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It's not just stereos that the kids don't want.

Five miles down the road from our small town resides the largest antiques warehouse in the southern USA - Morris Antiques. From the time I was a kid, they have carried the best antique furniture available, most of it purchased in Europe and sent here. It's the real deal.

In a recent conversation with the owner's son, I was told that their business has been hit hard by the "anti-brown furniture" movement. Prices have plummeted as our current generation grows bored with the "this old house" movement and nostalgia in general. Their furniture of choice? Black anything. Black everything. No more appreciation of the warmth and glow of finely aged walnut and mahogany. No more admiration of the intensive labor and skills that go into turning out beautiful furniture. And an ever-fading knowledge or concern for history, family, or country.

Fine. That's the way things evolve. But I'll spend my remaining days continuing to admire the labors of skilled craftsmen. And I hope I'll be able to continue surrounding myself with as much brown wood as possible.

GeeDeeEmm
 
gdmoore28 said:
No more appreciation of the warmth and glow of finely aged walnut and mahogany. No more admiration of the intensive labor and skills that go into turning out beautiful furniture.
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Maybe there simply isn't enough cash after paying the rent/mortgage to buy anything except mass-maket utilitarian crap. The price of fine antique furniture will probably continue to crater as the boomers die off.
 
Shortly after getting married at age 27, my mom offered us her mother's dining table. Huge ornate thing with a 5th leg in the center and those curvy ornate bars extending from the corner legs to the center. I think it was expandable with leaves. Very dark color. Probably at least 75 years old. We already had a light oak/ramen wood thing going in our house (early 90s) and it seemed like it would clash. She sold it off. I later regretted it. For one thing it was probably walnut and could have been stripped and refinished a couple shades lighter (it lived with smokers for decades so God knows what was on there). And I could have gotten used to the antique style. Never be another one, it's gone. Word to the wise: if in doubt, say Yes. You can change your mind later but you can't get that stuff back.
 
I think a more interesting question would be what DOES the current generation value? Where ARE they spending money, when they have disposable income?
 
I think that like the small niche that audiophiles are, like members here, the very same members here have no clue as the value and market value for real quality antiques. The good stuff that most real collectors pay big bucks for didn't come from Europe, it came from the great furniture designers out of New York, Boston, Baltimore, Philidaphia and a few other fine furniture stores in America. Don't get me wrong I am sure Europe has its great designers, but here in America the market is never been very hot for European stuff. The young crowd that doesn't like brown furniture is probably the same crowd that has never even been in an establishment that has really good stuff. And if they did, they couldn't afford it anyhow. Why do they use Uber, not because they wouldn't want a nice car, but they can't afford one, and so their pride forces them to make others think that they don't want a car. My parents collect antiques most their life as I have, and I have yet to see any quality antiques ever go down in price. Sotheby's, and Christies continue to set all time records on their brown antique furniture auctions. These nomad hipsters who don't like quality goods are not able to buy the cheapest item at one of these auction blocks, so it is quite easy for them to express their disinterest.

http://www.sothebys.com/en/auctions/ecatalogue/2009/important-americana-n08512/lot.174.html
 
I cant stand colonial furniture, unless perhaps actually made during the founding of the colonies. That aesthetic bothers me for some reason, along with Colonial Typefaces(Mamas family and old Family Fued title cards)
I do own some colonial furniture as it belonged to my grandmother, but every time a chair breaks(which they easily do, and are too complicated for their own sake), I take it into the garage and smash it up with no hesitation.

There are only two left.

The greatest abominations were colonial console stereos. As if I was fooled that I could be in possession of John Q Adams' Magnavox.

I'm ok with other kinds of brown wooden furniture, though.
 
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Some lovely "brown furniture" currently listed for sale on Bartertown.
What's wrong with somebody (of any age) that wouldn't want these?

http://audiokarma.org/forums/index.php?threads/pair-of-large-advents-in-the-pnw.758553/





index.php
 
Ken Boyd said:
I think that like the small niche that audiophiles are, like members here, the very same members here have no clue as the value and market value for real quality antiques. The good stuff that most real collectors pay big bucks for didn't come from Europe, it came from the great furniture designers out of New York, Boston, Baltimore, Philidaphia and a few other fine furniture stores in America. Don't get me wrong I am sure Europe has its great designers, but here in America the market is never been very hot for European stuff. The young crowd that doesn't like brown furniture is probably the same crowd that has never even been in an establishment that has really good stuff. And if they did, they couldn't afford it anyhow. Why do they use Uber, not because they wouldn't want a nice car, but they can't afford one, and so their pride forces them to make others think that they don't want a car. My parents collect antiques most their life as I have, and I have yet to see any quality antiques ever go down in price. Sotheby's, and Christies continue to set all time records on their brown antique furniture auctions. These nomad hipsters who don't like quality goods are not able to buy the cheapest item at one of these auction blocks, so it is quite easy for them to express their disinterest.

http://www.sothebys.com/en/auctions/ecatalogue/2009/important-americana-n08512/lot.174.html
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Well, what you say is probably true, but keep in mind most of US and our parents don't have that kind of stuff either. The article was talking about stuff way down the scale from Sotheby's, stuff the average middle class senior citizens would have that used to belong to their parents and grandparents. Just sayin'.

