Do You Know What A Gossip Chair Is?

admin — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 09:41:12 +0000

Do You Know What A Gossip Chair Is?

The ‘Gossip Chair’, also known as a ‘Caquetoire’ became popular in the late sixteenth century Europe. Since women wore voluminous farthingale skirts, they were cumbersome to manage in regular chairs. As furniture’s basic function is to make every day life more comfortable and answer lifestyle needs, the caquetoire chair came into being to accommodate these wide skirts.

A caquetoire is an armchair with simply turned legs. It has curved arms, but the shape of the seat is what really distinguishes it. It was designed to be very wide in the front, and narrowed at the back, making a triangular shape. The back was high and paneled, and sometimes was decorated with carving and medallions.

These chairs were apparently grouped for ladies to sit together and chat or gossip. Indeed the word caquetoire comes from the word caqueter which means to chat

Caquetoire Image (c) S. Hasan

Somehow the translation favors the word gossip over chat. These chairs first appeared in France but then found their way to other European countries.

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source:http://furniture.about.com/od/furnitureterms/a/Caquetoire.htm

How To Tell If It Is Really An Antique

admin — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 18:59:30 +0000

Antique Can Have Different Meanings

Some sellers are rigorous in their use of the word antique, others use the term more loosely and yet others may mistakenly or perhaps intentionally use the word incorrectly.

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I have learned the only dumb question is the question I didn’t ask, and sometimes that I must question my trust in the word’s usage especially if something looks too good to be true.

Merriam Webster’s dictionary defines antique in the noun form as:
1 : a relic or object of ancient times

2 a : a work of art, piece of furniture, or decorative object made at an earlier period and according to various customs laws at least 100 years ago b : a manufactured product (as an automobile) from an earlier period”

Usually it is the 2 a definition that applies to ‘antique’ as a noun. The item must be 100 years old to be “antique” based on this definition.

But do you see how ‘antique’ can also be used to describe an item as a verb and perhaps be a misnomer? Or simply a colorful description? I sure can and have in the past.

Be careful to clarify the use of this word with the seller and ensure what you are planning to purchase is a true antique if you’re looking for something over 100 years old. Sight unseen it’s worth asking the question and getting as much information/proof as possible.

A hypothetical example, if you see a pair of vases together in a listing, both identical, defined as ‘antique’ what is the likelihood that both vases would have weathered 100 years in pristine condition and remained an unseparated pair? What authenticity or proof can the seller provide to ensure the age of these items?

What is the providence or the examples of other vases that the seller based his/her identification on? The same for ‘period’ piece furniture, glass or other items. Research, asking questions, being sure what you see and what you read mean what you think they mean.

Seek Out And Read the fine print always.

Even experts can be fooled…….hope this helps you enjoy your collecting experience even more.