Jennie
TUG Member
- Joined
- Jun 9, 2005
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About 25 years ago I obtained a king sized bed at an estate sale in a posh neighborhood. It consists of two separate extra long twin mattress and two box springs with 6 wooden "legs" each (12 altogether). I stored one in the attic and used the other in a guest bedroom. The sale was conducted by a professional agency. It was near the end of the two day sale and I offered $80. for the set. The agent said that was a ridiculously low price for such a top quality item and refused to budge from the official asking price of $200.. (Remember this was in the early 1980's).
I was about to leave when a older, very distinguished looking gentleman appeared and told me he was the owner of the house and that he was willing to give the bed to me for free because he wanted to see it go to someone who would value and appreciate it. He went on to say that it had been custom ordered from an expensive store in Manhattan, and was made of horse hair (which meant nothing to me). The agent conducting the sale was quite annoyed about his "interference." He told her not to fret, that he would pay her the the commission she would have received if she had sold it for $200. which he added was a ridiculously low price.
Yesterday I was in a large well-known carpet and furniture store looking at rugs. A very knowledgeable salesman came to assist me. He was an avid antique buff. While walking to another section of the store, we passed the bedding section. I told him that that was going to be my next project, to buy some new beds. I added that I dreaded all the "homework" I would have to do to familiarize myself with the current options. He asked what brand of mattress I currently own, and how long ago I had bought it. Jokingly I said that one of our mattresses was over twenty years old but we don't use it much. He told me I really need to replace it for health reasons as a lot of mites and other "yucky stuff" accumulates within it. I replied that mine must be almost lethal by now because it contains horse hair and God only knows how badly that may have decayed through the years.
He became ecstatic, telling me that horse hair mattresses are one of the only types that never decay and that they repel mites, etc... He said they are the highest quality mattresses made, that they last for years and years, and are now owned mainly be royalty and gazzilionaires. It takes months to make one because it is all done by hand by highly skilled craftsmen, and the price tag can be as high as $50K. He urged me to make calls to antique dealers or similar places because there should be a market for it, even if only as a collectible.
When I went home, I looked closely and saw a store label from Sherrill on East 56th Street in NYC. A google search reveals that the company headquarters is now in Virginia and has many different branches around the country. It seems to specialize in high end furniture. I called their customer service department and the gal who answered said the Mr. X would be the person who might know something about it but he is out of the country and will not return for awhile.
Since the knowledge and experience of TUGgers never ceases to amaze me, I thought I'd ask if anyone might have some advice about my "horse hair mattresses" (which I almost donated to the Salvation Army last month).
I was about to leave when a older, very distinguished looking gentleman appeared and told me he was the owner of the house and that he was willing to give the bed to me for free because he wanted to see it go to someone who would value and appreciate it. He went on to say that it had been custom ordered from an expensive store in Manhattan, and was made of horse hair (which meant nothing to me). The agent conducting the sale was quite annoyed about his "interference." He told her not to fret, that he would pay her the the commission she would have received if she had sold it for $200. which he added was a ridiculously low price.
Yesterday I was in a large well-known carpet and furniture store looking at rugs. A very knowledgeable salesman came to assist me. He was an avid antique buff. While walking to another section of the store, we passed the bedding section. I told him that that was going to be my next project, to buy some new beds. I added that I dreaded all the "homework" I would have to do to familiarize myself with the current options. He asked what brand of mattress I currently own, and how long ago I had bought it. Jokingly I said that one of our mattresses was over twenty years old but we don't use it much. He told me I really need to replace it for health reasons as a lot of mites and other "yucky stuff" accumulates within it. I replied that mine must be almost lethal by now because it contains horse hair and God only knows how badly that may have decayed through the years.
He became ecstatic, telling me that horse hair mattresses are one of the only types that never decay and that they repel mites, etc... He said they are the highest quality mattresses made, that they last for years and years, and are now owned mainly be royalty and gazzilionaires. It takes months to make one because it is all done by hand by highly skilled craftsmen, and the price tag can be as high as $50K. He urged me to make calls to antique dealers or similar places because there should be a market for it, even if only as a collectible.
When I went home, I looked closely and saw a store label from Sherrill on East 56th Street in NYC. A google search reveals that the company headquarters is now in Virginia and has many different branches around the country. It seems to specialize in high end furniture. I called their customer service department and the gal who answered said the Mr. X would be the person who might know something about it but he is out of the country and will not return for awhile.
Since the knowledge and experience of TUGgers never ceases to amaze me, I thought I'd ask if anyone might have some advice about my "horse hair mattresses" (which I almost donated to the Salvation Army last month).
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