Vanities
1940s Italian Art Deco Vintage Vanities
Brass
1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Vanities
Brass
1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Vanities
Steel
1930s Italian Art Deco Vintage Vanities
Brass
1930s North American Vintage Vanities
Macassar
1940s Danish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Vanities
Leather, Glass, Wood
1960s French Mid-Century Modern Vintage Vanities
Mirror, Mahogany, Rosewood
1950s Scandinavian Scandinavian Modern Vintage Vanities
Mirror, Teak
1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Vanities
Brass
20th Century French Art Deco Vanities
Brass, Bronze
20th Century French Art Nouveau Vanities
Metal, Brass
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Vanities
Metal
20th Century Danish Scandinavian Modern Vanities
Mahogany
Early 20th Century English Edwardian Vanities
Silver
1960s Scandinavian Modern Vintage Vanities
Mirror, Oak
Early 20th Century French Belle Époque Vanities
Metal
1950s Italian Vintage Vanities
Brass
Early 18th Century French Regency Antique Vanities
Mirror, Giltwood
Late 19th Century French Louis XVI Antique Vanities
Ormolu
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Vanities
Wood
Late 19th Century French Louis XV Antique Vanities
Ormolu
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Vanities
Mirror, Resin
19th Century Sheraton Antique Vanities
Mahogany
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Vanities
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Vanities
Resin
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Vanities
Resin
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Vanities
Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Vanities
Resin
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Vanities
Brass
1960s North American Vintage Vanities
Mirror
2010s British Vanities
Mother-of-Pearl, Rosewood, Sycamore, Walnut
1950s Italian Modern Vintage Vanities
Glass, Walnut
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Vanities
Wood, Plastic
Late 19th Century French Louis XV Antique Vanities
Ormolu
19th Century French Louis XV Antique Vanities
Bronze
1930s Italian Art Deco Vintage Vanities
Wood, Parchment Paper
20th Century English Art Deco Vanities
Silver, Enamel, Ormolu
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Vanities
Resin
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Vanities
Resin
2010s Italian Vanities
Brass, Metallic Thread
Mid-20th Century French Modern Vanities
Bronze
Mid-20th Century French Mid-Century Modern Vanities
Glass, Sycamore
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Vanities
Resin
1940s Finnish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Vanities
Ash
Mid-20th Century French Mid-Century Modern Vanities
Nickel
21st Century and Contemporary Indian Modern Vanities
Metal
19th Century French Louis XVI Antique Vanities
Ormolu
Early 20th Century French Vanities
Nutwood
Late 19th Century French Napoleon III Antique Vanities
Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Vanities
Steel
1940s Danish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Vanities
Steel
1920s French Vintage Vanities
Nickel
Late 19th Century French Louis XV Antique Vanities
Wood
19th Century English Sheraton Antique Vanities
Mahogany, Satinwood
19th Century English Victorian Antique Vanities
Mother-of-Pearl, Wood
20th Century English Vanities
Satinwood
Late 19th Century British Victorian Antique Vanities
Faux Bamboo, Mirror
1940s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Vanities
Mahogany
Vintage, New and Antique Vanities
Vintage, new and antique vanity tables have forever felt like personal, intimate sanctuaries of sorts, designed to introduce a level of serenity that feels rare and welcome in our otherwise frenetic days. They’ve been variously known as dressing tables or makeup tables over the years, but no matter what we call them — and whether it's a sophisticated contemporary piece or an iconic vintage Luigi Massoni vanity — vanities have offered a special place for us to get ready for work, an early-morning appointment or lunch date or whatever lies ahead.
“Beauty routines, taking the time to protect what you have, a moment to accessorize, a moment to pause and slow down — these are all so important now as an antidote to our fast and hectic lives,” says Oona Bannon, creative director of Pinch Design in Clapham, South London. “Just thinking about a dressing table makes me feel calm.”
When decorative boxes would no longer suffice as repositories for cosmetics, fragrant oils and perfumes, dressing tables originated in France and England during the 17th century. Men who called the latter home used “shaving tables” — a proto-dressing table — for their grooming routines while women found in dressing tables an oasis for applying makeup, particularly as improvements upon vanity tables equipped them with mirrors and lighting. In the United States, as vanity tables became a seamless component of bedroom furniture, furniture makers working in Chippendale, Rococo and other styles were regularly commissioned to produce these popular items.
Vanity tables have evolved over the years, and while there is lots to love about the ornate carving and pronounced curvilinear forms of Victorian vanities, the clean lines that characterize mid-century modern vanities and the decorative flourishes associated with Art Deco vanities, the main elements of this furnishing are the same. All vanities are about as tall as a standard table with room for seating furniture, which tends to be a small bench, a stool or an armless chair. Many also have special organization features for makeup. Without a chair and a mirror, a vanity would resemble a dresser.
Nowadays, vanities are more than a place to do hair and makeup. They’re a platform to display beauty products and store makeup collections. Vanities are standard in bedrooms, particularly if you’re not lucky enough to have a spacious dressing room or walk-in closet for your dressing table. The better the lighting is in your bedroom or wherever you’ve positioned your vanity table — even if you’ve opted for a moody setting versus a bright one — the more you will benefit from having this personal place of respite to prepare for the day ahead.
Find your antique, new or vintage vanity table today on 1stDibs.
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