A few new items. Fresh upholstered goods landing later in the week. Holiday countdown.

Greetings! I had a busy week which included seeing my Heywood Dining Set off to it’s new home in the Boston area. Happy my friend could join me on the trip and we had a fun gal day trekking through New England and back. Always thankful to my friends who accompany me on big trips.  

This week I was able to snag a few pretties that are not officially listed yet.  Please directly contact me if you want to snag them.  I will offer a direct price if we cut out the middle men like Etsy and PayPal.  JUST IN! A gorgeous pair of Lane mini cedar chests that hold albums! They are so cute! Feature an upholstered bench seat top, castors and cedar lined interior.  I am in the process of redoing the upholstery as the original vinyl had some issues.  That said, one is already spoken for.  The available unit will be $300 restored.  I can shave a little off if you do cash and local meet or pick up.  I can probably ship Fed ex and for sure Greyhound if price is better.  

there is only one set of tags and going with the sold unit but you will get keys, the old locks (lane recall on the original locks has been in effect since the 70s.  This prior owner worked for the newspaper and I can tell he took it seriously as his own label at the lock notes he swapped them in 1974. 

Lots of album storage!

That 80s recover has been removed and the original black vinyl has cracks and issues around the edges.  I will be sewing a replacement in cream tweed.  There are castors on the bottom and it wheels around nicely.

This fabric will look great with the warm wood!

Also New is a gorgeous Lane end table! The wood is so pretty with a warm teak or medium walnut glow.  I have not listed it yet as I am trying to identify what line it goes with. It is stunning!!!!

Look at that joinery! It’s as sexy as the Danish chairs! Seriously this would be awesome between them!

Next I dropped off my latest restorations with the upholsterer yesterday.  He was slow so it worked out great that I can help him out! They should be done by the end of the week!  

She started tearing apart the France and Son Sigvard Bernadotte Chairs while I was still there.  They are now fully rebuilt and I chose the oatmeal tweed for the job. Available in my Etsy shop, coming soon to my chairish shop.

BEFORE

After. 💕👌 

 BEFORE.

After fabric!  

I have a delivery next Monday to the Hudson Valley.  If you are up that way and looking for something reach out! 👌

XO MALISSA

Early morning pics. 

All new cushions, delicate pleats and zipper access. 🙌🏻 

Hans Wegner and who's the Murphy in Murphy Bed?

So over the years, I tend to not keep my high end finds, preferring to improve them and send them on their way. I spent last weekend picking up many new items and some will be sold but there are 2 that will be staying with me! I am super excited to be able to take in a Ry Mobler- Hans Wegner designed teak Murphy Bed with shelving system that includes a secretary. It was offered to many other dealers and because it is such a specialized piece, no one wanted to take on the risk and of course, the effort that goes along with bringing the piece up to snuff to sell. It totally is rare and also, many of these dealers did not trust it was a legit Wegner design. We all know he did work for Ry Mobler, but unless you find a catalog or ad, you can never assume that a designer who worked for a company designed everything they put out. So with that said, I picked up the piece where it was being stored and got it home. In the mean time, I spent some time considering using it in my son’s room rather then selling. Sure, it could be worth thousands in my retail markets, but my son also lives in our smallest room and having a built in desk area would be nice plus when he leaves for college in 7 years, the option of folding a bed up into the wall is very appealing. Murphy beds are quite popular in the NYC market and my former job at the millwork shop produced more than one custom bed for clients. The hardware itself to accommodate the bed was probably a grand alone at cost. I welcomed the opportunity to host this piece in my home and also know that in 10-20 years, it may be worth even more.

One evaluation, my husband and I made a mental list of what needs to be done to bring the piece back. The finish needs some work and I am thinking a light sand, danish oil and then sealed with a top coat. I am going to do some research. I want the finish to be durable and have a sheet to it that danish oil alone does not give. The leather loop at the top of the bed deteriorated and broke off. I immediately thought of the saddle shop near us that works with leather to have one recreated, but my husband suggested looking for a leather belt in that size at a thrift shop. Why did I not think of that? So I plan on grabbing the piece next time I hit the thrift store to see what I can find. It just needs to make a grab loop and will be easy to recreate by punching a hole through the ends and re securing it to the screw. Also under consideration is a system of mounting the cabinet to the wall. We all know 1963 (as dated on the piece) was not a super child friendly period and I also read that since the inception of the Murphy Bed.

