Lane Cedar Sweetheart Chest...
I am obsessed...and when I found this piece on Craigslist, I couldn't wait to go get it....
I have no idea what I am going to do with it. Actually, I know what I am going to do with it...I am going to remove the old varnish and apply 3-4 coats of tung oil. The problem is, I don't know where I am going to PUT it!!
I have my grandparent's old steamer trunk in my room, my dad's walnut chest in Katie's room, an old cedar trunk in the upstairs hall, and there is just no room in the boy's rooms right now. Until I get some of their stuff cleared out, I really have no place to put it.
But I just couldn't pass it up! It is a Lane chest and it is walnut and oak...very similar to the Lane Acclaim tables I have a mad love affair with!
I currently have 7 of these little tables and I am always on the hunt for more! And I have my square Lane walnut coffee table that is just as beautiful!
This chest is very "mid century" just like my little tables! I have never seen anything like it. And it wasn't expensive. So naturally I had to have it.
One of the great things about these little cedar chests is that the insides are usually in outstanding condition! They have awesome storage potential for blankets, family photo albums and holiday decor! The amazing thing about this chest is that all the tags are still intact, including the little Lane hang-tag!
This particular chest dates 1968. Lane made it very easy to date most of their wood finished pieces. Usually you will find a Style # and a Serial # on the underside of the piece....
If you read the Serial No. backwards, you will get the manufacture date...in this case 12 (December) 15, 1968. I read somewhere that the 7th digit (the first #2) referenced the location of production. The tables I have only have 6 digits in the serial number.
And finally, Lane furniture produced during the mid 1900s is just as sturdy as the day it was built...not a wobble or hobble.
Awesome!
I can't wait to refinish this piece. Except for a slight flaw in the finish on the top, it really is in outstanding condition! I don't really HAVE to refinish it, but I have found that a fresh coat of varnish really brings out the richness and beauty of the wood!
So I will give it a little "varnish lift".... and then I will figure out where to put it!
