An Irish dresser (Hiberno English), sometimes known as a kitchen dresser, is a piece of wooden Irish vernacular furniture consisting of open storage or cupboards in the lower part, with shelves and a work surface, and a top part for the display of crockery, but also any objects of monetary or sentimental value. [1]
The Irish dresser is traditionally one piece, distinguishing it from the Welsh dresser, which is historically two pieces (the top and bottom sections), and would have cupboards or an area of open storage in the base. The open area at the bottom would consist of one or two open cupboards, at times with a central upright. [2] The dressers were typically made of pine [3] and earlier ones were stained. As bright colour gloss paint became more easily available in the 20th century, dressers were often painted and repainted frequently. The inside shelves of the top part were generally painted a different, lighter colour, to further highlight the objects on display. In some kitchens, the dresser was constructed in the room as a piece of built-in furniture [4] with some dressers back boards forming part of the wall behind. In other examples, the dresser worked as a room divider, or was used as a structural support for a loft space above. [2] Dressers were often a gift from the groom to the bride upon marriage, [5] either made or purchased by the groom. [6] Before the construction of these wooden dressers from the late 1700s onwards, traditional Irish houses would have had stone shelves which were built into the walls of the house. Some shelves were made using slate and had wooden doors. [2]
According to the National Museum of Ireland, the Irish dresser was traditionally the most important item of domestic furniture in homes in Ireland. It was used to display the status and wealth of the family through the display of items, primarily ceramic objects [3] known in Ireland as "Delph" or "ware". In the 1700 and 1800s it was common for some households to be so poor as to not have any eating utensils at all, so the display of all the household's utensils and crockery in a dresser denoted a higher status to all those who saw it. Even damaged objects would be kept and retained, with some repaired by "tinkers", primarily from the Irish Traveller community. [2] The shelves, with bars to hold the plates in place, were in varying heights to allow for the display of plates from large serving platters down to saucers, [4] while maximising the light thrown onto the reflective surfaces of the plates and minimising the dust and dirt that could accumulate on them. In the southern areas of Ireland, the large plates would be stored on the bottom shelf, but in the north the order was reversed with the largest plates displayed on the top shelf. Dressers would have between two and four shelves, which would feature wooden moulding, or if the household could not afford that it was substituted with paper or oil cloth cut and draped over the edge of the shelf. Early dressers were more likely to have open storage at the bottom, which would have held containers of milk, butter, and fresh water. The earlier forms of the dresser would feature feet known as sleigh, shoe or boot feet. These feet helped to spread the weight of the dresser, especially on uneven earthen floors. Attached by dovetails, these feet could be removed if the rotted away in the potentially damp conditions of Irish farm houses. The feet show an influence from English and Scottish planted settlers in Ireland, and it primarily found in the northern parts of Ireland. [2]
In the late 20th and early 21st centuries, the dressers were used less as functional pieces of kitchen storage for everyday use, and were used more to display souvenirs and other sentimental objects. The use of the traditional Irish dresser fell into steep decline with the adoption of built-in modern kitchens in Irish homes from the 1970s onwards. [5]
The coop dresser was a variation of the Irish dresser, in which the bottom section was used to hold hens or other fowl. Keeping the fowl indoors kept the birds at a warmer temperature ensuring a supply of eggs year round [1] [3] [4] or to protect them from predators. The section to hold the birds often featured a slatted structure as an enclosure. [2]
The hanging dresser was a precursor to the full dresser, and in poorer homes was a smaller, more affordable piece of furniture. The hanging dresser consisted of just the top part of the full dresser, hung from a wall with no lower storage. It was sometimes called a cup rack, tin rail, tin rack or just the rack. Some, more elaborate hanging dressers, featured fretwork, and drawers mimicking the full size dresser, with simpler versions more akin to a rack to hang items from. These kept more delicate and expensive pieces of homeware safe and on display. [2]
A closet is an enclosed space, with a door, used for storage, particularly that of clothes. Fitted closets are built into the walls of the house so that they take up no apparent space in the room. Closets are often built under stairs, thereby using awkward space that would otherwise go unused.
A settle is a wooden bench, usually with arms and a high back, long enough to accommodate three or four sitters.
A pantry is a room or cupboard where beverages, food, (sometimes) dishes, household cleaning products, linens or provisions are stored within a home or office. Food and beverage pantries serve in an ancillary capacity to the kitchen.
A sideboard, also called a buffet, is an item of furniture traditionally used in the dining room for serving food, for displaying serving dishes, and for storage. It usually consists of a set of cabinets, or cupboards, and one or more drawers, all topped by a wooden surface for conveniently holding food, serving dishes, or lighting devices. The words sideboard and buffet are somewhat interchangeable, but if the item has short legs, or a base that sits directly on the floor with no legs, it is more likely to be called a sideboard; if it has longer legs, it is more likely to be called a buffet.