And while there has always been this 'I hate my parents' clunky old stuff' paradigm ever since we lived in caves, SOME young people do appreciate quality old stuff and want to preserve it. The fact that we 50-somethings have to complete with teenagers for records and turntables is a good example.
 
I like how they comment how no one comes to get the Hummel collection out of the storage, like the author has any clue as to what heirlooms would be. Hummels are like what from the early 1970's? I have to admit when ever I go to any estate sale I am taken back by what most people have accumulated in a life time. 99% of the time I don't see one thing that I would wish to own. People for the most part don't own much within their estate which is by my definition as a heirloom.
 
toxcrusadr said:
Well, what you say is probably true, but keep in mind most of US and our parents don't have that kind of stuff either. The article was talking about stuff way down the scale from Sotheby's, stuff the average middle class senior citizens would have that used to belong to their parents and grandparents. Just sayin'.

And while there has always been this 'I hate my parents' clunky old stuff' paradigm ever since we lived in caves, SOME young people do appreciate quality old stuff and want to preserve it. The fact that we 50-somethings have to complete with teenagers for records and turntables is a good example.
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Everything out there was once owned by someones grandparents, or parents. It usually comes down to the fact that wealthy people and educated in the manner are the ones who end up with the quality stuff. They manage both by means and knowledge to seek out and collect the good stuff. Some less wealthy also luck into it by knowledge of antiques and hard work seeking out items that might be overlooked. That show on PBS "Road Show" it was created by an group of collectors who wanted to get people who have something special in their homes to come out and show what they have. Behind the scenes not shown on the show are the collectors who are then making offers to the people buy their items.
 
Dr. Morbius said:
I had the same problem when my parents died. They were depression era kids ... i.e., hoarders. Threw away more junk than you can imagine. My dad had put 3 old non-functioning lawnmowers in the attic for God's sake. What on earth did he think he was going to do with them? Beats me, but he saved them for future generations.
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My in-laws grew up poor kids of immigrants who came to this country to mine coal. My FiL, especially, was always worried that he might not get another meal for a while. Anything that might be "good" was worth saving just in case.
 
I'm 47 this year and am glad that when I buy furniture I am not stuck with it for the rest of my life. We bought new couches when we were married 15 years ago and just replaced them and you know what? I like the change. The couches were beat between the cats and kid and they had to go. I'm not about to get plastic covers for the new couches either, when they are beat, they go too.

It's only stuff, so what if our kids don't want it. When I see a couch or chair at the thrifts all I imagine is how many times was this farted on and how nasty were the people doing the farting?
 
I regret selling Mom's sewing machine at a yard sale. Both Dad and I were in a paring down mode at the same time, I guess.

The old couches and chairs went with no regrets.
 
It's the fine furniture that is worth keeping in the family. That stuff is just going to keep going up in value as exotic woods of similar quality get more scarce. Wide clear boards, stuff like that which we will rarely ever see in modern furniture. I have a piece of clear red oak that I bought in the mid 80s to use as a mantle. I think I paid $40 or $50 for it then. I've never worked it since. Try finding a piece of wood like that now!
 
Todd Dodds said:
You guys make it sound like a farty couch is a bad thing. Me, I just cherish it even more.
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Ha! My brothers and I would try our best to fart on every couch we sat on for a while. The goal was to impregnate the cushions so when the next person sat in it they would release the fart trapped inside and have to sit there and smell it or get blamed for it.
 
Silverware is mostly only worth the silver. People don't want that stuff anymore. But vintage tools, photography gear, art, etc.

I'm lucky. My kids and step kids will all want the majority of our stuff. Barring the junk. My kids are telling me they want something that I just got before I even have a chance to decide whether I want to keep it or not. A lot of the stuff will go to goodwill, and I'm fine with that. They know what the good stuff is. I've been teaching them about it all their lives. I would rather spend twice or three times for a reliable tool or item I use all the time than buy a cheap item I will need to replace 4 or 5 times in a lifetime. But most of the time, I get it for less than if I did buy the cheap one in a store. No warrantee? Who cares! I can always get another one.
 
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