Advice please: Grandmother's Victorian china cabinet damaged in move!

Hello all,

I've just moved to Atlanta and my grandmother's china cabinet was damaged in the move. One of the back feet snapped off (non decorative) and I believe the jolt from that caused the curved glass to shift and break. There is also a mirrored panel at the top that seems to need reattaching. My big worry is the curved glass. Does anyone happen to know of a company in the Atlanta area who can deal with this?

Oh and I suppose, if any of you incredibly knowledgable guys or gals can tell me anything else about the piece that would be nice. All I know at this point is that it is Victorian. It's been in our family a long while and my grandmother did not know much about it. Thank you all so much for anything you can tell me.

 

Welcome Kat, I couldn't tell you anything for sure but from the looks I'd say this is turn of the Century (Late 1800s or early 1900s). Hopefully the furniture people will be along soon to give you a more detailed and definitive answer.

 

Companies can do this in glass but expensive - if maybe acrylics is a cheaper version? That seems to be a very common curve -

 

What a shame ! Its a lovely piece,Id guess 1870s,possibly European.Im with Rayo,itd be horribly expensive to get the glass replaced,so plexiglass could very well be an easier and cheaper option. I would add that restoration would be pretty dear,and it would be only for your personal gratification as youd never make it back on resale,not that you'd sell it.

 

Kat, as others have said, if you have your heart set on glass, it is likely to be rather expensive. Was this insured by your movers?

About 15 years ago, my English & Gordon setters were chasing each other through the house, and one of them slid into the side of a Kittinger cabinet, breaking the curved glass. (The dogs were not hurt!)

That cabinet was only about 40" tall, and at that time, I know the glass for just the one side cost over $250 to replace (it was done locally.) Again, that was some 15 years ago.

Maybe if you ask at some local antiques places, someone might be able to refer you to a local repair person who could do the glass AND the other necessary repairs. That might be the best option.

If you can't find anyone local to do it, there are places online. The only one I've heard of (tho I've never used them) is Van Dyke's Restorers. Here's a link:

http://www.vandykes.com/product.aspx?p=206497

Best of luck with it!

 

::waves:: Thank you all for the kind welcome.

I am sure it will be expensive and maybe require someone picking up the piece and returning it. I also know expensive is a relative term (not that I'm made of money) so I'd love if someone could guestimate a number. And no it's never going to be sold Re: plexiglass, I really don't know about that but I'm open to hearing more if someone has done this and loved the results.

 

Thank you very much for your input! So glad your pups were not hurt btw!

 

Hi Kat,
Plexiglass is not cheap and in several years it will change from clear as glass to a light yellowish cast. Believe me it is better to bite the bullet and get it fixed correctly. The difference between several hundred dollars now what it will cost later on is crazy. I have a standing cabinet that has a wonderful old wavy glass door. One corner got chipped and it would cost about 175 bucks to get a replacement. I found a stainglass company employee to come in and replace the chipped corner with a replacement and lead soldering. Cost was 25 bucks. I think I see a big piece of remaining glass there. Think about saving what you can and have a smaller piece made with a lead edge. It will be a lot cheaper I hope.
greg

 

I totally agree with greg. If you are going to fix it - do it right the first time.
Shop around, car window glass people might have access to curved glass, as greg mentioned, stained glass artists might also be able to help.

Atlanta is a large area, ask antique stores who is the best refinisher/restorer. Don't ask just one, ask several.

Did you move this yourself or hire movers? If movers, then they should be paying for the damage repair.

 

Welcome!

 

It appears that I can have a properly sized piece of glass sent to me for about $350. I'm not opposed to that amount but I wonder if it's

We used movers and I'm in the process of filling out a claim. But there are things they want to know that I'm not sure how to answer yet. They want to know the weight, the value, and how much in repair costs. Lesson learned we should have hired a mover that specialized in antiques. This company promised us a special "kit" for the cabinet, which costed $100. The "kit" was a bunch of cardboard and blankets and after talking with the rep again we found out it wasn't even implemented properly to begin with.

Having the large piece of glass repaired with stained glass in some form would be an interesting option. Not sure what the possibilities are with that or cost, but intriguing nonetheless.

 

"Wonder if it's"
???

 

Ha i think I was in the middle of typing something and got distracted. Ummm not really sure what I was wondering. Maybe I was going to say "wonder if it's good quality" or something? Not really sure but I maybe have been thinking that.

 

This is likely American and dates to about 1900, give or take. Overall insurance value might be around $3000.00. You might be able to buy something similar for less but I have certainly seen them priced this high or more. It really is irreplaceable given the family history and uniqueness of the piece. Consequently, a $350 replacement glass is not out of line to make it right. I would think that is just the glass. It would take a skilled repair person on top of that to make it right and doubt the labor will be inexpensive.

As an aside, My family has a very similar heirloom piece. In it's 120 years it has only been moved twice. Once across 2 States and once about 20 miles. Both times, it was handled very carefully by family members who knew what they were doing. It is not something I would trust to a general moving company.

 

Thanks! Yeah this bad boy didn't move far at all. Just from Montgomery, AL to Atlanta. That was enough though.

 

Next question! Any idea how much a cabinet like this weighs? The claims company suggests i find a similar china cabinet on Amazon and use the shipping weight. I'm not sure that will be very accurate.

 

It may be a very very long shot but a similar size but lesser quality cabinet could be bought and sacrificed for a replacement panel.

If this was in the Uk I would give The Repair Shop a call!

 

I wasn't suggesting that you replace the glass with stained glass. Only that people who work in stain glass have access to people who sell specialty glass. That they might be able to help you track down a curved piece.

Having a piece of glass shipped, if not packaged properly, might get you another piece of broken glass. Be sure they ship glass on a regular basis and know what they are doing.