A bookcase, or bookshelf, is a piece of furniture with horizontal shelves, often in a cabinet, used to store books or other printed materials. Bookcases are used in private homes, public and university libraries, offices, schools, and bookstores. Bookcases range from small, low models the height of a table to high models reaching up to ceiling height. Shelves may be fixed or adjustable to different positions in the case. In rooms entirely devoted to the storage of books, such as libraries, they may be permanently fixed to the walls and/or floor.
A chest of drawers, also called a dresser or a bureau, is a type of cabinet that has multiple parallel, horizontal drawers generally stacked one above another.
A cupboard is a piece of furniture for enclosing dishware or grocery items that are stored in a home. The term gradually evolved from its original meaning: an open-shelved side table for displaying dishware, more specifically plates, cups and saucers.
A credenza is a dining room sideboard or display cabinet, usually made of burnished and polished wood and decorated with marquetry. The top would often be made of marble, or another decorative liquid- and heat-resistant stone.
Mizuya is the term for the preparation area in a Japanese tea house or attached to any venue used for the Japanese tea ceremony. For instance, the area used for preparation during outdoor tea ceremonies is also called the mizuya. The term mizuya can also refer to purificatory fonts at shrines and temples, as well as to storage cupboards for use in kitchens. This article, however, focuses on the tea ceremony mizuya.
A hutch is an American English word for a particular type of furniture with a set of shelves or cabinets placed on top of a lower unit with a counter and either drawers or cabinets. Modern hutches are typically made of timber. The term originates from a hutch table.
A wardrobe, also called armoire or almirah, is a standing closet used for storing clothes. The earliest wardrobe was a chest, and it was not until some degree of luxury was attained in regal palaces and the castles of powerful nobles that separate accommodation was provided for the apparel of the great. The name of wardrobe was then given to a room in which the wall-space was filled with closets and lockers, the drawer being a comparatively modern invention. From these cupboards and lockers the modern wardrobe, with its hanging spaces, sliding shelves and drawers, evolved slowly.
A baker's rack is a type of furniture with shelves, typically made of wrought iron or some other metal. "Since the 17th century, baker's racks have been part of many homes around the world. This versatile storage furniture has gained its name because it has been originally used by bakers." The shelves are made of a conductive material, often steel or iron, which served to help cool a baker's goods such as hot pies, breads, and pastries. The conductivity and thermal mass of metal not only allows for heat to be quickly transferred from the pan to the shelf, but held for a long time. This allowed the cooling process to be equally distributed so baked goods maintained their integrity.
A pot rack is a functional piece of kitchen furniture that is used to hang or store cooking pots and pans. Steel, wood, wrought iron, and a few other metals are the most common types of materials used for pot racks. Pot racks also usually have some type of finish or stain to help them match pots and decor. In addition, pot racks can range in size from less than a foot to over fifteen feet long. These larger pot racks are capable of supporting dozens of pots and pans.
A floating shelf is a form of shelf with its wall fixings hidden within the shelf board, with no visible supporting brackets. It is believed that late 1950's contemporary designer Magnus McCormick invented the floating shelf, however it is unclear if he was the first to use them. Needless to say, floating shelves have become a timeless furniture icon in the 21st century.
A Welsh dresser or a china hutch, sometimes known as a kitchen dresser or pewter cupboard, is a piece of wooden furniture consisting of drawers and cupboards in the lower part, with shelves and perhaps a sideboard on top. Traditionally, it is a utilitarian piece of furniture used to store and display crockery, silverware and pewter-ware, but is also used to display general ornaments.
A shelf is a flat, horizontal plane used for items that are displayed or stored in a home, business, store, or elsewhere. It is raised off the floor and often anchored to a wall, supported on its shorter length sides by brackets, or otherwise anchored to cabinetry by brackets, dowels, screws, or nails. It can also be held up by columns or pillars. A shelf is also known as a counter, ledge, mantel, or rack. Tables designed to be placed against a wall, possibly mounted, are known as console tables, and are similar to individual shelves.
Adjustable shelving allows more flexible use of shelves to hold items of value for storage, display or sale. Like fixed shelves, the horizontal planes are normally made of strong materials such as wood or steel, but their exact vertical positioning can be varied - usually through the use of uprights into which supporting brackets or the shelves themselves can be fixed at different heights.
A cabinet is a case or cupboard with shelves and/or drawers for storing or displaying items. Some cabinets are stand alone while others are built in to a wall or are attached to it like a medicine cabinet. Cabinets are typically made of wood, coated steel, or synthetic materials. Commercial grade cabinets usually have a melamine-particleboard substrate and are covered in a high pressure decorative laminate, commonly referred to as Wilsonart or Formica.
The cultural property storage typically falls to the responsibility of cultural heritage institutions, or individuals. The proper storage of these objects can help to ensure a longer lifespan for the object with minimal damage or degradation. With so many different types of artifacts, materials, and combinations of materials, keepers of these artifacts often have considerable knowledge of the best practices in storing these objects to preserve their original state.