“The bed is named for William Lawrence Murphy (1876 – May 23, 1957), who applied for his first patents around 1900. According to legend, he was wooing an opera singer, but living in a one-room apartment in San Francisco, and the moral code of the time frowned upon a woman entering a man’s bedroom. Murphy’s invention converted his bedroom into a parlor, enabling him to entertain.[1] Earlier foldup beds had existed, and were even available through the Sears, Roebuck & Co. catalog,[2] but Murphy introduced pivot and counterbalanced designs for which he received a series of patents, including one for a “Disappearing Bed” on June 18, 1912[3] and another for a “Design for a Bed” on June 27, 1916.[4]

Murphy beds are used for space-saving purposes, much like trundle beds, and are popular where floor space is limited, such as small homes, apartments, hotels, mobile homes and college dormitories. In recent years, Murphy bed units have included options such as lighting, storage cabinets, and office components. They have seen a resurgence in popularity in the early 2010s due to the weak economy, with children moving back in with their parents and families choosing to renovate homes rather than purchasing larger ones.[5]

In 1989, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit ruled that the term “Murphy Bed” had entered common usage so thoroughly that it was no longer eligible for trademark protection.[6]”

— Wikipedia

The closed bed features a beautiful rattan panel, leather grab loop which we are recreating, straps that will secure the mattress when lifting and a nice latch that holds it all in place. We will need to replace one of the straps and add a buckle.

The bed will fit right into the cabinet.  The original mattress was pitched and I would not have used it anyway, but it would have been nice to have to recreate one.  We hope to jam Trent’s ikea mattress in as it is a few inches too wide.  Length, however, is perfect! 

So my next step was to prove the provenance of the piece. This is not always easy. I use lots of tools on the web and spend lots of time searching. Sometimes I get lucky and turn up the proof, sometimes, I do not. This took me about 24 hours to turn up, but I managed to find the original 1964 ad for this piece which did attribute the design to Hans Wagner. So think about this….you can probably go to any decent art museum in a city near you, and find something of Hans Wagner on display because he certainly was one of the mid 20th century greats. And now I own one of his pieces! It’s crazy and I am so thrilled.

Apparently George Tanier imported many high end pieces from Denmark.  If you find his stamp on your piece that is a good sign it is a better piece.

Ry Mobler stamp which is also on the piece.

I will say the construction is teak board under teak veneer. There is no MDF in this piece. Most danish casework does use veneer over MDF and that practice is still being used today as my job built $300,000 kitchens made the same way. MDF if a very strong substrate. Solid teak board today would cost a fortune and it would be crazy expensive to recreate this piece in today’s exotic wood market.

See the grain in the wood? You can tell it is solid board and not mdf (medium density fiberboard) where you would notice shredded pieces of board were glued together and foamed into a new board, usually with formaldehyde.  

I will keep you all posted on my progress on the piece as I work on it.  My son cannot wait to move it into his room!  

My next weekend rescue has been in the works for a year.  I finally picked up my future couch! This amazing Craft Associates piece spent the last 25 years in a barn.  We pulled it out on Sunday and literally unearthed it. I am not ready to take it for upholstery work but I have lots to do before I get that far. It is moldy and will require some extra rehab projects that I can start working on a while.  It is safely in my garage and hopefully drying out.  Will be documenting this process as well.  Stay tuned!  

My first project will be removing the walnut facade and cabinet. I can work on refinishing the wood, eradicating the mold and replacing some bad MDF in the cabinet bottom.   

We will need to remove the steel support bars, clean up the rust and repaint.  I will also look for replacement casters and either sourcing walnut legs or having them turned.  

The end result is going to be worth the work! 

NOW FOR MY NEW INVENTORY ITEMS! 

Set of 4 Farstrup Mobler dining chairs.  I will custom recover the seats in fabric you choose from my stash, black vinyl or I can source something for you to order. They are listed in the Etsy shop, coming to chairish.   

Amazing hard to find Thonet arm chair designed by Pierre Paulin in cobalt! It is not perfect but in usable condition. Retains inventory tag from York Graphics.  

I picked this awesome 20s/30s era deck lounger up the other week and made a new seat out of indoor/outdoor fabric from F Schumacher.  It is now available in my Etsy shop. 

This great set needs some rehab before I list them but I love these mid century transitional  styles and the cane is on point. 

IF YOU ARE LOOKING TO ADD SOME FINE FURNISHINGS TO YOUR HOME PRIOR TO THE HOLIDAYS OR PURCHASE A GIFT......please make your selection soon as it may take up to 8 weeks to arrive if I have to ship with a shipper or Greyhound.  Don’t be scared, I am here to help you the entire way! I would love to help you select the perfect piece!

