Welcome to Mr. Beasley's Antiques antique furniture slide show page! This is where we will post interesting information not only regarding antique furniture in general but how the antique furniture that was acquired directly from Mr. Beasley's Antiques was incorporated into our customers homes and projects. We invite you to read the posts and enjoy the in and outs of some of our experiences as well as that of our customers.
What is antique furniture by Mr Beasleys AntiquesWhat exactly is Antique Furniture?

Generally speaking a true piece of antique furniture is only to be considered a genuine piece of antique furniture if it is at least 100 years old. A piece of Furniture that is less than 100 years old, but older than 20 years old is considered a vintage piece of furniture, and a piece of furniture that is new or no more than 20 years old is considered a new piece of furniture or a second hand piece of furniture. There are very big differences between individual pieces of furniture that were made in 1750, 1850, 1900, 1940, or 1980. Some of the major differences between antique furniture and vintage furniture are the materials that were used to construct the piece, the craftsmanship of the piece, the availability of the piece, the maker or origin of the piece, the quality of the piece, the beauty of the piece, and of course the value of the piece. It takes a trained eye to spot the difference between true antique furniture, vintage furniture, or reproduction furniture. A educated appraiser will be able to tell when a particular piece of antique furniture was made, the materials it is made of, and where it was made. Some people will argue that Antique furniture is out of style or that it is old junk... People that think like this have not been exposed to neither quality or culture! One could easily purchase beautiful antique furniture "at times for less than a new piece of furniture," that not only has lasted for over 100 years, but will last for generations to come! A true piece of antique furniture is a piece of art, it's beauty, value, and quality will last a life time. I am quite sure that you are familiar with Ikea or Crate and Barrel, they are great places to acquire what some would call disposal furniture. The reason why this term has been coined is that new furniture tends to be very low quality, it falls apart, and in a couple of years looks outdated. Here is an example of 4 chairs, one is from Ikea, one is American made vintage, one is from Crate and Barrel, and one is a hand carved French antique. Ask yourself this question: Which chair will not fall apart, will not go out of style, and will increase in value over time?


     Pine chair      Mahogany chair      Walnut chair               French Antique Chair from Mr Beasleys Antiques
A French Antique gate finds a new home!

Not to long ago we received an original hand forged iron gate at our California warehouse that we found in the south of France and put it on our website. Most people would not even notice the gate, thinking it was just a old piece of garbage that needed to be sent to the dump! But Debby in Florida had a keen eye for the unique hand crafted one of a kind item and contacted us regarding the possibility of getting the gate restored for her. We told her that this is not a problem because we have them restored for our customers all of the time. After she had told us what she wanted to use the gate for we contacted our good friend Eric who is one of the best metal fabricators in California to find out if he could restore the gate in order to make it work for Debby's needs. Eric said no problem! Eric added the missing pieces, hinges, posts, a latch, sand blasted, and powder coated the gate. As soon as Eric finished with the restoration we shipped it off to Florida. We received a call from Debby the day the gate arrived stating that the gate was amazing, 100 times better than she imagine! Debby also told us that she had contacted local craftsman in her area in order to have a custom gate built, the quotes that she received were 60% more than what it cost for her to buy the gate from Mr. Beasley's Antiques, have it restored, and shipped to Florida, not to mention that the local guys wanted to build her a gate out of aluminum which would have rusted away in a year or two. Here is a picture of the antique iron gate when we received it in California and few pictures of the gate installed at Debby's house in Florida. 

    French Antique Iron Gate        French Antique Hand Forged Iron Gate            Antique Iron gate Mr Beasleys Antiques
Mr Beasleys Antiques Antique Furniture Prop Rentals Mr. Beasley's Antiques in the movies!

The very first feature film that antique furniture from Mr. Beasley's Antiques was used in order to create an authentic set was Buddy Buddy in 1980, which stared Walter Matthau and Jack Lemmon. From that day forward we were know as a premier source to the film and television industry to find authentic antique items in order to create the perfect set. We have had the privilege to work on countless projects with some of the top set designers / decorators, production companies, and producers in order to help them achieve the creation of an authentic set which sets the background as well as the tone for the entire production. Antique items that were sourced from Mr. Beasley's Antiques have not only been used in feature films, but many television shows, music videos, as well as live theater. It has been an honor to help set the stage for such talented people as: Johnny Deep, Orlando Bloom, Geoffrey Rush, Gore Verbinski, Dylan McDermott, Jessica Lange, Janet Jackson, Michael Jackson, Harrison Ford, Daniel Craig, Olivia Wild, Clint Eastwood, Leonardo DiCaprio, Namoi Watts, Judi Dench, John Favreau, and countless others...
Mr Beasleys Antiques CustomersA email from the very talented Whoopi Goldberg!

After receiving the items that Whoopi ordered from our warehouse in California which we shipped to her gorgeous home on the east coast, we received this email:

I got everything today!!!!
Happy, Happy, Happy!!!
Thank you so much
Whoop
The difference between a sideboard and a server by Mr Beasleys AntiquesWhat is the difference between a antique sideboard and a antique server?

Surprisingly this is a question we get asked all of the time. Traditionally a server was a piece of furniture that would be placed in the dining room, it had a flat surface that was used for serving, by placing plates and dishes on the top in a buffet style. It was common for a server to have drawers which were used to store such things as flatware or linens, at times there were also cabinets that were used for additional storage. The two are basically one and the same, it boils down to a loose lipped French translation combined a personal definition that is inherited. With todays usage and definition they are both interchangeable, so a sideboard can be a server and vise versa! In regards to todays placement and usage of a antique sideboard or a antique server, it could be argued that they are used for other purposes other than serving food. Many people choose to drop 2 sinks in to the traditional server and use it as a unique and custom bathroom vanity, others choose to use a sideboard as an entry piece, yet others will use them as an entertainment center by housing all the electrical components inside the drawers and cabinets and place the flat screen on top. In regards to todays use of decor there is no right or wrong way to use a sideboard, you will use it where it is functional, this holds true with any piece of antique furniture. Now there is a difference in regards to an antique buffet which mainly stands on casters "thus making it mobile", typically it has no drawers, and usually was used for the sole purpose of serving.
Mr Beasleys Antiques in Theme ParksMr. Beasley's Antiques and the happiest place on earth!

Some of the most fulfilling projects that Mr. Beasley's Antiques has been involved with are the countless times that we have been called upon by the amazing group of imaginers at the Walt Disney Company. They have always been able to count on us as a great source to find that perfect piece of antique furniture or architectural element which will help them bring the dream to life. We have been fortunate to work with the great people at Disney Imagineering on various projects over the years at both The Disneyland Resort in California as well as Disney World in Florida. It gives us great satisfaction knowing that items that have come from our company were incorporated into the Disney Magic which is on display for countless numbers of family's to enjoy! Authentic antique furniture pieces, antique architectural elements, and countless antique collectibles that have originated from Mr. Beasley's Antiques are on display every day at both parks! 
4426 Vine Street | Riverside, California | 92507 USA | Tel: 1.800.288.9578