An absolutely classic piece of furniture for your home is an oak sideboard. This is a timeless piece of furniture that can have a lot of history, but also be quite contemporary. The function of this piece of oak furniture and the versatility make it a great item to purchase. I will be going into a lot more detail of oak sideboards covering their history, styles, prices, where to buy and care. With a website all things wood, I certainly had to have a post dedicated to the iconic oak sideboard.
Oak Sideboard History
As I said in the intro, there is quite a history to the oak sideboard, but not as old as you may think. Prior to the antique sideboard, in the 18th Century dining rooms featured what is called a slab table. These were long narrow tables that were generally placed along the side of the dining room and used to serve and display food on. The reason why it was called a slab was because often times this piece had an antique oak frame and a stone too of some kind, typically marble. Towards the end of the century the slab table was not as popular because it was largely being replaced by oak sideboards. There are a number of reasons for this, just like any fashion trend, but one major reason were peoples houses were changing. The once grand parlor or dining area was being reduced in size in favor of increasing other living spaces. The more compact oak sideboard furniture accommodated the new style homes. A nice solid sideboard still had a flat surface for serving, but also included storage, something the slab tables typically did not have. Some pieces of antique oak furniture includes an oak sideboard mirror. With all these features these pieces of furniture also became known as an Oak buffet.
Oak Sideboard Styles
Most of the solid oak sideboards back then, where about 4 feet high to accommodated the serving and would have 3 or 4 drawers and 1 or 2 cabinet doors. This storage was for silverware, glasses and serving platters and their use really hasn’t changed much since. Traditional sideboards are still quite popular today, and let’s face it, we still have a need to store those dining and kitchen items we need, but don’t use on a regular basis. For the traditional look, the most sought after pieces are the authentic antique oak sideboards. Straight from the late 1800s and early 1900s a piece like this in your home would be an immediate conversational piece. Many well trained antique dealers will be able to give you information such as approximate age, region and in some cases the actual craftsman who made the piece. To tell the story of the origins of your Victorian oak sideboard would be impressive to any diner guest. I have seen an impressive range of antique oak sideboards, but they don’t all have to be oak. I’ve seen a mahogany sideboard at a furniture auction that went for well over $5,000. Other typical woods you will see are cherry sideboard and walnut sideboard pieces of furniture. Although these are nice, the most beautiful sideboard furniture I have ever seen was a tiger oak sideboard. The grain pattern in this piece was absolutely stunning. If you still like the traditional look, but don’t want to invest in a valuable antique, you can also get a really nicely done solid oak sideboard for much less than vintage sideboards.
Modern Oak Sideboard
You may have a need for an oak sideboard but don’t like the look of antiques. There is still many options out there for you. You can find some really clean lined contemporary oak sideboards. One of the more modern looks I’ve seen recently is a light oak sideboard. This is much lighter than traditional oak and tends to look great in a monochromatic neutral color story. Most of the contemporary sideboards will be much more minimalistic in design then the pieces that inspired them from a couple hundred years ago. If you don’t want to go all the way contemporary, a mission oak sideboard may be a better option for you. These are traditional in an American sense, but not nearly as lavish and ornate as a European carved oak sideboard.
As far as sizes go, they will vary quite a bit. With todays home ranging from mansions to efficiencies, the furniture market today has to make a great range of sizes. I have seen an exceptionally large oak sideboard in a large home in Texas and I have seen a very cute small oak sideboard in a home in Manhattan.
Oak Sideboard for Sale
It seems that today consumers can usually find exactly what they want. With a little bit of internet searching you can find the resources to tell you exactly where and how to buy a sideboard for your home. Through your research you may find a good antique broker that can do the leg work for you if you are in the market for an antique oak sideboard. If you just want a good quality solid oak sideboard that was produced recently, it never hurts to pick up the phone and ask questions about the piece your interested in. I have found that the people that can answer the quality control questions and then give you some additional info usually are very genuine. It’s easy to tell when someone is proud of what they are selling. If you are not getting the answers you want, most likely they are selling you a cheap oak sideboard. The prices of oak sideboards are similar to how varied the sizes are. Antiques can be really expensive and you can also go to a mass retailer and buy some cheap oak sideboards. I would imagine many of you will want something somewhere in between, which is now problem, there are a lot of price points out there meeting most people’s budgets.
Caring for your Oak Sideboard Furniture
The best care is do as little as possible to clean the item. Start with a soft dry cloth or microfiber cloth. This should remove all dust, but it may not be able to remove a stain. If there is a stain, make your soft dry cloth damp, but not soaking wet. Most dirt should easily come up with a damp cloth on your oak sideboard. The next two steps are optional. There are furniture oils on the market, these can keep your furniture lustrous. This is also applied with a soft cloth. Be sure to refer to the instructions on the product for amount and frequency. The other product is furniture polish. This is a bit different than oil because it contains either silicone or wax. Many people like this because it acts as a safety barrier for scratches. Again refer to the product instructions for application to your oak sideboard. I would do your research on the later two products. I tend to shy away from some of this stuff because it can cause build up on you furniture, making it look dull.
I hope you found this resource for oak sideboards informative, as always if you have questions don’t hesitate to ask.
