60s vintage furniture - what wood (etc.)

[Renata]

I have a bedroom set that, while not expensive at the time, is quite well made, especially by today's standards. Dovetails and solid wood. And, even after 40+ years of use, the drawers still slide, etc.

First question is what wood do you suppose this stuff is made of? Looks like that luan stuff, under the finish, which may be paint. Did they typically use this "mahagony" back then?

Secondly, the finish is a real detractor in my eyes and kinda dated. Ideally, I'd paint it and put new hardware prior to selling, but I ain't got the time. Do you think it'd be worth trying to sell as-is and hope someone would see the potential? Wouldn't be asking too much, I don't think. In fact, for a dresser, tall dresser, and headboard/ & footboard, do you think $200 would be outrageous?

Sorry, no pics as I put my camera in a "safe place" and haven't unearthed it yet.

Thanx Renata

[Edwin Pawlowski]

I'm not an expert, but I see this stuff for sale all the time in some of the antique stores in town. It is probably worth more in original condition that if you updated it.

Price? Could be anything from $20 to $2000. I'm sometimes shocked at the asking price for stuff my grandparents got rid of. Ed

[Morris Dovey]

I'm not sure about "typically"; but it was used in some stuff I've seen.

Depends on condition. Wouldn't be outrageous in this area if all pieces were cosmetically "nice" (for some buyer's notion of nice).

If you have serious difficulty finding that buyer, you might consider contacting a local shelter to arrange a pass-thru donation to someone restarting their life without the resources to buy furniture. Ask the shelter to provide a donation receipt for the $200 and take the deduction.

(-: (I don't dare put things in safe places any more.)

[J. Clarke]

Could be anything, depending on the quality. To give an example, the Eames lounge chair was available in cherry, walnut, or rosewood. A lot of Scandinavian furniture ("Danish Modern") was teak, either solid or veneer. Could be lauan, real mahogany, or something more exotic.

Generally speaking, old furniture is worth more with the original finish intact. But you have to find the right buyer.

[Charlie Self]

Renata asks:

Difficult to say, really. We bought an older set for the spare bedroom when we moved here. It is painted French Provincial (supposedly FP) in style. Oddly enough, the base material seems to be...gasp!...cherry. Construction is excellent by today's standards, far better than I could afford in my new set.

Mahogany in any of its guises, including meranti and luan, was around in the '60s and a lot cheaper than it is today. Of course, neither is mahogany, but...

We paid something like $200 2-1/2 years ago for our set, which includes only the dresser and nightstand. The headboard that came with it was a little weird (ugly and off-sized), so got stored in the basement, where it served as some of the fuel for our fire last June.

Charlie Self "Bore, n.: A person who talks when you wish him to listen." Ambrose Bierce, The Devil's Dictionary