Today we call Fed Exp., United Parcel or any one of a dozen freight carriers and they’ll come to your home pick up whatever you want to ship and have it at it’s desired destination the following day…………not so back in the 1800’s when iron beds were being built. As I’ve mentioned in previous blogs,…
We here at Cathouse Antique Iron Beds have been refining the art of refinishing and adapting old original double size iron bed frame’s to accommodate today’s modern Queen and King size mattress’s for close to 40 years. Converting an old antique double size iron bed, to a modern king size requires we strive to maintain…
Few iron beds that have been photographed in the movies have ever received the attention as the one used in the movie “Cat On A Hot Tin Roof” with Elizabeth Taylor and Paul Newman. It was an incredibly scrolled Victorian piece that really highlighted the mood and personalities of the actors and story. What many…
Many years ago I had a group of you girls buy a bed from me for a sorority sister who was getting married. The idea for such a gift had come from one of their grandmothers who had quilted a beautiful “double wedding ring” quilt for the bride. She had recounted, to her granddaughter how,…
One of the most unique and collectible casting , used on antique iron beds, was the “hollow wreath” casting. Generally speaking, if a bed has one of these type castings……. there’s a pretty good chance it’s a good bed. When foundries poured castings to complete the process of building iron beds, it’s done by hand…
A few years ago I got a email from a gentleman back in Central Pennsylvanos. He was looking for an Austere iron bed. He was quite specific on the style and design he wanted. He sent me sketches of the bed, that he’d drawn after actually having a dream about it. We discussed finishes etc. and as…
In the early 90’s I had the distinct pleasure of meeting and selling a number of iron beds to Whoopi Goldberg. At the time she had just started dating a high profile actor who I’d also sold a number of iron beds to over the years. I’d first sold him an iron bed for his…
What little girl hasn’t looked at her parents one day and said I want a “Princess” bed. Well being a parent I knew exactly what she meant. She meant a iron canopy bed. A remark like this usually came after seeing a Disney movie with a princess and her castle bedroom. Little girls have always…
If you’re searching for an antique iron bed and you’ve found one you like…….be sure it has a set of siderails. Now…… be sure and check to see that they fit…..perfectly. DO NOT take the dealers word for it. Have him set the iron bed up with the rails and make sure it doesn’t wobble…
For the longest time it was widely thought that most of the iron beds being produced back in the 1800’s, were coming out of the Pittsburgh Pennsylvania area. That thought was because the vast majority of steel production was also in Pittsburgh. But more and more is coming to light that many of the iron…