Silkeborg Bar Cart

CFC Silkeborg, also known as C. F. Christensen Silkeborg, exemplifies the refreshingly simple beauty of mid-century modern Danish design. Established in the early 1950s in Silkeborg, Denmark, the furniture manufacturer was known for its clean-lined, functional and refined hardwood furniture. In partnership with talented Danish designers, CFC Silkeborg created many exquisite coffee tables, lounge chairs, credenzas and other types of furniture for the 20th-century home.

One of the most prominent and prolific CFC Silkeborg collaborations was with acclaimed designer Johannes Andersen, who worked with the company in the 1950s and 1960s. Anderson’s elevated Scandinavian modern designs were practical and compact yet characterized by organic curves and graceful lines. Some of Anderson’s most popular creations for CFC Silkeborg include his nesting tables and the playful Smile coffee table, which features a center pocket shelf that looks like an upturned mouth.

In the 1960s, CFC Silkeborg worked with designer Henning Korch. Korch captured Danish design sensibilities with his thoughtfully built furniture, which had a distinctive flair from details like beveled edges and brass drawer handles. For CFC Silkeborg, Korch designed furniture such as cocktail tables, bar carts, bar cabinets and dressers.

CFC Silkeborg also had a long collaborative relationship with Danish furniture designer Illum Wikkelsø. Wikkelsø was inspired by the straight lines of modern style and the curves of the Danish landscape. From the 1950s to the 1980s, he created many tables, armchairs and sofas for CFC Silkeborg. Comfortable and inviting elegance characterizes this upholstered leather seating.

Vintage CFC Silkeborg furniture by Andersen, Korch and Wikkelsø continues to be sought after due to its exceptional build quality and timeless appeal.

On 1stDibs, find CFC Silkeborg tables, seating, case pieces and more.

Forever a sleek and elegant furnishing that evokes luxury and sophistication, a vintage bar cart will prove both functional and fabulous in your living room.

Bar carts as we know them were originally conceived as tea trolleys — a modest-sized table on wheels, sometimes featuring both an upper and lower shelf — to help facilitate tea service during the Victorian era in England. Modern bar carts weren’t really a common fixture in American interiors until after the end of Prohibition in the 1930s, when they were rolled onto the sets of Hollywood films. There, they suggested wealth and status in the dining rooms of affluent characters.

As tough as the 1930s had been on the average working American, the postwar era yielded economic stability and growth in homeownership. Increasingly, bar carts designed by the likes of Edward Wormley and other furniture makers became an integral part of sunken living rooms across the United States in the 1950s.

Bar carts were a must-have addition to the sensuous and sleek low-profile furnishings that we now call mid-century modern, each outfitted with the finest spirits and savory snacks that people had to offer. And partially owing to critical darlings like Mad Men, vintage cocktail carts have since seen a resurgence and have even become a selling point in restaurants.

Bar carts not only boast tremendous utilitarian value but also introduce a fun, nostalgic dynamic to the layout of your space, be it in the bar area or elsewhere. In addition to showcasing your favorite bottles of rye and local small-batch gin — or juices and mocktail ingredients — there is an undeniable allure to stacking statement glassware, vintage martini cocktail shakers and Art Deco decanter sets atop your fully stocked mid-century modern bar cart. And one size or style doesn’t fit all — an evolution of cocktail cart design throughout history has yielded all manner of metal bar carts, rattan carts and more.

We invite you to add a few more dashes of class to cocktail hour — peruse the vast collection of antique and vintage carts and bar carts on 1stDibs today.