Bedroom Suites Part 2: Dressers, Chests, and Armoires

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Bedroom Suites Part 2:  Dressers, Chests, and Armoires

In our last blog post, we discussed the different options you have when choosing an Amish-made bed frame for your bedroom.  In most cases, the bed is the real centerpiece of a room design.  But storage pieces, nightstands, and mirrors can be so much more than just places for stashing your things.  Case goods (as we call pieces with drawers) can be very attractive in their own right.  When you choose Amish bedroom furniture, you’ll never be sacrificing style for storage.   Bedroom storage pieces are available in a variety of sizes.  Sometimes a builder will offer a single dresser style in 8 or more available size configurations!  Whether your space is large or small, you probably need efficient and stylish storage for your things.  We’re here to help you navigate the options.

Different kinds of case goods

Many people who are looking for bedroom furniture can get tangled up in all the terminology.  What’s really the difference between a dresser and a chest, a chifferobe and an armoire, a lingerie chest and a blanket chest?

Dressers

A dresser is a piece that usually comes about waist-high and has two side-by-side stacks of drawers.  Dressers are made in a size that works well with a large mirror attached to the top, and most builders offer several mirror sizes so you can choose whatever best fits your space.  Dressers typically have one or two rows of very deep drawers, and sometimes a top row of shallower drawers.  Dressers are generally pretty hefty – it’s common to plan your space so that a dresser takes up a whole wall on its own.  The amount of storage you get with a dresser is very substantial.  Many people find that a dresser with 9 or 10 drawers is enough to be the sole piece with drawers in their bedroom.

Chests

This is a category that’s a little less straightforward than dressers.  The basic description of a chest is a piece that comes higher than waist height and has a single stack of drawers.  A classic chest can rival a dresser in terms of heft and storage space; the drawers are generally fairly deep, and pieces are sometimes made with 7 drawers or more.  Lingerie chests are very narrow, usually with 5 or 6 shallow drawers.  Blanket chests are intended to sit at the foot of the bed or against the wall; they have one large compartment with a lid on top.  Any blanket chest can be made with a cedar lining to protect against damage from moths.  A gentleman’s chest and a double chests – they are still much higher than a dresser, but made with side-by-side stacks of drawers.  These double chests can rival an armoire in size, and are a spectacular option for people who need a large amount of storage.

Armoires

An armoire is unique from the previous two categories because it has a clothing rod on the inside.  People who live in homes without large closets will benefit from the extra storage space for hanging clothes.  Armoires can be made in a variety of sizes, and many options are also available with drawers on the bottom of the piece for added storage.

What’s the deal with drawers?

Anyone who is in the market for furniture knows that finely-crafted drawers can make for a higher price tag on a piece.  Just like anything else, you get what you pay for.  Our builders use full-extension ball bearing slides on all of their case goods.  All of the drawer boxes in all of our builders’ pieces are solid hardwood (usually maple) with dovetailed joinery.  All of this means that the drawers can hold a lot of weight, will not fall apart, and they will open and close smoothly every time.  The drawer face is a separate piece of wood from the box itself (which means it’s a pretty simple process to replace the front of a drawer in the case of damage).  Any drawer box can be made with a cedar lining.  Because the drawers are solid wood, they are very sturdy and fairly heavy.  If you order a piece with a lot of drawers, the easiest way to move that piece in and out of your home will be to remove the drawers first.  The metal slides used by our builders are easily removable.

Two primary types of drawer glides are available for any piece of furniture:  side-mounted and under-mounted.  Side-mounted drawers glide very smoothly, and are also simple to remove from the slides if you need to move the piece around.  Under-mounted drawers come with a soft-closing mechanism.  This means that the drawers can’t be slammed – if you shut the drawer most of the way, it will glide itself closed all the way (it looks a little like magic the first time you see it).  This is a really sleek option that can take pieces to the next level of elegance.  The other advantage of under-mounted drawer glides is that you can’t see the metal at all.  Under-mount drawer glides are possible on every single piece in our catalogs.  Choosing the glides that are right for you is totally a matter of personal preference.

Whatever your needs, if you’re looking for bedroom storage that is attractive and efficient, we at Plain and Simple are here to help.