AN AMERICAN TREASURE: STOW & DAVIS DESK AT GOODWILL

Spotting fab vintage finds doesn't always mean a trip to an antique shop. Look what I spotted this weekend at Goodwill: An American Art Deco style Stow & Davis desk - NEEDS WORK, yes - but it's got good bones: streamline styling, storage and stunning original brass hardware. In 1928 Stow & Davis introduced the first wood and steel framework desk in the wood furniture industry - made of walnut, mahogany, and oak during the 1920s and ‘30s. Developed in the late 1930s, Stow & Davis  designed the Harwood, Croyden, Rapide, Metro, Beacon, and Moderne, plus Progression lines.  Successive versions produced in the 1950s and ‘60s were known as Progression II and III. The S&D lines featured wooden case pieces in walnut of blonde satin finish and leather chairs or sectional seating. All of these lines were characterized by Art Moderne lines: curved tops, rounded corners, and streamlined hardware. At auction, and with the desk in a restored condition, it sells for $2000-$4000. This Goodwill goody though, was only $24.99. I wish I had a storage unit or shop to haul this piece to and restore to its former glory ~ What an American beauty! 

 

Thrift Tip: 

Location Counts

The older the area you're thrifting, the more likely you are to find vintage gems.

 

Great Deco Moderne design...

 

Stunning streamline brass hardware...

 

MADE IN AMERICA!

 

AMAZING!

 IF I were to buy to restore, I would undoubtedly refinish in two two-tone like the below stained mahogany & ebobonized piece...

Restored desk at a Chicago auction...

Leslie Hindman Auctioneers

Stow & Davis was an American furniture manufacturer established in Grand Rapids, Michigan in 1885. Grand Rapids once crowned itself  "The Paris of Furniture Design." with the region's first cabinetmakers, and covers designs from Victorian + Modern through Reform + Revival to the high-tech office furniture of the late twentieth century. Steelcase acquired Stow & Davis in 1985, all Steelcase wood products were sold under the Stow/Davis or Stow & Davis name. You can read more about the American heritage in a book called Grand Rapids Furniture: The Story of America's Furniture City.

 

Available at Amazon.

That's what I love about thrifting: 

you never know what you're going to find AND what you are going to learn... 

 

Read more at: 

Stow & Davis Furniture Company

Grand Rapids History

 

Speaking of "find".... look at what else I found while looking for the furniture maker label, hidden in the drawers... 

 

Black glass covered dish + vintage salad or chip & dip bowls...

 

Another Thrift Tip (I've said before, but too important to not repeat)

BRING HAND SANITIZER WITH YOU WHEN THRIFTING.

My hands (and phone) were grey after digging this stuff out - but fun to treasure hunt!

Thanks for stopping by