What To Inspect When Looking for High Quality Furniture

You don’t need to be a re-finisher or an expert in upholstery or antique furniture to recognize and identify high-quality furniture. Follow these furniture feature guidelines to help you recognize the craft and quality of a piece of furniture;

Features of quality typically found in furniture that is at least 10 years or older;

Wood Furniture Composition:

  • Softwoods Are made from coniferous trees: pine, fir, redwood, and cedar wood. Softwoods require more care due to being more prone to scratches and dents.
  • Hardwoods Are made from deciduous trees: oak, maple, teak, mahogany, cherry, walnut, and birch. Hardwood is dried to remove moisture.

Furniture Joint Construction:

The construction of a piece of furniture can tell you about the quality of the piece, look for these;

  • Dovetail, Mortise & Tenon are the oldest ways furniture makers put furniture together.
  • Reinforced corner blocks seen from the inside add to the stability and strength of a piece of furniture.
  • Dowels and Screws

Furniture Drawer Structure:

  • Dust panels are thin sheets of wood between drawers in a chest or desk of drawers.
  • Floating Bottoms are not affixed to the sides of the drawer, instead, they float in the groove of the drawer.
  • Metal glide rails drawers run smoothly and have stopped to make sure the drawer does not pull out.
  • Springs hand-tied springs, close together even resistance.

Upholstered Furniture:

  • Cushions are firm foam / wrapped in padding, protective inner cover, and reversible cushions.
  • Fabric high grade 120,000 rub fabric, aligned pattern, skirts with lining or weights.

If you have questions on the quality or craftsmanship of a piece of furniture from a Chippendale piece of furniture, a rare unknown antique piece to a piece that may be modern but you just aren’t sure, Contact Our Specialists at Foxwood Restorations.