Dark Wood Wardrobes

The selection of dark wood wardrobes offers a wide range of styles from rustic to a contemporary style, any of these wardrobes are suitable for any modern bedroom or even a country cottage. The Chunky Mocha Double Wardrobe is our solid pine wardrobe we can offer in dark wood. If you're looking for a good price and excellent quality then consider the Devonshire Rustic wardrobes with dovetailed joints, tongue and groves bases to any drawers and all backs, they offer very competitive prices and qualtiy in the way its built.

How dark is dark wood?
So what is the attraction of dark wood furniture and dark wood wardrobes in particular?  Well of course the first thing is to determine what is meant by dark wood furniture.  To some people dark wood is anything that is darker than about the colour of white coffee, to other people is almost black in colour.  The history of dark furniture is that originally wooden furniture would have all been light coloured.  So, for example, the dark coloured oak furniture from the Middle Ages or mediaeval times that is seen in museums would actually have been quite light in colour when it was first made as this is the natural colour of oak.  

Dark by accident not design
Perhaps the only finish that would have been used to protect the wood would have been a coating of wax ‘polish.’  This would have been beeswax or tallow made from animal fats but in either case it would not by itself have significantly darkened the colour of the wood.  To test this assertion, simply take a new piece of seasoned oak and apply a coating of wax.  Do you see any noticeable colour change?

What happened was that over many years wood mellows and darkens in colour.  Added to this is the fact that wooden furniture from these times would have been subject to hundreds of years of dirt, smoke and soot.  The cumulative effect of this was to produce dark wood furniture.  Of course the effect is not unattractive and so the desire arose to try and reproduce this look - even producing dark wood wardrobes.  This was particularly the case during Victorian times when there was a revival of interest in the medieval period, known as the Gothic revival.

The response was to manufacture furniture from the same materials – mainly oak – and then treat the completed furniture with a stain prior to varnishing, lacquering or waxing.  Another event that promoted a liking for dark furniture was the popularity of furniture made or veneered with mahogany.  This timber has a very attractive mid to deep red-brown colouring that is still popular today.

So there you have it: two sources of dark wood furniture.  The arrival of mahogany in the Georgian period, followed by the Gothic Revival and desire for dark oak furniture in the Victorian period.  The 1930s was also a period that fell in love with the Middle Ages and the dark wood furniture of that time.  Dark wood also appeared on the outside of houses with many mock Tudor dwelling constructed during the period.

Dark days for dark wood wardrobes
In the post war period, people were tired of dark colours, dark wood wardrobes and subdued colour schemes – there’s only so much camouflage colouring people can tolerate!  So, when the shortages that lasted through the 1950s came to an end there was an explosion of design using light and colour.  The reaction was so strong that the brighter the colours the better.  This wasn't the end for dark wood wardrobes however, as lighter homes and colours allowed a revival.

Did you know? An interesting fact about wardrobes
The greater availability of woodscrews since the beginning of the 19th Century (brought about by the invention of screw cutting lathes in the late 18th Century), made it much easier for cabinet makers to design furniture that could be dismantled for transportation.  This was a huge advantage when, for example, delivering wardrobes to the new Victorian town houses.