How To Date Antique Furniture By Feet: Step By Step Guide Of Dating Antique Furniture By Feet

Step By Step Guide Of Dating Antique Furniture By Feet

The noticeable features on the drawers, legs, and the feet usually helps the users to find out the antique furniture style. Eventually, the styles of the furnishing items are defined by various features that include the origin, designers, and the time period as well. The wood type and the ornamented items that are used over it can also determine the style. The users are advised that any kind of alteration can easily damage the value of the antique furnishing item.

Step 1: Identifying The Genuine Antiques

If the users keenly observe the construction of the antique furniture then they will easily get to know whether it is a genuine antique or not. The work antique refers to the furniture item that is near about 100 years older or even more than that. The users are advised to check the joinery of the furniture item. The handcrafted dovetail joints usually define that the furniture item was manufactured before the year 1860 as these handcrafted dovetails are lesser in number as compared to the machine crafted dovetails. The minimal flaws present on the slats, rungs, and the spindles are present in a symmetrical manner while the machine-crafted furnishing items indicate the handcrafted workmanship. If in case the furniture item is having the oil or the wax finishes then this will easily indicate that this is the antique furnishing item. In addition to this, the hardware like the dowels and wooden pegs can easily indicate the presence of the antique furnishing item.

Step 2: Awareness With The Antique Styles

The users are advised to make themselves aware of the antique furnishing features and the terminology. The furnishing styles from the 19th, 18th, and 17th century will consist of the Rococo, Louis XIV, Shaker, and the other ones as well. The users are advised to know about these styles and what kind of styles usually uses straight and clean lines with less decoration.

Step 3: Leg And The Foot Styles

This is the easy way to find the style of the antique furniture by examining the feet and the legs of the items. The furnishing items that are crafted in the early 17th century are having the bun or the ball styled feet. The ball and the claw styled feet are the furniture of the 18th century. The features of the ball and the claw styled consists of the hair styled paw feet without the balls and is seen as the hoof styled feet. The pad or the dutch styled feet are the furnishing items of the 18th century. The furnishing items that are having the square-shaped legs without having the feet indicates the style of the shaker furnishing items.

Step 4: Other Basic Characteristics

If the users are having the ability to identify the basic features, then it will easily help them to find out all the possible styles of the furniture item. The chair back and the seat usually consists of the various design to indicate any specific design. The chairs of the American style is having the curved or the straight slats that are forming the ladder-shaped back. The chairs of the Chippendale style also consist of the ladder designed back or might also contain some more complex designs like the carved splat, latticework, or the pierced work as well. The chairs of the Anne style is having the fiddle designed splat and is also having the oval designed back.