THANKS FOR FOLLOWING! I am continuing my sale at the Mall space this week.  Please grab some fun kitschy decor items at my rock bottom price. 20% off one item, 30% off multiples!  

SHOP WED-SUN 10-6, @Fleetwood Antique Mall, 14129 Kutztown Rd Fleetwood PA 19522

XO MALISSA

Kykuit- Hudson valley on the horizon!

I finally got an answer on why I am getting people on my list that say they were never on my website! Apparently there are spambots hacking into the mailchimp and I can set up a captcha when people sign up.  I have not figured that out yet but plan on it.  If you got here from a spambot, I apologize but stick around if you love vintage goodies!  😉💕 

I am still working my way through my estate sale loot and most recently added some nice 70s-80s era point and shoot cameras.  They are all untested but I have no reason to believe they won’t work if you choose.  They make great props and displays.  I will be busy this weekend so don’t expect much there but I did get the dressers up on Etsy and chairish, minus one I need to retake photos for because the photo nazi’s don’t like my pics.  If you want to make your own set with these, I would gladly discount for multiples. Also, local cash deals get my bests price. 

4 drawer chest in gorgeous walnut veneer. 

Walnut night stand with plastic laminate top, single drawer and open shelf. 

They want me to hang the mirror. The mirror can actually be used separately or attached to the unit.  There are hooks for wall hanging. 

I also have a few danish pieces coming soon. Stay tuned to my social media! 

My trip to Kykuit is scheduled and I will be touring the estate with one of the public tours followed by a meeting with the assistant curator.  I cannot wait to share my research and materials on Marie Cuttoli and  the Fernand Leger rug in their collection, which happens to be in my inventory as well.  It is such a special piece and historic in more than one way.  To be in the room with a second is a dream.  I cannot wait to report back on my adventure and I have some work to do before I go.  I will be presenting my research and would like to get my notes in a logical format on paper to pass on.  This is what it is all about. Preserving these awesome artifacts and their stories!  More to come! 

XO Malissa

Lots of fun new arrivals!

The last week has been exciting! I purchased the first items I committed to buy from the living room of Craft Associates pieces.  Craft Associates plant was an hour north of me in Wilkes Barre, PA.  They are known by their well crafted walnut items and their striking designs by founder, Adrian Pearsall.  His pieces are highly collectible at this point in time so I am thrilled to be able to bring them back to life!  

I started with the tables as they are easiest to get ready for sale and they will be helping to fund the upholstery work I need to do coming up.  The jacks tables are amazing and worth every penny! I have the freeform boomerang coffee table and a pair of guitar pick end tables- which are a harder to find form. They have been cleaned and touched up with new lacquer sprayed.  I have some oxidation on the glass top which looks like a haze.  It disappears when wet.  I have been working on polishing it to see if I can remove.  There is general wear issues on the pieces but they have not been abused.  My touch up cleaned up much of the obvious wear.  

I have dealers hawking me for them but I will not be wholesaling. They will be priced according my markets.  To help my regional peeps out, buy direct from me and pay cash and you can save my fees which is about 10%. I do not charge for meet ups and delivery, either. So let's chat and try to work it out! They are iconic, amazing and timeless!  I am so thrilled to be able to assist them in finding a new home.  

Next up.  I was busy doing some cleaning and touch ups on some items I picked up. I would love to deliver this fine piece! Say hello to a gorgeous Lane Rhythm Hutch!  

This great storage piece features glass sliding doors on the middle 2 shelves (not pictured) and the whole bottom is open for storage via the 2 doors on the sides. A beautiful piece to show off your treasures or books, it is warm and the texture is perfect! Specially priced if you buy direct. I also can deliver this piece as it fits in my minivan but it does not break down any smaller. I will help arrange shipping nationally for the additional cost. 

i also picked up a great Temple Stewart dining table in wheat finish that will match Heywood Wakefield but I paired with my ladder back Italian chairs and am in LOVE!  I will give you a much better price if you buy the whole ensemble! Reach out!

Thanks for following along and hope he all have a great weekend!

xo Malissa

Debunking 'Attributed by', auctions and estate sale finds.

