Wardrobe Closets

Wardrobe closets tend have a (justifiably) high price tag attached to their costs. This is because of the nature of their design, the quality of the materials used, and the reputation they have with a culture associated with “high class”, so to speak. Places like Target or even Walmart do sell wooden wardrobe closets and wardrobe closet furniture, but much of this is made of plywood and other cheap materials and can hardly be considered a real wardrobe closet.

How then can a price conscious consumer save money when buying a wardrobe closet? Where can you go to get a good deal on an armoire that won’t cost an arm and a leg?

Sites like Amazon or Ebay have quite a few sellers distributing antique wardrobe closets, but these are not cheap items by any means. The same goes for a brand new wardrobe armoire. While you can certainly save some money shopping around, the cost associated with even a good deal is stil a fairly large expense.

Unless, however, there is one interesting twist to the sale: is the item used?

Now, the irony is that all antique furniture is obviously used, technically! So we’re not talking about these. What I’m referring to is buying a used wardrobe closet that’s also a modern wooden wardrobe closet. This is by far the best way to purchase a very nice unit and yet save a serious amount of money.

The question then is where can you buy a modern but used wardrobe closet? The options are limited and may take some hunting on the part of the buyer. That being said, the first place I’d recommend looking is your local Craigslist. Craigslist is a wonderful site for buying and selling used (and new) goods, services, etc. and it’s possible to find awesome deals on furniture, including wardrobe closet furniture, at these sites. The best situation is someone who owns one and just wants to get rid of it because they don’t have the space, they need the money, or they’re moving out. These people are likely to sell it for a very lower price just for the hassle of having it removed from their home and getting it out of the way.

Next, and in a similar vein, is looking at local garage sales and yard sales. This is really an extension of the first suggestion in a broad sense – i.e. buying person to person – but not everyone is going to advertise their items on Craigslist. You can however, find a list of local garage sales on Craigslist and sometimes people list all the items or types of items they have for sale.

Next up is something that can take more skill but the pay off is big. This is the idea of going to estate sales and bidding on furniture and other items. You’re actually more likely to find a good deal on an antique armoire here than a modern one. But, hey, that wouldn’t be so bad now would it?

As you can see, with some determination and searching skills, it’s possible to locate the used wardrobe closets out there for sale and get a good deal and a wardrobe closet armoire all at the same time without sacrificing quality.

Some families were lucky to have an old fashioned, antique wardrobe closet – also known as an armoire, from the French term meaning “wooden cabinet”, passed down to them in the family tree.

And then other folks just collect them. Somewhere in between are people who simply appreciate them and would like to own one, without any intention of being thought of as an antiques collector. They are just someone with good taste, perhaps!

The good news is that while going out and finding an antique wooden wardrobe closet isn’t as easy as going to Target or Home Depot, locating an armoire isn’t all that hard. It can be even a bit of a fun adventure!

What are the best places to check? I’d first recommend doing it the fashioned way. This mean hitting up estate sales. These are coordinated sales events in which someones entire estate goes up for sale. The culture surrounding these estate sales increasing the chances of finding antique wardrobe closets. How so? Usually the individual whose estate is up for sale was an elderly individual, meaning they might have antique furniture by virtue of simply owning something their entire life. Secondly, many estate sales cater to upper class folks, further upping our chances of finding valuable furniture and antiques. Estate sales are also an excellent way to locate a wardrobe closet, get a hands on, close up look at it, and then place a private bid. This is certainly something you can’t do online!

After estates sales, I’d recommend looking in a close by corner. I’m talking about your average yard, garage, and family sales. Since this could theoretically be a tedious process of visiting dozens of yard sales, here’s a tip to speed it up: look the garage sales up online. Then, do a search for “wardobe closets”, “antique wardrobe closets”, “armoire”, “armoires”, and “antiques”. See what pops up with those search requests, as it goes through the items people casually list online in their yard sale post. Often, you will get many hits this way, and as such, can quickly narrow down which garage and yard sales you’ll actually want to attend. You might even find photos online and a price of said items.

Lastly, in the same vein as looking online at yard sales, the third and final method is to search your local Craigslist. Craigslist maintains pages for hundreds of cities, counties, and areas around the world. Even if you’ve never heard of it, most likely, you have a Craigslist page for your town. Here people sell thousands of items every day in free classified listings. Simply key in the same search terms we used in regards to yard sales (above) and see what you find. It’s also very easy to negotiate prices for items found on Craigslist, as most people aren’t so much trying to make a profit as they are simply getting rid of items.

Actually, there is one more method beyond the 3rd one above. You can always work with an antiques dealer. If getting an antique wardrobe closet fast and quick is your concern, and price isn’t so much of a problem, using a dealer is going to be a sure fire way to find high quality antique wardrobe closets. You won’t get a deal most likely, but you will probably get a quality piece of work, and come home in a single day with an attractive antique wardrobe closet!

You would never guess the history behind the wardrobe closet. One might think it’s simply another piece of furniture mass produced and sold in big box retailers, invented in a board room or meeting. While some furniture sold as wardrobe closets is definitely mass produced, true wardrobe closets come from a much more interesting background.

First of all, let’s look at the terminology used for wardrobe closets. You might have also seen them referred to as an “armoire”. Armoire is a french term that loosely describes any type of wooden cabinet with shelves. This is a fairly apt description of both modern and antique wardrobe closets, as the most classic look is that of a solid wood wardrobe closet that has multiple shelves.

What’s far from different between then and now is what the wardrobe closet or armoire was used for. Interestingly, the armoire historically was used to house weaponry! Along with weapons, it often held food items. Somewhere along the lines, it delved more into holding clothing than weapons or other items, and now, it’s almost always used to hold clothes or some kind, with some exceptions for dish ware and other collectibles.

Traditionally, throughout history wardrobe closets were a hand crafted item. People worked with their hands, creating an armoire as an individual piece of art. Many antique wardrobe closets bear the markmanship of this art, as shown through elegant and abstract designs carved into the wood. This could create a signature mark for the artist, as well as signify the general cultural timepiece that the wardrobe closet comes from.

It’s really interesting to think of wardrobe closets (or wardrobe armoire furniture) being used to house weaponry, and it’s also fascinating to think of each one being hand made, and then seeing how they development as a whole in different areas such as France, England, China, and India.

Next time you look at your antique wardrobe closet, ponder it’s history and be proud to own such an item!