When did the term “secretary” start to wane?
The hardworking pros for whom this piece of furniture is named are all referred to as “administrative assistants” now, but for me, this functional desk/storage unit will always evoke a picture of genteel times when packets of letters were tied with velveteen ribbons and tucked away for posterity, to be discovered and savored by others some distant years later. The era of secretaries! The books I read as a child described well-heeled homes where furniture such as this was rendered in heavy mahogony, with secret compartments bearing keys to untold secrets.
At my house, we had a junk drawer in the kitchen. So you can see why pieces such as these capture my imagination!
This squat, substantial beauty was liberated for a fare-thee-well on Saturday from an estate sale in Richfield, Minn., where the sale operators marveled at just how clean and orderly the house was, given it had been occupied by a nonagenarian widower.
All I know? He had good taste in furniture! I arrived 1 minute too late to score a great vintage vanity with a flip-up top and matching upholstered chair. When I complimented its victorious new owner on her piece, she sought my opinion on whether and how to paint it. A new friendship was born! Mary from Tangletown didn’t need help loading until she could bring back a bigger vehicle. But I did! She graciously helped me heft it into the back of the Escape, already weighed down with stuff from a just-completed staging job (that’s another post or five, coming as soon as the deal closes!)
The internet tells me the word secretary comes from the Latin “secernere, “to distinguish or set apart.” I hope this piece will have a singular look by the time I’m done with it. The hardware, by the way, is stunning!
Watch this space for updates! I’m pondering its new palette. It will be on my fix-up schedule within a few weeks!
Kim
