1930s Chest of Drawers
These 1930s chest of drawers designs combine practical storage with striking twentieth-century lines that anchor a room.
What a 1930s chest of drawers is
A 1930s chest of drawers provides essential bedroom and living space storage through horizontal banks of drawers. These pieces reflect the shift towards streamlined domestic furniture during the interwar years, offering deep compartments for clothing and linen.
The most common examples on this page embody the Art Deco style, frequently rendered in rich figured or burr walnut. Alongside walnut, sturdy oak versions appear regularly, ranging from limed finishes to tall configurations and utilitarian filling models.
Buyers will encounter both English and Italian origins in the inventory, spanning standard chests, tallboys, and specialised drawer arrangements. These variations demonstrate the breadth of interwar cabinetmaking, from domestic workshops to larger firms.
Materials and construction
Makers utilised solid timbers such as oak and sycamore alongside decorative applications of walnut veneer, burr walnut, and macassar ebony. Surfaces were frequently polished to highlight the natural grain patterns of the wood, while specific pieces integrated contrasting satinwood elements.
Hardware played a functional and decorative role, with metal and even bakelite fittings appearing on drawers. Cabinetmakers constructed carcases to withstand daily use, employing traditional joinery combined with twentieth-century veneering techniques to achieve smooth, geometric surfaces.
Retail Price Guide 2026
Typical UK retail prices for 1930s chest of drawers, calculated from the Sellingantiques database of over a million retail prices indexed since 2003. This retail price guide relies exclusively on Sellingantiques data; no external sources or auction records are used, so the figures do not describe the wider market.
Listings feature walnut, oak, and sycamore timbers alongside metal and bakelite fittings across Art Deco designs.
Judging quality in interwar storage furniture
Quality rests in the selection of wood veneers, where symmetrical burr walnut or figured grain patterns demonstrate careful timber matching by the cabinetmaker. Secondary woods and internal drawer construction reveal the underlying standard of manufacture, distinguishing standard commercial output from workshop pieces.
Proportion and the integration of decorative details such as contrasting ebony or satinwood lines separate standard items from finer examples. The crispness of the geometric Art Deco forms and the retention of original hardware further define the upper tier of the range.
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The 1930s Chest of Drawers Glossary
- Art Deco
- A design style spanning the interwar period characterised by sleek geometric shapes, stylised motifs, and modern industrial materials. It dominated furniture design through the nineteen-twenties and nineteen-thirties.
- Burr Walnut
- A timber harvested from the gnarled growths on walnut trees, yielding highly figured, swirling grain patterns. Cabinetmakers sliced this wood into thin veneers for decorative drawer fronts.
- Veneer
- A thin layer of superior wood glued to a stable core timber to create patterned surfaces without excessive weight or cost. This technique allowed makers to utilise exotic woods effectively.
- Tallboy
- A tall storage piece combining a chest of drawers with an upper cupboard or additional drawer tiers. This form maximised vertical storage capacity in interwar bedrooms.
- Macassar Ebony
- A dense, dark tropical hardwood featuring distinctive blonde and brown streaks. It was frequently used for contrasting banding and details on high-end interwar furniture.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I identify a genuine 1930s chest?
Authentic pieces display construction methods typical of the period, such as specific dovetailing techniques and the use of characteristic interwar timbers like burr walnut and oak.
Examine the hardware, interior linings, and overall proportions, which should align with Art Deco design principles rather than later mid-century revivals.
Are walnut veneers durable for daily use?
Walnut veneer is robust provided the furniture is kept away from excessive moisture and direct heat sources. Modern care involves gentle dusting and occasional wax application to nourish the timber.
Original interwar adhesives hold well if the piece has not suffered from damp storage conditions over the decades.
How do I care for limed oak finishes?
Limed oak requires minimal intervention, typically needing only a dry microfiber cloth to remove dust from the open grain pores. Avoid silicone-based polishes that can discolour the pale pigment settled in the wood.
Keeping the piece in a stable environment prevents the timber from drying out or splitting.