the factory. This means that nails in antique pieces shouldn’t look identical but should have some differences from one another. The iron also would leave black marks on the wood around it as it would corrode; a lack of this may signal that the furniture is not as old as it’s promised to be.

Many of the tools that were used decades ago would leave marks on the furniture as well. Today’s machine made furniture is much more accurate; this is part of the charm of antique furniture and also sets it apart. Furniture that is absolutely perfect may not have been made by hand the way antique furniture should have been.

And regardless of how well any piece has been cared for or restored, it should still show some signs of wear. Part of the charm of antiques is the worn edges and marks that are just going to naturally show up. Inspect pieces carefully to see if they look as if they have been well used.

There are many things you can learn about antique furniture to really be sure that what you’re getting truly is an antique. But if you use some common sense and some caution you’re sure to find pieces that are truly antique as well as beautiful.