One of the very effective decorative techniques that have been employed by some of the finest glass manufacturers has been the creation of hobnailed glass. This is the type of effect that you will often see when looking at some of the finest crystal. In effect the hobnail glass feature is the bumps that are worked into the glass surface.

This hobnailed glass has been used for many designs and is largely seen in the finest crystal vases, cups and bowls. This effect has been developed for use on other pieces that might be used in the home. One particular favourite has been the use of hobnailed glass lamps.

The hobnail effect, when used in some of the more imaginatively designed lamp shades, has a wonderfully simple way of adding presence to a room. In a lot of cases the hobnailed glass is featured in a milk glass effect. What you might see, too, is the hobnail effect of the lamp shade repeated partway down the base of the lamp as a complementary effect.

There are many ways in which hobnailed glass might be used to its best effect. When you consider that the design feature has been accepted as a very stylish and decorative way to create value in a piece of glass it is no wonder that it has become a popular way of adding value and interest to a table lamp.

Over the last couple of posts I have been taking a bit of a look at the possibilities of buying and using a wardrobe trunk as a storage option, either on a temporary basis or for a more permanent solution. The focus with those posts was more on the possibility of finding a storage trunk that is relatively inexpensive and able to provide a cost effective storage option.

This time I would like to get a little bit more indulgent and take a look at a type of trunk that is on the high end of the cost spectrum. There are many vintage trunks that are worth thousands of dollars today. Although they may come at a high cost, this doesn’t necessarily mean that it is not possible to bag a bargain.

With the economy currently a little depressed people are going to be a little loathe to spend thousands of dollars on items such as storage trunks and so it could be possible to pick up a valuable antique at a fraction of what you might have paid when times were more promising.

I’m going to go with an obvious brand here as my example – Louis Vuitton. Louis Vuitton trunks have been highly prized for many years and they are also very valuable. Even the LV trunks that are not exactly in the peak of condition such as the trunk that is displayed above. This particular trunk was sold recently for $3,000 and, you know what? I think the buyer got a bargain.

Name brand trunks that are in relatively good condition are going to cost a bomb and those that are not quite looking at their best could be where the gold can be found. A small amount of restoration work can add significant value to a wardrobe trunk that is looking a little rough around the edges.

The use of wardrobe trunks has meant that travellers and those who are often on the move and require a change of clothes quickly are catered for. These trunks were originally made over a hundred years ago and they provided the person on the go with an option that would be suitable for dressing quickly in clothes that were not wrinkled or damaged by their storage conditions.

The reason that these trunks were very popular was that they acted very much like a portable dressing room and, for the women especially, they provided a place to change in relative comfort and privacy.

Today, these trunks are collected for their antique value as well as the fact that they make wonderful decorative objects. For those who are short of space and require a type of chest of drawers or a temporary storage option the wardrobe trunk can be converted very easily into a chest of drawers that looks as though it is of a more permanent nature.

Find out more about the uses of wardrobe trunks here.

While many people are looking for antique trunks to use as storage trunks, there are also many very attractive old trunks that had other uses that will also provide you with a piece of furniture that will look great in the home. Wardrobe trunks do not contain quite as much storage space, mainly because they are invariably broken up into different compartments with shelves, drawers and hanging space provided. What they do offer is a more structured storage space for clothes and other more delicate items.

It is possible to pick up a good quality antique wardrobe trunk online these days with many of them being offered for well under $100. The wardrobe trunk that is featured below was recently offered for sale on eBay with a starting price of around $86.00 and it remained unsold.

The description of the trunk was as follows.

“Vintage Steamer Wardrobe Trunk
I was told this is the Best-Ever brand and is from the 1940s
Original wood wardrobe hangers and suit hanger also included is an ironing board and a shoe box and a cloth that hangs down in front of the hangers. It needs cleaning as seen in pics
Orginal keys with the metal slid that locks the trunks draws. The keys for the outside of the trunk are also included. I do not know if the lock on the front works as I did not want to take a chance on locking it and not getting it open The key does fit the lock
Five drawers are all clean and in good condition. Top is divided and the bottom is a large drawer which someone has wrote the word “pictures” on it
Outside shows wear with a split in the top outside materail
The leather straps are still intact
Overall in very good condition for the age”

The final part of the description might explain why it wasn’t sold, the seller was only offering the trunk to anyone who could pick it up. $86.00 for a Best-Ever wardrobe trunk is pretty good value and there was another similar trunk, a Mendel Trunx wardrobe trunk that was sold around the same time for $85.00.