Stickley Brothers

[Alfred Clem]

A friend asked me to look at a very old gate-leg table which has a label on the under side of one leaf, "Quality Furniture, Stickley Brothers, Grand Rapids, Mich."

The table top measures 30 inches across, has two drop leaves, and is supported by wooden legs turned in spirals. Found in an old barn, the table's wood looks intact but the finish is terrible -- water scars, dirt galore, no worm holes, very weathered looking. One leg is missing. One foot is cracked; the wood appears to be mahogany. I believe the top is veneered, but I have no idea what the veneer wood or the underlying wood might be.

Question #1: is this table worth restoring? Any idea of its value? If it did not have the name "Stickley" on it, I bet not.
Question #2: would refinishing (other than a good cleaning) do more harm than good?
Question #3: I can repair the broken foot (I have the piece that broke off), but is the refinishing a job best left to a pro?

Again, Question #1 comes to mind...so what is your advice, please?

[Jeff Kerr]

Can you post some pics? That might help. Depending on the age of the item you would be surprised that it may be worth more as is compared to restored.

There is a pretty fari amount of information on Stickley. If you can ID the piece and the era it comes from you might get a better understanding of its value.

[Keith Cope]

Alfred,

I don't know the value, but my $.02 is before you do anything to it (besides a simple cleaning) is to get a professional to appraise it. If the piece has significant value as an antique, refinishing will likely seriously diminish the value. Good luck and keep us posted!

Keith

[Alfred Clem]

I will take a photo of the table and post it here. Only problem: I do not know how to post photos on this web site. I have a digital camera. Please advise and I will do my best. Thanks!

[Jim Becker]

There is a tutorial thread stickied at the top of the Support Forum relative to attaching pictures to your posts, Alfred.

[Jim Summers]

From the description given the piece is in pretty bad shape. One argument is, refinishing the piece will help to preserve it. I don't think value is a concern since it has a missing leg and broken foot.

But to be safe, get it appraisd and then decide.

[Mike Cutler]

I will take a photo of the table and post it here. Only problem: I do not know how to post photos on this web site. I have a digital camera. Please advise and I will do my best. Thanks!

Alfred.
If you can, take a picture of the Stickley Bros. label. That will more accurately determine when and who made it. The Stickleys went through a few itterations of the different combinations of brothers collaborating on ventures.
Gustave kept mostly to himself after an initial falling out between the brothers. A lot of the quote " Stickley's" were done by Charles, Albert and Leopold. They were the most commercially succesful of the brothers.
Ironically Gustave, whom the brothers copied and stole designs from, was the least commercially successful, but whose furniture now is worth more than the others by multiples of price factor.
Post some pics when you get a chance.

[Alfred Clem]

I must be the world's #1 non-tech person. I took the photos, transferred them to "My Pictures" on my computer, then tried using the Support Forum instructions to transfer them onto this web site. It would not accept my photos. What should I do? What did I do wrong? I can attach the photos to e-mails. But not to this web site -- even with the tiny paperclip pictured.