Is that cedar lined?

I like it! I have some similar orange waterfall furniture and it just glows when clean.

Looks like a 1930 Deco styled upright cedar closet.
Linda C

Emphasis on deco-STYLED ! The interior seems to be cedar veneer.

Been thinking about it today and I really have no place for it - don't care for it enough to keep it around in case I ever do so I'm going to clean it up and try and sell it on CL. Think I should to do anything with the handles? Whatever they were plated or painted with is mostly worn away. Or maybe I should look more closely - could that be brass and the lacquer is intact where it wasn't handled?

Oh, you have to leave the handles! Maybe they could be polished. Or painted, if that's how they started. Mine are painted. Well, I'm sure there's a special term for it to make it sound good, like polychromed?

Oh I wouldn't change them - not worth the expense and effort. They appear to be original but don't they seem off to you in terms of the styling of the cabinet? They look so 50's to me. It's outside in the garage but tomorrow I'll have a good look and see if maybe they are truly brass and not just painted.

I think it's better than you think it is....
It's definitely from the early 1930's....and cedar lined chests are lined with veneer.
Sand the inside and it will again have that good cedar smell.
Linda C

I wish I'd been able to find something like that when I was in the armoire market!

I like the piece. Looks like the core is wood, from what I can tell in the photos.

I love it! I'm sure I could find a good spot in my home for such a nice and functional piece I'd put some adjustable shelves in it.

I agree with Linda - sanding the interior of about any antique (dresser, etc) always seems to freshen up the smell. Cedar smells wonderful when its freshly sanded. I agree that the handles seem 'off' somehow though. That was my very first impression. But I have no idea if they're really true to the piece or not. All in all, I'd love to find a piece like this sitting on the curb!

The handle is unusual...so when I was looking for something else and saw something similar I remembered yours. Bottom bottom bottom left. Not the same, but also sort of infinity.

Not that it helps with the date at all.

Here is a link that might be useful:

Been so busy raking leaves that I haven't even started on it yet. I did take one of the handles off and got a good look at it - unfortunately some kind of cheapo metal and most of the original finish (might have been brass plated or painted, can't tell) is worn off. But my husband had a conversation with the woman who put it at the curb when he was walking our dog this weekend. She's had it for a long time but can't remember exactly, guessing 20 years. It was a gift from a friend who didn't need it. But that gives no clue as to age - not that it really matters.

Any ideas on what I should do with the handles? They are (or at least seem to be) original. Should I just clean them up and let the worn finish show or should I give them a spray of a metal paint, like bronze? I'm not keeping it, will give it a quick clean up (and light interior sanding to refresh the cedar) and call it done before listing it on CL.

Clean them up and don't worry about the wear....if you were that old you would be showing some wear too.
I take great issue with folks who want antique furniture to be "just like new"...removing all signs of use.

I usually don't have a problem with wear and tear but in this case because the original finish was not of any quality they have not worn with any character - they just look trashed. And cleaned up they just look clean and trashed! I'm not one of the folks who want antique furniture to be "just like new" but just as I try and lessen (not eliminate) my own signs of wear, I want to do something to make this a bit more presentable. A little lipstick never hurt anything ;-)

Depends on who's wearing the lipstick and what shade it is. ;) Since you aren't keeping it, I'd recommend leaving the handles alone. Cheap metal or not, their worn and aged look just lends more character to this piece.

It looks like a piece made in a high school wood shop, but the inlay in the panel just above the doors is quite nice.

The handles appear to be made of low melting temperature casting metal. I'd leave the handles alone - let the next owner fiddle with these. If they will take a polish, you could shine them up a bit, otherwise do nothing more than to clean the dirt off. If they have patina, leave that on.

We didn't do waterfall-style fronts in MY high school woodshop.

But then I went to public schools. :/

Since it is cedar lined, why not store it in the basement or garage for special clothing pieces? After all that is what it was originally meant for, right?