SERPENTINE · BOW-FRONT · BLOCK-FRONT · BOMBE · OXBOW
Antique dresser restoration, period-correct, by hand.
Chests of drawers in every period shape — straight-front, bow-front (single arc across the front), serpentine (S-curve across the front), block-front (three blocks alternating in and out — the New England Goddard-Townsend signature), bombe (curving outward in three dimensions), oxbow (reverse-curved serpentine). Hide glue and pegged joinery preserved. Drawer dovetails repaired by hand where damaged. Original hardware preserved or hand-forged replacements. French polish on the visible wood; no chemical stripping.
I. SHAPES & PERIODS
Each shape signals a different period.
Straight-front (William & Mary, Queen Anne, country pieces — most common). Bow-front (Federal-period — Hepplewhite, Sheraton). Serpentine (Chippendale and Federal high-style). Block-front (Goddard-Townsend Newport, Massachusetts North Shore — the most valuable American shape). Bombe (Boston, mid-18th-c., curving in three dimensions — extremely rare and high-value). Oxbow (reverse serpentine — late 18th- to early 19th-c., distinctive American interpretation).
II. DRAWER WORK
Hand-cut dovetails repaired. Runners replaced.
Drawer joinery on antique dressers is hand-cut dovetails — slightly uneven, larger pins than tails, pre-1860 typical. We repair failed dovetails by hand (re-cutting the joint, gluing with hide glue, never replacing with biscuit or pocket-screw joinery). Drawer runners (the wooden strips the drawer slides on) wear down to ruts after a century; we replace runners while keeping the original drawer bottom and sides. Drawer fronts that have split are re-glued with hide glue and reinforced on the back.
III. VENEER & INLAY REPAIR
Flush-cut, bookmatched, hide-glued.
Antique dressers often have flame mahogany, crotch walnut, or burl walnut veneer over a substrate. Lifting and chipped veneer is the most common damage we see. We flush-cut the failure, source matching veneer (from period-correct stocks), bookmatch the grain so the repair is invisible, and glue with hide glue under cauls and weight. Federal-period dressers often have inlay (bellflowers, husks, satinwood banding); we repair missing inlay with hand-cut replacements in matching wood, never store-bought generic inlay strip.
IV. HARDWARE
Original preserved. Hand-forged replacements when missing.
Original brass hardware — bail pulls, rosettes, escutcheons — is preserved and cleaned (light polish; never aggressive buffing that removes patina). When a pull or escutcheon is missing, we hand-forge a replacement in matching brass to copy a surviving original. We do not install catalog reproduction hardware; modern reproductions read wrong at a glance and devalue the piece. Sandwich glass pulls, Bennington pulls, hand-cast bail pulls — all available for hand-forging.
Frequently asked
How do I date my dresser?
Two main clues: dovetail style (hand-cut with uneven, slightly larger pins = pre-1860; machine-cut with uniform tight tails = post-1870) and primary wood (mahogany high-style = late 18th-/early 19th-c. urban; walnut = could be any period; pine secondary wood = American country). Shape adds detail: block-front = Newport/Massachusetts 1750-1790; bombe = Boston 1740-1780. The glossary's joinery section walks through dating.
Should I refinish my dresser?
Almost certainly not. Refinishing strips the patina, the grain depth, and typically halves the auction value. Finish revival (French polish padded over the existing surface) is the right answer in nearly every case. The only time refinishing is right is when the existing surface is destroyed beyond preservation (deep water damage exposing raw wood, paint stripper applied by a prior owner, severe burn damage).
Can you repair lifting veneer?
Yes — flush-cut the failure, source matching period-correct veneer, bookmatch the grain so the repair is invisible, glue with hide glue under cauls and weight. We have repaired veneer from late 18th-c. flame mahogany through Art Deco zebrawood. Missing inlay (bellflowers, husks, satinwood banding) is hand-cut in matching wood and inlaid by hand.
What about missing hardware?
We hand-forge brass replacements in matching style to copy a surviving original. Bring one original pull or escutcheon and we copy it. We do not install reproduction hardware from catalogs — those are visibly modern even at a glance and they devalue the piece.
Is restoration worth it on a less-valuable dresser?
Often, yes. Even a country dresser worth $400 retail gains long-term durability and use value from restoration — runners replaced, joints re-glued, finish revived, hardware tightened. The dresser is functional for another 100 years. We will be honest at the consultation when restoration cost exceeds market value of the piece.
Block-front and bombe dressers — special handling?
Yes. Block-front (Goddard-Townsend) and bombe (Boston) shapes are the highest-value American dressers, often museum-quality. Restoration is more conservative — minimal intervention, period-correct materials, written treatment logs suitable for Christie's, Sotheby's, or Pook & Pook submission. Insurance documentation included.
