Dear Mr. Williams,

I have recently inherited a few pieces of furniture and need to know whether or not I should use them for a new space in my home. I have a tuxedo-style sofa, two matching chairs, two small French-style pull-up chairs painted white with gold accents, an Oriental chest, 2 Oak Mission style tables and a pair of brass lamps in an Early American style. I also own pieces I would like to use and it's hard for me to imagine all this going in the same room. How do I start selecting what to keep? I also need to know what to do with the pieces I don't use for this new project.

Sincerely,
Maggie Drummond

Dear Ms. Drummond,

I am a firm believer in using pieces that worked before and can be reworked for today. I know it is difficult to decide what to keep, especially when some pieces come from other family members and there are memories attached. Be sure to assess your needs in the new room before trying to decide what to give up and what to keep. I would suggest you keep the sofa and matching chairs. The sofa, which at 78" is easy to place and move, should be recovered. I would suggest creating two cushions instead of three. This will help create the illusion of length for the piece and at the same time eliminate the cluttered look three-seat cushions and backs can sometimes create. The two matching chairs should be recovered in a complimentary pattern to the sofa.

For each, I would also suggest you restyle the cushions to include self-welting. Welting is the small cording found on many cushions and pillows on upholstered furniture. The two French-style Bergere chairs should be stripped of their paint and re-stained a warm Walnut color. For the seat, back and arms choose a wonderful woven fabric in a pattern, once again, to compliment the sofa and chairs. The Oriental chest might be just wonderful on the larger wall coming into the room from the entry. You should consider placing a piece of wall decor over the chest. It need not be oriental in style and you might find something in a more contemporary look or even Art Deco in feel. Faint the walls in the lighter shade from the background of the printed fabric on the pull-up chairs. You might also consider washing the walls, after painting, in a pale celadon finish. The washing technique adds a bit of luster without using paint in a gloss or semi-gloss finish. Rather than using hardwood on the floor in the room consider sisal carpet used wall to wall as a fresh and interesting change from hardwood. With a large and very colorful area rug in front of the sofa the room will spring to life and you will have saved a few of the inherited pieces you love.

I don't believe the tables and lamps should be used in this room.Finding a place to move along the other pieces isn't as difficult as you might think. If no one in the family wants what is left consider sending the pieces to a consignment shop. For more than twenty years now we in America have enjoyed the benefits of consignment shopping for furniture. Before then one either shopped for antiques or what you saw was just " old secondhand furniture ". I have made some of my best " finds " in consignment shops. Many consignment shops offer full room settings with lighting, wall decor and rugs all for one stop shopping. Most will take good quality furniture and furnishings in good repair. This is not junk and most consignment shops maintain rules about what they will take to sell. The share on the sale price will range from 1/3 to the seller all the way to 2/3 for the seller. Make your best deal. When I deliver a piece to consign, I often have trouble not buying something else before leaving. A good eye and knowledge about furniture will be very helpful here. Educate yourself about construction, upholstery and accessories. Don't be afraid to dicker about the price on larger pieces.

I once bought a painted love seat in a shop in Baltimore for less than the $ 250.00 asking price. What I was able to ascertain before I purchased the piece was its' maker; a well known New England company with whom I had dealt many times in the past. The frame alone, without upholstery, was worth over $ 2,000.00. Even after having the piece stripped and reupholstered I still had less invested than the price of the frame alone. Be willing to give pieces you find new finishes, fabrics and life. Although you will occasionally find a piece that is just right the way it is, you will usually have to change something to make the piece work. Like buying a home, look for good bones and the right proportions. I find this kind of shopping the most fun. You never know when you will run into that " find " of a lifetime. At the same time the frustration of not finding anything that works on a particular trip can be daunting. Most areas of the country have consignment shops and I find, when traveling, I will often look to see what is available in other parts of the country. One of the most interesting consignment shops I've seen recently was in London, England. Called The Curtain Exchange, they offered gently used drapery and fabric accessories at very competitive prices. As with most consignment shops, the goods were in great condition and ready to be used. Best wishes on you new room and I hope you have a great experience with consignment shop trading.


 

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