If you had a chance to read my blog titled ‘From humble beginnings – what a learning cliff!’, you will have been left with no doubt that we faced a huge learning curve, in our case a ‘learning cliff’, when we started Masterfind in 2011.

One of the biggest challenges (and continues to be) for us, ‘us’ being hubby Pieter and I, is identifying the styles and eras of the pieces of furniture we come across … sounds pretty easy?  Easier said than done! 

Sometimes it can be a ‘cut and dried’ conclusion, however as there are many variations within each period, along with styles and designs that cross over and become entwined into other periods, it becomes much harder to determine. 

So really, in a nutshell, even though there are defined furniture eras and periods that we can use as a reference point, there are many grey areas that make it very hard at times to pin point definitively.  Hence a piece of furniture from one era is often described as being ‘influenced by …’ or ‘in the style of …’  another design from another era.

Below is a snap-shot of ever evolving furniture styles, covering a mere 450 years.  In the scheme of things, these are relatively recent periods, and of course, there are many more periods beyond those listed. 

Considering archaeologists uncovered some of the first basic examples of furniture made from stone around 30,000 years ago, the different styles and techniques that have evolved over time is mind boggling to say the least!

Depending on the author, there are varying views when determining periods of furniture, however generally periods fall in similar timeframes, so, give or take a few years, I think we are on the right track (albeit a slippery one at times), or close to it anyway!

1950’s to 1980’s – Retro

Well that’s an easy one – any furniture or interior design and style that falls into the 50’s, 60’s, 70’s and now even the 80’s.  Wow, wouldn’t we love it if it was that simple?  Not so … because the big question is what style really defines retro?  Ah ha! … that’s the tricky part, because there is no defined, singular style as such – well, there can’t be as there were so many differing trends and styles within those decades! 

That is why retro furniture can also be classed as vintage or mid-century modern as both fall within those decades.  Many people love retro furniture because of this – there are so many styles and designs that you can let your inner interior designer out to play and go wild!

Better still, as retro furniture and interior design are really open to interpretation and personal taste – there are no rules … having no rules is a wonderful thing – no rules means you can go all out, be different, be inventive … possibly even take some interior design risks.  No rules allows you to create your own individual space, one that reflects your personality. 

Whether you add one or two pieces or a mix from across those decades, whatever you do, no one can reproduce the exact same interior as many of these pieces are one off treasures (trust me - so many people regularly ask “do you have two of these” or “do you have another one the same as the one I saw you have sold?”).  It doesn’t work that way; there are so many pieces over the years that we have only seen one of … that’s why they are true treasures and why they make great conversation starters!

1940’s to late 1960’s Mid-century Modern

Ahhh - beautiful mid-century modern design … another tricky one!  Mid-century modern furniture, also referred to as ‘modernist’, can also be classed as retro or vintage as they too fall into the same period.

Having said that, true mid-century furniture can usually be identified not only by quite distinct styles but by the designer as well.  Mid-century pieces were made to use as every day pieces, so they were functional and designed to serve a purpose in the home. 

Although functionality was high on the list for designers … style was at the very top.  Functional yes, but aesthetically pleasing was a definite aim … they were designed to look good, really good – beautiful in fact – but then again, beauty is in the eye of the beholder!  

Designed to stand alone and make a statement; pieces are minimalist with no decoration or fuss, with clean, sleek and slender lines and beautiful, flowing curves.  Design and materials went hand in hand – each not only complimented the other but brought the best out of one another. 

Showcasing the material/s used was paramount to bringing the designs to life; from beautiful timbers, timber veneers, ply to many other materials that were incorporated into designs like never before, including glass, plastic, resin, brass, metals, chrome-plated metal and many more.  

Simple, balanced and well-proportioned pieces were often achieved by creating a degree of symmetry, hence the love of and use of geometric shapes.  Many designers of the time however, loved to push the boundaries with the use of asymmetrical designs resulting in some truly stunning, eye-catching designs.

Australia boasts an impressive list of mid-century modern designers; their designs are much loved and sought after to this day.  They include but are not limited to; Douglas Snelling, Grant Featherston, Fred Lowen, Tony Parker, Paul Kafka, Clement Meadmore, Roger McLay and Fred Ward … just to name a few!

30 to 100 years old – Vintage

If you are looking for clarity when defining furniture styles, I hate to disappoint – the term vintage will provide anything but.  Just when you thought you were getting a bit of a handle on the subject, I’m going to throw a spanner in the works. 

Spanning across about seven decades (give or take) – the term vintage, when describing furniture and interior design, can also include retro and mid-century furniture as they too fall within this period.    

The term vintage is used to denote something from the past that presents as a good example of its kind.  In this case we are referring to furniture … although a nice glass of red wine of a good vintage would go down rather well right now … mmmm … oops, sorry I just got a little side-tracked for a moment … anyway, back to the subject – so, in other words, the piece should be a good example or representation of furniture designs from styles and trends within that period.

Hence pieces can be referred to as vintage retro or vintage mid-century, as such pieces are true examples of those terms and eras. 

