Collecting Antiques

By Simon Oldmann

Antique clocks and watches were made using different materials, designs, styles, and sizes long, long ago. The ability to accurately identify and research on this antique clocks and watches are important then because of the diversity, as well as the number, of clock and watchmakers and manufacturers around the world.

Time measurement has been one of the concerns of every developing civilization in the world since time immemorial. No wonder that man devised ways to tell time. An example is the use of the world’s natural clock which is the sun and the mechanical ones such as clocks and watches.

If we are going to trace the history of clocks and watches, we would be back to the late 14th century when the first clock was made. In the early years, as well as many centuries over, mechanical clocks and watches were so uncommon and made by few that only rulers and noblemen had such. The common people, especially those in Europe, have to rely on the few public clocks that are existent.

The majority of clocks and watches made from the 15th to the middle of the 17th century are now mostly in museums and a small percentage in different individuals’ private collection. Most people will never set eyes on these timekeepers nor will be able to recognize them.

Those antique clocks and watches that were made during the 1800’s through the early 1900’s are more in number since the periods mentioned were the time when clocks and watches were produced in mass quantities.

Things to Consider

Many antique clock and watch collectors would agree that periods in history greatly influenced the materials and styles of clocks and watches, such that these timekeepers were not only used for time measurement, but as decoration as well. Also, they were made with such high quality that with proper care and maintenance, they are apt to last several centuries.

They are the total opposite of most clocks and watches that we have today, however. In a fast-paced world where everything is instant and disposable, clock and watch craftsmanship in the modern age can be considered of low quality compared to that of one or two centuries ago.

There are several things that you may take into consideration if you are a collector or just a one time buyer of an antique clock or watch - besides the fact that it should be interesting, beautiful, befitting your needs or you want it to be a part of your life and home for many years.

The General Condition - This is a very important factor in determining the value of the clock or watch. The timepiece should be competently restored and accurately regulated. If these aspects are not looked into, the clock or watch may just serve as decoration rather than both decorative and functional.

Collecting Antiques is a passion many know too well, many of these antique these collections are surprisingly valuable and extremely interesting and valuable. If you are interested in having, or already started, your own Antique Collecting visit the Antiques Pages at http://antiques.zupatips.com/ to learn about more antiques and collections.

by: Lauren Tyler.

People love antique lamps and Lauren writes a good intro here about them. She provides a brief history and makes us remember that real antique lamps were not always electric ones.

Lamps are very popular household appliances and these days most homes are in possession of at least one type of lamp. Before the advent of electricity, lamps were a necessity to provide some sort of light within the home. However, With the passing of time, people are using lamps not only to brighten up their homes but also to improve the interior décor of their houses.

The sophisticated designs, styles and models of lamps have been embraced by consumers especially in our modern world of home makeovers and homestyling.

With the change in time there have also been changes in the lighting materials. For example, previously the material used was candles followed by gas and at present, electricity is used. On the other hand, the lamps of each era had exclusive features that show the distinctive standard of living of the people and how these lamps were used.

Antique lamps have been in existence for a long time and often remind us of a bygone era. Finding rare, antique lamps is something of a collector’s hobby and it can be fun and interesting scouring the local auction places, boot sales and antique shops for a rare find.

Antique dealers are a great source of antique lamps and often may have restored an antique vintage lamp to its former glory. Restoration consists of replacement of certain parts without destroying their historical value, burnishing or polishing.

Some examples of antique lamps are electric lamps, banquet lamps, piano lamps, kerosene lamps, gas chandeliers, oil lamps and gas lamps.

Included in such lamps are the American and Victorian designed art glass lamps and different instruments used for lighting.

People buy antique lamps because of their pattern and style which they add to their collection to enhance it. Keeping the periodic designs and historical values in mind, certain lamps are sold to museums. Art collectors take interest in them because they want to donate them to museums or include them in their collections.

Kerosene and oils lamps are few of the most popular lamps. These lamps can appear as lovely and elegant as they were at the time of their production more than a century ago. You can add romance to the atmosphere by lighting antique lamps.

If you are buying lamps with glass shades then you should carefully examine the lamp to ensure that there is no glass breakage or scratching as the damage usually occurs here. Also examine the lamp to ensure that there are no burn marks on the shades, especially if it has a fabric lampshade. Burn marks can be indicative of an unsafe lamp.

When buying antique lighting fixtures, beware of imitations.

Whilst there are many decent reproduction lamps now available, make sure you are aware that you are buying a reproduction item and fully know that the item you are buying is not the genuine antique lamp.

Antique Waterfall Furniture: You Have To See It To Believe It

Most antique furniture is breath taking, which means it goes way beyond being beautiful. That is precisely why many collectors spend loads of money to beef up their antique collections. Not only do they enjoy looking at their pieces of furniture, but they are fascinated by its origins and the great lengths that were taken to restore it. When you see a piece of antique waterfall furniture, however, you undoubtedly will fall in love with it as antique waterfall furniture is some of the most beautiful around.

