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Discover Mid-America — September 2005

Something to fuss about

There are antiquers and there are junkers, each loves hunting for what they consider desira

There has always been a question about what is an antique. The general rule of thumb is that the piece has to be one hundred years old. Now that we are in the twenty-first century, there are things made in the early 1900s that can now be considered antique. My warning has always been “If the item or piece of furniture was mass produced then it probably has less value than a one-of-a-kind piece.” This would include things made for functional uses as well as for decorative uses.

By mass-produced, I am thinking of the furniture that was made for Sears, Roebuck, Montgomery Ward, Aldens and the Larkin company. As the furniture became outmoded, it was relegated to the attic, the barn, given away or cut apart so the various pieces could be used elsewhere. Those actions lessened the number of these bureaus, secretary bookcases, china cabinets and such. Therefore, today’s buyers get all excited about the “antique” they just bought. The desire factor usually comes from “grandma had one and she gave it to my aunt instead of my mom and I always wanted one.”

In the antiques classes I took, we were encouraged to think that things that were handmade, even if primitive, could be considered antique even though they were not yet one hundred years old. Qualifying that statement takes an eye for judging the piece. If it were just awful, then I would have a very hard time calling it an antique. But if it were well designed, balanced, good wood and either useful or decorative, I would be more inclined to give it a higher score. So the rating ends up in the eyes of the beholder.

One of the latest issues of Antique Trader had a letter to the editor where this dealer was bemoaning the fact that the “country” magazines were ruling the decorating tastes of the American woman. She fussed that beautiful flow blue was ignored, that fine furniture was passed up, with the buyers going to chipped paint, chopped up corner tables, beat up doors and cabinets with no class at all.

I rather see her point. The shabby chic look has lasted a lot longer than I thought it was going to last. Granted, they can take those things and make them look good on a magazine page but let’ s face it — just how does it work in a real home with kids, a dog, an older generation that asks “Why in the world that cabinet isn’t out in the garage where it belongs?”

It is all a matter of taste, and since we were given free will, the choice is up to the buyer! Styles change, and they will change again and again. If you are an antiquer, stay with it, good antique furniture will never be a bad investment. It may turn out that the shabby chic will have some value, but I think it’s questionable.

So much for the soapbox. If you like it, it is YOUR house, so decorate in YOUR style!

Norma Crews is a native Texan, graduate of Texas Tech, former teacher and rancher, mother of three grown sons and six grandchildren, and raised in South Texas on a ranch as a member of two pioneer families.

Upon retiring from teaching and ranching, she and her husband James became pickers for large Texas shops, before branching into doing shows for a number of years in Missouri, Oklahoma and Texas. She currently resides in Neosho, MO.

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