Mid-Century Modern Heywood Wakefield Isabel Buffet Server, 20th Century
View Similar Items
Mid-Century Modern Heywood Wakefield Isabel Buffet Server, 20th Century
About the Item
- Creator:Heywood-Wakefield Co. (Maker)
- Dimensions:Height: 34 in (86.36 cm)Width: 54 in (137.16 cm)Depth: 18.75 in (47.63 cm)
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:20th Century
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use. Overall very good condition, tight and sturdy with slight finish issues and scuffs.
- Seller Location:Big Flats, NY
- Reference Number:Seller: 696141stDibs: LU2396318140422
Heywood-Wakefield Co.
Created by the 19th-century merger of two venerable Massachusetts furniture makers, Heywood-Wakefield was one of the largest and most successful companies of its kind in the United States. In its early decades, the firm thrived by crafting affordable and hugely popular wicker pieces in traditional and historical styles. In the midst of the Great Depression, however, Heywood-Wakefield reinvented itself, creating instead the first modernist furnishings to be widely embraced in American households.
The Heywoods were five brothers from Gardner, Massachusetts, who in 1826 started a business making wooden chairs and tables in their family shed. As their company grew, they moved into the manufacture of furniture with steam-bent wood frames and cane or wicker seats, backs and sides. In 1897, they joined forces with a local rival, the Wakefield Rattan Company, whose founder, Cyrus Wakefield, got his start on the Boston docks buying up lots of discarded rattan, which was used as cushioning material in the holds of cargo ships, and transforming it into furnishings. The conglomerate initially did well with both early American style and woven pieces, but taste began to change at the turn of the 20th century and wicker furniture fell out of fashion. In 1930, the company brought in designer Gilbert Rohde, a champion of the Art Deco style. Before departing in 1932 to lead the Michigan furniture maker Herman Miller, Rohde created well-received sleek, bentwood chairs for Heywood-Wakefield and gave its colonial pieces a touch of Art Deco flair.
Committed to the new style, Heywood-Wakefield commissioned work from an assortment of like-minded designers, including Alfons Bach, W. Joseph Carr, Leo Jiranek and Count Alexis de Sakhnoffsky, a Russian nobleman who had made his name in Europe creating elegant automotive body designs.
In 1936, the company introduced its “Streamline Modern” group of furnishings, presenting a look that would define the company’s wares for another 30 years. The buoyantly bright, blond wood — maple initially, later birch — came in finishes such as amber “wheat” and pink-tinted “champagne.” The forms of the pieces, at once light and substantial, with softly contoured edges and little adornment beyond artful drawer pulls and knobs, were featured in lines with names such as “Sculptura,” “Crescendo” and “Coronet.” It was forward-looking, optimistic and built to last — a draw for middle-class buyers in the Baby Boom years.
By the 1960s, Heywood-Wakefield began to be seen as “your parents’ furniture.” The last of the Modern line came out in 1966; the company went bankrupt in 1981. The truly sturdy pieces have weathered the intervening years well, having found a new audience for their blithe and happy sophistication.
Find a collection of vintage Heywood-Wakefield desks, chairs, tables and other furniture on 1stDibs.