I had a crazy week! First thing's first.  I picked up some amazing items this week bidding on some online auctions.  It is exciting and fun.  I watched a great pair of Adrian Pearsall for Craft Associates sculpted arm chairs go for $1000 and they needed foam work!  But lucky for me, my competition on MCM must have blew their load on the chairs so I was able to get a few very nice high end pieces for a good price!  First off, I won a fabulous Danish bookcase/hutch by Poul Hundevad. It is 2 pieces with a lower cabinet that features a sliding felt lined drawer and maple adjustable shelves.  The exterior is teak veneer and has adjustable open shelves.  It is tall and has a lot of storage.  Perfect for a pyrex display or other collectables or just housing your books.  I do not typically have access to a lot of Danish so this piece was very exciting for me!  It really is a great utility piece and useful in any room of the house.  It is very large though and the top only fits in my Vanagon so delivery will be limited to the local region.  I can help price freight companies and this will be listed on chairish by mid week most likely.  Their rates with Plycon are usually very competitive.  Here's a look!

Beautiful teak utility piece!  Available now!

The next amazing item has me stumped for now.  It is a smaller glass top dining table perhaps a game table.  Perfect for a smaller room or nook.  It has a 1/2" thick glass top which sits on 3 1" thick lucite supports and three brass cross bars or sorts.  It is beautiful and really high end.  Most dealers attribute this to Charles Hollis Jones, the king of Lucite.  CHJ was a pioneer in using lucite in his designs.  All the big dealers are attributing to him but I want to see it for myself. It turns out that MR CHJ is very much alive and has a web site.  I contacted him to see if I could solve this dilemma.  Mr CHJ is a total sweetheart!  I think he was pleased that I asked and he did confirm that this is NOT a CHJ design.  SO, sadly, it is still unknown.  Perhaps it belongs to Alessandro Albrizzi, who also was doing amazing things with Lucite in the 70s and does have some similar looking pieces.  I have yet to crack it.  I will say that this is a very high end piece.  Lucite gained popularity especially with the wealthiest folk as pieces were not blocking a view.  So when you had a home full of windows overlooking the ocean, you could, in effect, see right through the furniture and enjoy the outdoors.  Pretty cool concept and this little piece has opened my mind a little further.  It is a smaller table so seats no more than 4.  For the right spot, it will be a charmer!  Regional delivery is available, and it will be showing up in my chairish shop with shipping by Plycon later this week.  Do not forget that if you are in Deliveright.com service area (mid atlantic states, south eastern states) I may be able to quote them for you as well!  Here is a look at this beauty! 

So in my correspondence with Charles Hollis Jones, he told me that is he currently featured in an exhibit at the Museum of Art and History in Lancaster, CA entitled 50 YEARS 50 CHAIRS.  Pretty cool.  I am trying to purchase a copy of a book about him from the museum for my resources.  A very sweet man, it was very nice that he was cordial and I do think he was even pleased that I bothered to ask.  Can you imagine seeing your name all over a bunch of things you did not create?  Many of this era's iconic designers have already passed on and perhaps a family member is carrying on their legacy and offering insight to those who are still admiring their works.  It was amazing to be able to correspond directly with one of these persons.  This right here is one reason that I take time to research.  Maybe I cannot determine it's origin, but crossing someone off the list is also progress!

I spent all day Wednesday picking up my winnings.  2 trips to the auction house, one in my Honda van and one in our VW Vanagon!  It was a great day for a drive and I got to meet up with my friend, who had also won some things.  We planned to get together on Friday to pick up some other winnings in North Jersey and hit some estate sales.  It worked out great and not only did we have a great day, we probably were at 7 sales and I found a bunch of awesome items!  If kitsch is your thing, I have got some!  I am still listing things but got through a lot in the last few days.  I will add some pics here.  All are currently available in my etsy shop, chairish listings are processing.  It was a very exciting day!  

Adorable 3 pc cafe set with original vinyl sunflower upholstery!  Made in Bethlehem, PA by Crestline Industries.  Super cute for a covered porch or deck, sunroom!

UPDATE SOLD!  Very long framed print for Turner Wall Accessory.  Signed Mato.  This are not high end but are in demand.  This print is entitled NEW YORK HARBOR SCENE.  It is blue-green hues and the frame is stained blue.  A real nice piece.

A very pretty pair of Empire era accent chairs.  These date to the late 1800s and have such great lines, I can see them blending well in a mixed era home.  The red velvet is a recover and in ok shape but that can easily be changed out to match your decor.  Condition is shabby, some chips and age related wear.  One has a repair on the back.  This vintage is best left untouched.  They are charming!  I picked up the rug as well.  It will not be for sale at this time.  

I was recently involved in a discussion regarding Mid Century fake plastic plants.  They are not easy to find to when I saw this one, I grabbed it! Amazing bamboo cemented in 8-9" blow mold plastic pot. stands over 50" tall! It is amazing! 

This was the bulk of my large finds and I have some cool smalls that will be listed soon.  Reach out if you need more info about anything!  Have a great week!  

Xo Malissa