Queen Victoria’s reign in England, was from 1837 until her death in 1901. During her reign the most popular style of design would bare her name because of it’s inherent opulence. Victorian interior design draws it’s style from a number of other design styles, popular before and during Queen Victoria’s crown. Styles like East-lake and…
Throughout modern history, stories have been told of the beautiful canopy beds that Princesses have had. They were widely spread by animation companies like the Disney Co., who have practically developed a new “Princess” every few years and then done an animated motion pictures about her. Those movies have had a profound influence on our…
Throughout the 1800’s the popularity of metal beds would continue to grow until the WWI, when all of the metal produced in this country was needed for the war effort……..bringing to a close the beauty of hand crafted antique iron beds. But during their “hay-day”, foundries and metal bed manufacturers were continually trying to come…
One of the major draws that metal beds have had throughout history, has been their adaptability into any specific color scheme or decor. Why is that…. and what sets them distinctly apart from other antiques , that are not so flexible in its usage? The first thing is that back in the 1800’s wood furniture…
I’m often asked about what type of mattresses were used on beds back in the 1800’s. After a discussion of feather mattresses……their advantages and disadvantages, the topic invariably turns to what man used before conventional mattresses were used on bed frames. It is thought that during the Crusades, Europeans adopted the Arabic method of sleeping on cushions thrown on the…
For 40 years I have been dealing in antique iron beds. In that period of time, I have never bought or sold an old original spring unit. Is it because they are so rare and difficult to come by? Hardly…..When I started in the business those people wanting to sell me beds, throughout the backwoods…
Although the Art Deco school of design first appeared in France during the 1920s and flourished internationally during the 30s and 40s, metal beds of the early and mid 1800’s, were already displaying Art Deco styling way before they would become popular. It’s difficult to imagine what the designers of iron beds were thinking to…
Nearly all of the custom antique faux’ finishes that we do here at Cathouse Beds, came about as a result of customers, decorators and clients that happen to have something they wanted their antique iron beds “finish”, to blend with. The most common items are material swatches from items like dust ruffles, blankets, pillows or…
I’ve always been a bit of a “purist” when it comes to antique iron beds and “reproductions”. There have been a few companies that go above and beyond in their efforts to maintain the exact duplication of the original iron beds they’re copying. This can be difficult for numerous reasons, the least of which are…
When iron beds were at their Zenith in the mid 1800’s, many manufacturers were constructing a very rudimentary metal spring unit to hold the feather mattresses of the day. These metal spring units would later be refined and become known as a “box spring”. Today’s box springs are tightly wrapped iron coils that resemble a metal…