When you refer to something as being vintage, whether it be clothes, music, machinery, wine, furniture and so on, to do so, it is important that you are able to date it – even a loose approximate guesstimate date within a decade. 

For example, when shopping for vintage clothing, by looking at the style and fabric you can roughly guess the decade when it was made, if you are lucky, you may even be able to drill the date down to a handful of years within that decade.  So, you conclude its 1960’s ish – yep, it’s a vintage piece! 

Same applies to vintage furniture ... sometimes they have makers stamps – hallelujah!! … more often than not, we have to assess the design, style, materials and techniques used to get an idea of where a piece sits in the scheme of time and vintage.

Offering an even broader range of styles than retro and mid-century pieces,  you can let your creativity loose even more with vintage furniture.  Thoughtfully placed, beautiful pieces from across these decades work so well together – such a fabulous way to create a truly individual look for your space.

100 + years old – Antique

Nothing beats a beautifully crafted, gorgeous piece of antique furniture – our love affair for antiques continues on through the centuries.  Why?  Apart from books (who doesn’t love to snuggle up with a good book … a real book … snuggling up with my iPad just doesn’t cut it for me … anyway I digress!), what better way is there to have a record of and to gain an appreciation and understanding of the fashions, politics and lifestyles of past generations but through antique furniture – they have such a story to tell!

Classing a piece of furniture as being an antique is relatively easy – it’s over a hundred years old, so it’s an antique.  I think you can guess what’s coming … another one of my ah ha! moments.  So as not to disappoint, here it is … ah ha! but that’s the easy part! 

Determining age, origin, era and maker is a totally different kettle of fish.  As you can see from below, from around 1900 back, there are many eras.  Mind you, as I mentioned above, this list only covers a mere 450 years or so (and it doesn’t even cover American, French and other nationality periods – the list would be way too long … nearly as long as this blog!!) … so, in the scheme of things, a relatively short period of time. Obviously, the history of antique furniture goes way back to some truly fascinating times in our history.

If we are lucky, some pieces have makers plates or marks and sometimes handwritten signatures and dates (we have seen wonderful examples of the latter – long, spidery beautiful cursive writing … a dying art, I’m afraid).  More often than not though, there are no markings.

There are some basic things that can help identify the age and origins of a piece.  We are far from being experts but these are some basic handy tips we have learnt along the way.

The style of a piece can give some strong clues as to when it was made.  Each period has quite a distinctive style, however styles crossed over as fashions changed and new designers added their own styles. 

A good example of this is the Georgian period (also because this period spanned nearly 100 years), a period also referred to as the Golden Age of furniture design; brilliant designers such as Thomas Chippendale, George Hepplewhite, Thomas Sheraton and Robert and James Adam really made their marks.  Original pieces from this period are highly valuable, however quality and more affordable reproductions are very much in demand.

Looking at how a piece was made can also provide an insight to its age.  Hand-made furniture is never perfect, therefore if keeping in mind that the use of machinery started from around 1860, then furniture that has been hand-crafted can often indicate that it was made prior to that date.

Such indicators can be; hand-cut dovetail-joined drawers (opposed to uniform machine cut), carvings that are not exactly the same as the other of the same pattern – particularly when repeated on panels or carved mirror images, cuts to the timber that are a little rougher, possibly indicating the use of a plane, drawknife or spoke saw.  If there are curved or arched marks on the timber, it indicates that the cut was made with a circular saw, so made after 1860.

There are many other ways of identifying age and styles, that go well-beyond our knowledge but at least these tips may help you in the future … at least you can look like you know what you are talking about!

Something really important to remember though, and this is where it can be confusing, hand-crafted furniture, especially those where old techniques were applied, were made well into the 20th century – so it is not a fool-proof way of dating furniture by any means.  Because of this, a piece that is hand-crafted does not necessarily mean that it pre-dates 1860.

Also, never discount reproductions.  There are some beautifully crafted reproduction pieces … many made in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries display excellent craftsmanship and are very well-made.  Also, reproductions can be hundreds of years old – for example, a piece made in the Jacobean style in 1800 is a reproduction of original pieces made in the early 1600’s – so in actual fact, those reproductions are antiques in their own right - now that’s food for thought!

Unless you are a serious collector and look at antiques as an investment, it really comes down to one thing; if you love it, that’s all that matters.

Today some of the most beautiful bespoke furniture is created by extremely talented craftsmen and women, whose pieces, in time, will become antiques one day and be much sought after too. 

And so, it goes, the wheel of time keeps on turning.

1930’s to 1970’s - Scandinavian

1925 to 1940 – Art Deco

1919 to 1933 – Bauhaus

1901 to 1910 – Edwardian

1890 to 1910 – Art Nouveau

1860 to 1920 – Victorian Arts & Crafts

1837 to 1880 – Victorian Eclectic

1812 to 1837 – Regency

1727 to 1811 – Neo-Classical

1760 to 1820 – King George 111 (Georgian)

1727 to 1760 – King George 11 (Georgian)

1714 to 1760 – King George 1 (Georgian)

1701 to 1714 – Queen Ann

1689 to 1727 – Rococo

1603 to 1625 – Jacobean – Oak

1558 to 1603 – Elizabethan – Primitive