- Kittinger Colonial Williamsburg Queen Anne Mahogany Revolving Server, 20th CBy KittingerLocated in Big Flats, NYAn antique Kittinger Colonial Williamsburg Queen Anne style revolving server offers mahogany construction in hexagonal form with upper and lower plat...Category
20th Century American Queen Anne Serving Tables
MaterialsWood, Mahogany
$1,440 Sale Price20% Off - Mid Century Modern Heywood Wakefield Dresser & Mirror in Wheat, Circa 1950By Heywood-Wakefield Co.Located in Big Flats, NYMid Century Modern Heywood Wakefield Dresser & Mirror offers Birch Construction in Wheat Finish with Three Long Drawers, Circa 1950 Measures- 62.75''H x 45.75''W x 19.25''DCategory
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Dressers
MaterialsMirror, Birch
$1,320 Sale Price20% Off - Mid-Century Modern Heywood Wakefield Double Bed, Wheat Finish, circa 1950By Heywood-Wakefield Co.Located in Big Flats, NYA Mid-Century Modern double or full size bed by Heywood Wakefield offers birch construction in Wheat finish, maker and finish marks as photographed, circa 1950 Measures- Headboa...Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Beds and Bed Frames
MaterialsBirch
$1,160 Sale Price20% Off - Mid-Century Modern Heywood Wakefield Double Bed Frame, Wheat Finish, Circa 1950By Heywood-Wakefield Co.Located in Big Flats, NYA Mid-Century Modern double bed frame by Heywood Wakefield offers birch construction in Wheat finish, maker mark as photographed, c1950 Measures- Headboard 35''H x 59''W x 2''D; Foo...Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Beds and Bed Frames
MaterialsBirch
$960 Sale Price20% Off - Mid Century Modern Heywood Wakefield Two Door Bookcase in Wheat Circa 1950By Heywood-Wakefield Co.Located in Big Flats, NY***Ask About Reduced In-House Shipping Rates - Reliable Service & Fully Insured*** Mid Century Modern Heywood Wakefield Bookcase with Upper Shelf over Double Door Blind Cabinet in Wh...Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Bookcases
MaterialsBirch
$1,160 Sale Price20% Off - Heywood Wakefield School White Wicker Recamier 20thCBy Heywood-Wakefield Co.Located in Big Flats, NY***Ask About Reduced In-House Shipping Rates - Reliable Service & Fully Insured*** Heywood Wakefield School White Wicker Recamier with Floral Cushion, 20thC Measures- 38.5''H x 33.5...Category
20th Century Patio and Garden Furniture
MaterialsWicker
$1,160 Sale Price20% Off
- French Oak Buffet ServerLocated in Wilson, NCThe upper shelf of this buffet server is supported by turned carved columns. The lower section has a pot board that extends the full length of the server...Category
Antique Early 1800s French Buffets
MaterialsBrass
$8,500 - Vintage Mid Century Modern Heywood Wakefield Buffet Server Hutch Display CabinetBy Heywood-Wakefield Co.Located in Chicago, ILVintage Mid Century Modern Heywood Wakefield Buffet Server Hutch Display Cabinet Feating mid century modern display buffet cabinet. The top has double glass sliding doors with 3 sh...Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Cabinets
MaterialsGlass, Wood
- Vintage Restored Solid Maple Heywood Wakefield Wheat Credenza BuffetBy Heywood-Wakefield Co.Located in Chattanooga, TNVersatility abounds with this Heywood Wakefield credenza. Buffet, media cabinet, or entryway console are just a few ideas. As a dry bar, the adjustable / removable shelves will allow you to keep that whiskey collection cozy. The top drawer sports the original felt and dividers that can also be removed to suit your needs. Collectors know that it is difficult to find original Heywood in good condition. The fair color wood typically shows all the flaws of half century of use. You’ll be delighted to know that this credenza has been mostly restored. The Heywood finishes are among the most challenging to replicate. We are pleased to say that we have achieved a a near perfect muted grain and color match to the the original Heywood Wakefield wheat...Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Credenzas
MaterialsMaple
- 18th Century George III Sheraton ServerLocated in Houston, TXA George III Sheraton period satinwood server crossbanded in Goncalo Alves (Albueron) inlaid ebony lines, circa 1795-1810. Goncalo Alves or Albueron w...Category
Antique 18th Century Great Britain (UK) Sheraton Serving Tables
MaterialsSatinwood
- French Mid-20th Century BuffetLocated in Stockbridge, GAReally nice line and curve on this buffet. Beautiful wood and an interesting top too.Category
Mid-20th Century French Buffets
MaterialsElm
- Mid-Century Buffet ServerLocated in Pasadena, TXA unique retro two-toned wooden cabinet which could be used as a buffet or server. There are two drawers, a spacious cabinet, and a pull-down shelf or work surface.Category
Vintage 1950s Mid-Century Modern Cabinets
MaterialsLaminate, Wood