Building furniture the hard way

Building classic desks is not an easy to do task and the fact is that there are not that many manufacturers that build them today. Those that still build roll top desks have the secret that their parents gave to them. It is something that is passed from generation to generation, from father to son...

I have asked one of those artists furniture manufacturers how they managed to learn this:

My father taught me, he was a furniture manufacturer himself. He didn't make a big secret out of it, but he revealed me a lot of "secrets" over time, information that helped me build furniture that withstand the test of time. The secret is the fact that you cannot just teach somebody to build such furniture in a few days, by giving him some guidance, you need to spend years and years working with such a professional before mastering the job. This is how I have done it!

Today, with all the furniture being made fast and with cheap materials, plus that it needs to be built light to be easily moved from one place to an other, it is not easy to lean these techniques and secrets anymore, since nobody spends time building them anymore, everybody buys materials almost in a ready to be used state and just cuts them and put them together. It seems that there is no difference between a baby exersaucer and a furniture piece.

I ask myself how long will rolltop desks will still be available in such conditions?

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A few things to think about when buying a roll top desk

Picking the right roll top desk may seem like an easy thing to do but it isn't. First of all, you actually need to ask yourself if you really want such a furniture piece, since it is not the most easy to carry furniture. In most of the cases, it will be a quite heavy desk that will not let you move it around the house in a blink of an eye.

But once you have decided, you need to settle for a wood type, like oak, cherry, etc. Also the color is very important, because it needs to match the rest of the furniture. When all these are decided, you need to find a good price for it, since prices may vary based on where you buy it from, wood condition, wood type, color, etc. Be sure to pick something good, or you will need to go to the store and get some tools to fix what you just bought. I know I did, I went to buy a cordless drill because I didn't pick well the first time. Well...

Then you should also think about how are you gonna bring it home and how you are going to install it in your house. By the way, are you sure the roll top desk you have just purchased fits your doors? Because if you have purchased one piece solid wood desk and it won't fit your door, there will not be much you can do about it, right? I know it happened to me once, just that the desk could be broken apart and put together again after entering the door. Think about it!

KidKraft Roll Top Desk and Chair

KidKraft Roll Top Desk and Chair is just a regular desk reduced to match the size of a child. Everything's there, regular desk as I have told you! As the name says, it also comes with a chair and the price is very affordable so everybody can buy one for the little one!

The timeless style of this Rolltop Table will look great in any room or play area. The sliding roll top conceals plenty of work and storage space, while the safety stop prevents pinched fingers. 4 spacious drawers provide a place for everything and teaches your child the importance of organization. You know when you bought an exersaucer, remember? It was the first piece you purchased for him, not you consider a roll top desk...

The matching Wood Chair is built to the same high quality standards to withstand years of heavy use and abuse. Table measures 31 x 16 x 35 1/2" h. Chair height measures 14". Heirloom quality children's furniture from KidKraft! State Color. Order Now! KidKraft Roll Top Desk and Chair

KidKraft® Roll Top Desk and Chair is perfect for your child room, it offers a very practical environment and gives your child what he needs to study, while the white color matches any other furniture in the room.

Guidecraft Jr. Roll Top Desk-Oak

OK, this one is for those of you who like to work a bit. Not much, just to put things in order, to assemble things. The Guidecraft Jr. Roll Top Desk- Oak is not an expensive roll top desk and for this, a part of the whole process has been eliminated, giving you the pleasure of putting it together.

Actually, it can be quite a fun thing to do, I know I put my own desk together with my wife and it was a very interesting thing to do. Just that, from my personal experience you should measure the door before putting it together.

Personally I assembled my desk in the kitchen and when I tried to move it to the office I realized it doesn't fit the door. Well, I had to break it down again and install it again in the office. But it was still fun! Believe me!

Anyway, the Guidecraft Jr. Roll Top Desk- Oak is not an antique desk, but a junior desk that will fit perfectly in your child office. Considering also the price, only $224, it is a great choice for a roll top desk, don't you think?

The oak color is also an other thing to consider, depending on your home design. I think it looks great, gives a light appearance to a house. If you have natural light in the office, oak is exactly what you need.

White roll top desk by Guidecraft, a very good piece of furniture for children

This is a clear case of junior furniture, built especially for your child to study and learn on it. The lap drawer and the pull-out writing board makes this rolltop desk just perfect for school homework.

The two file drawers are perfect for papers and storage while the roll top interior has multiple storage compartments, pigeon holes and a pencil drawer. What could you ask more? Or what your child could ask more from such a desk?

You know what is the best part? The price! Yes, this is one of those children rolltop desks that are a real catch. At only $209 it can be bought without a big effort that a "normal" furniture would imply.

Also, for those of you who think that white is not quite the color for them, this roll-top desk comes in light oak, for a complete match with the rest of the furniture!

Let's see what parents have to say about it:

From the first moment my daughter saw it, she wanted it. It is perfect for her room. She likes to write poems and little stories, she is quite a little writer and I love her stories, she has such a great imagination. Last month I've got her a new computer and now this roll top desk fits perfectly, giving her all the freedom she needs for her imagination.
Jerry Swanson

Well, seems that parents love it too so why don't you give it a try and find out more for yourself here?

Deluxe oak roll top computer desk from AMBfurniture

There is not that much to say about this roll top desk, beside the fact that it is a good choice for your home. Deluxe oak roll top computer desk, with slide out keyboard tray, filing cabinet, and PC storage is very useful because it offers you enough room for storage and computer. When you purchase one, you may need to do a bit of work around it since some assembly is required but this is not an issue I guess,for any man who loves his way around the house. Measures 54" x 29" x 51 3/4" H. This item ships out by freight carrier or local pick up only in 6 - 8 days. Also, it features $750 discount!! And this is not to miss under any circumstances!

Of course, one of the advices I would give you is to measure up the door, as with any roll top desk, to be sure you can get it into your house.

Antique office furniture is better than modern modular furniture

There is a trend in the last period of time, people are more and more interested in antique office furniture. I have observed this trend recently and I can only be happy about it. Antique office furniture makes people feel they belong to an other era and in most of the cases, this other era is better than the one we currently living in. This is the reason for which people purchase antique roll top desks. It's like with old 500cc motorcycles, sometimes, older bikes win the heart of people, it's vintage, baby!

Antique office furniture is not something for every house. It strongly depends on how you have your house decorated. Of course, if you have a house decorated following the latest tendencies in home design, an antique roll top desk may not be the best choice, but if you value traditional values, an antique roll top desk may be the right choice for you.

Antique office furniture goes well with leather armchairs, with desk statues and why not, with smoking cigars. Well, I joke here, I am not a smoker and I don't advise you to smoke, ok? But each time I think about antique furniture I think of a lawyer or a business man in his office with a cigar. The old desk makes him the master of his universe, helping him to rule the office. This is my personal view of it so don't blame me if you find this to be a pattern that you have seen way too many times.

But,to come back to the point, antique office furniture is taking a good start and lately more and more people showed interest for it. It is not a big thing to go to a local retail store and buy that modular furniture, but it is a very interesting process to go and buy an antique and find it's history and past.

Am I right or what?