Jenn’s Furniture Refinishing FYI Series

Have you ever come across an interesting antique piece of furniture and wondered, “How old is this?” One of the ways that you can narrow down a date is by recognizing the style of the piece. Many periods in history produced furniture that had unique characteristics, helping you date your newest treasure.

Today, we’re going to focus on one of my absolute favorite styles of furniture - Victorian Eastlake!

History Of Eastlake Style Furniture

The term “Eastlake” actually refers to a man by the name of Charles Eastlake. He wrote a book called Hints on Household Taste in Furniture in 1868 and put forth his appeal for simpler, well-crafted furniture. He rejected the opulent and over-the-top elaborate pieces of the early Victorian era in favor of artisan-crafted pieces that were simple and sturdy. The Victorian Eastlake period lasted from 1870 until around 1890.

There are characteristic elements of Victorian Eastlake furniture that you’ll learn to recognize as you go antique hunting.

Characteristics Of Victorian Eastlake Furniture

Spoon Carvings

Spoon carvings are delicately carved details that you’ll find on a typical V.E. piece. They often take the form of flowers and leaves. The dresser below (painted in Aviary with MilkWax - Antiquing™) has some circular spoon carvings dotted along the surface.

This dresser with mirror has gorgeous leaf carvings along the top of the mirror and just underneath the little shelves on either side. They’re a great place to use our decorative waxes because they sit beautifully in these recessed areas! This piece in particular was white waxed.

Incised Lines

Incised lines are one of the most recognizable features of V.E. pieces. They can run horizontal or vertical along the piece, and often are found in groups of 2-4. You can see them running along the drawers and down the doors of this sweet washstand (painted in a custom blend of Teal Ocean and Boxwood).

Incised lines add to the angular nature of Victorian Eastlake pieces. They draw the eye around the piece in a linear fashion.

Ornate Hardware

The pulls and knobs you’ll find on Victorian Eastlake furniture are absolutely gorgeous. They can be as simple as a stamped metal backplate or as ornate as a hand-carved wooden acorn handle.

Geometric Design Elements

Sometimes, you’ll see raised panels in layered geometric shapes, like those on the drawers of this washstand. (Take a look at the incised lines going down the sides! The piece even has some going around the perimeter of the drawers.)

Now that you know how to recognize a Victorian Eastlake piece of furniture, have you come across any in your travels? How many of you realize there’s one in your home right now? Make sure you share your MilkPaint™ pieces from this era with us on social media. We’d love to see what you’re working on!

If you’d like to see more of my hand-painted furniture, you can pop over to my blog where I have a whole category of posts dedicated to Miss Mustard Seed’s® MilkPaint™.