Waterfalls Are Magnificent

If you’ve ever seen a waterfall in real life, or even if you’ve only seen one in the movies, then you know how magnificent they are. They invoke beauty and strength and timelessness and that’s just what you get with antique waterfall furniture. The people who collect antique waterfall furniture love the way it looks, they love where it comes from and they love how it is restored. Also, antique waterfall furniture has a certain mystique to it that many collectors cannot resist. For this reason, many collectors who own a piece of antique waterfall furniture don’t want to get rid of it.

Search Online

If you’re looking to own your very own piece of antique waterfall furniture, you can find lots of online sites who are more than willing to strike you the deal of a lifetime. You can either shop directly from one of the many antique dealer sites online or you can try the internet auction sites where you can bid on pieces of antique waterfall furniture and you can possibly own it for far less than it is worth. You only need to win the bid to get the best deal possible. That’s why online auction sites are so popular and they are especially so when it comes to items such as So, if you’ve never seen antique waterfall furniture, do a web search and you will likely fall in love with it so much you won’t want to wait to own a piece of your very own. Whether you want to start your own collection or if you just want to own it to look at or even to use as furniture as it was once intended, you can do no wrong by shopping and then buying a beautiful piece of

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Where You Can Go To Find Antique China Furniture.

There are so many different types of furniture out there that you have to choose from, and antique china furniture is by far one of the most popular and well known among all of these different types of furniture.

About Antique China Furniture

There are many different things that you should know about antique china furniture, especially before you go out and actually purchase any for yourself. This is because you are really going to want to make sure that you are willing to spend money on antique china furniture, because it is generally much more expensive than most other types of furniture.

However there are certainly benefits that you will get from buying antique china furniture, as antique china furniture is one type of furniture in particular which actually increases the longer that you have it for, and so you will in fact be gaining money if you purchase it.

There are so many different types of antique furniture, besides this kind, and most of them tend to increase in value as well, however the china pieces are much more valuable because of the materials that they are made out of.

If you are interested in getting this type of antique furniture for yourself, then you should know that you really do have a number of different options, and one of the first places that you are going to want to go to is your local antique shop, so that you can ask someone working there where the best places are in your area to go to for something such as antique furniture.

You can also do some research on your own time, such as on the Internet for example, so that you can browse around at a few different stores and see what the best options are.

As well, the Internet is great because you can buy antique furniture from shops across the world, and so if you take some time and put some effort into this process then you are able to save a great deal of money.

You can shop from stores that you may otherwise never have been able to get to, as you can have the items delivered directly to your door, easily and without any hassle on your part.

Just make sure that you take your time so that you pick out the most valuable antique furniture pieces, and so that you thus can end up making the most money back in the end of it all.

Antique Bedroom Furniture High On Collectors’ Lists

Some of the more popular furnishings sought by collectors is antique bedroom furniture, and finding a four - poster bed from the Elizabethan period or earlier is a collector’s dream. Typically crafted of oak as the primary wood with intricate scrollwork with linen fold decorations, a curved panel that appears linen - like with tight folds, it can set the era in which it was crafted.

Under British monarch rule in the late 1500’s, the armoire and settle pieces began appearing. Made of oak, the armoire was used for storing clothing and the settle was a long bench with a high back. These pieces of antique bedroom furniture were fastened with mortise and tenon joint, held together by pegs or dowel. They may have also been decorated with a carving of a human form.

Due to the typically small sized bedrooms during these early periods, antique bedroom furniture was used mostly for practical storage. Closets were not yet being built into the rooms and finding space for clothing was up to the homeowner. Wealthier owners, and those with a high social status, were able to hire designers and crafters to build furniture for this purpose. Indigo Jones was the leading designer and furniture maker in most of England in the late 16th century.

Cherry And Walnut Join Popular Woods

At the turn of the 17th century, cherry and walnut began being used in antique bedroom furniture, with cherry mostly used in the United States and Britain due to its availability and durability closely matching that of oak. Arches on furniture backs and panels became popular and began appearing on bed frames and tables in colonial bedrooms. Farthingale chairs also made their appearance at about this time for the women who wore farthingale, or hooped, skirts.

The tallboy made its appearance at the beginning of the 18th century as piece of antique bedroom furniture, giving a chest of drawers in which clothing and other belongings were stored. Numerous hardwoods were by now is use for making furniture including ash, the English yew, which was also used or bows in archery, as well as beech, cherry and chestnut. Leading designers of the time included Andre Boulle, Daniel Marot and William Kent, among others.

In the 1800’s the chiffarobe made its appearance and antique bedroom furniture added the large storage unit to its list of popular and practical items. Used to store clothing on hangers but also typically contained drawers as well for folded clothing.