How To Dress An Antique Iron Bed

If you were to come across any vintage photo’s of bedroom interiors, you would probably be amazed at how spartan they are. The factor that would probably catch your attention before anything else is the lack of pillows that were used and the method in which they were exhibited. Most of the time there was a solitary pair of pillows…

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Appropriate Antiques for Cottage Design

Leisure and comfort are two of the more integral things to remember when deciding on a Cottage decor. Other schools of design base their foundation on formality and pretense. Quaint and cozy can be your catch phrase for Cottage Style. Another tenant to remember is “practical”, yet comfortable. When it comes to color schemes, stay…

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The Depleted Access of American Antique

“The Hills are Drying Up”, has become the catch phrase for every antique picker that is still in the business. When I started as a wholesale “picker”, over 40 years ago back in Washington DC., the “hills” were packed with merchandise. The “hills” are the backwoods, that are away from cities and densely populated metropolitan areas.…

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The Feminine Attraction To Beds

When you think about metal beds, what’s the very first thing that comes to mind? Well if your a women, it’s most likely something like “stylish” , “attractive”, “romantic”, …………if you’re a man, it’s probably “girlie”, “feminine”. It’s a preconceived notion the majority of people have of those stunning old antique iron beds that graced the bedrooms…

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Decorating Country French Style With Beds

To realize why antique  beds are so perfect for certain design styles, you first need a run down on what it is that decides the general overall look and feel of that style. With regards to Country French, it can best be defined as classic European elegance with homespun comforts. We’re all acquainted with the beautiful Toile…

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Refined Elegance of Metal Beds

Some people look at old  beds as just a run down piece of furniture that doesn’t know when to say die. Others look upon that same bed with a much different eye…….. an eye of “refined elegance”. When that vision of “refined elegance” is given to any item ………… especially antiques or vintage furniture, it…

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Metal Beds & Preconceived Opinions

When you think about metal beds, what’s the first thing that comes to mind? Well if your a women, it’s probably something like “elegant” , “attractive”, “romantic”, …………if you’re a man, it’s probably “girlie”, “feminine”. The thing that obviously helps determine a persons initial opinion of one of these old metal beds, is it’s “finish”…

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The Elements of Victorian Design

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…

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The “Princess” Bed

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…

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The Art Bed Company bed decal specialists

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…

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Colors Are the Metal Beds Friend

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…

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A Short History of The Mattress

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…

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Art Deco Metal Beds Before Their Time

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…

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Custom Finishes from Clients Samples

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…

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Redesigning Original Antique Bed Designs

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…

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