Top Tips on Buying a Kitchen Dresser
A kitchen dresser is an investment piece so it’s best to take your time when choosing one and think very carefully about what you want from it. Dressers were made all over England, Scotland and Wales and were popular from the late seventeenth through the nineteenth century.
Often some people refer to them as Welsh dressers because of the large number of high-quality examples that have come out of there. A Welsh dresser is also known as a china hutch, sometimes known as a kitchen dresser or pewter cupboard. A dresser is a piece of wooden furniture consisting of drawers and cupboards in the lower part, with shelves and perhaps a sideboard on top. Traditionally, it is a piece of furniture used to store and display crockery, silverware and pewter-ware, but is also used to display general ornaments.
Historically, a kitchen dresser’s function was for preparation and dressing of food. Different regions of Europe and the UK had different versions according to their local needs, so for example, Scotland integrated a porridge cooling drawer into its dressers. Originally, a dresser was located in the kitchen and was a piece of furniture where meat and other food was dressed or prepared, while prepared food was placed on sideboards in the dining room ready to be served. They could be modified to suit local needs, for example, dressers in the Scottish Highlands may have a porridge drawer, a tin lined drawer into which freshly made porridge was emptied and left to cool. When cold, slices of the porridge could be cut out and taken out of the house for later consumption.
Gradually the function of the dresser was supplemented with other functions, such as a means of displaying the best crockery in a farmhouse. Once it became a means of display the dresser could also be found in dining rooms where it served as a sideboard and a place to store and display dinnerware. In the 19th century, various different styles of ceramics would evolve to fill the plate racks off the Welsh dressers of Wales and to meet the needs of the Welsh market. Furthermore, many local traditions of what constitutes the proper care and display of the items on a Welsh dresser would come to assume an important role in the culture of North Wales in particular.
Over time, the humble kitchen dresser morphed into a piece of furniture that was not merely functional but also an indication of its owner’s social class. Upper-class rich families displayed expensive fine china lined with gold whilst less well-off families displayed their most cherished pieces. Dressers also became used to store cutlery, linen and other kitchen items. These days, a dresser can often be found in a living or dining room with sculptures, vases or family photos. It is used more like a storage and display unit than a food preparation area with modern kitchen worktops.
The modern dresser is not just for kitchens and it combines storage and display functions. Providing handy extra storage for glasses, tableware, crockery and tabletop textiles and acting as a hub for the everyday items that every kitchen needs. There are painted dressers or natural wood dressers with the display areas sometimes being glazed, whilst varying numbers of cupboards and drawers are home to functional items such as cutlery. If like most of us, you dislike dusting. You may opt for a dark colour such as navy, which is very much on-trend. There’s something so pleasing about a beautifully arranged kitchen dresser. How satisfying is it to display all your favourite pieces of china and treasured finds in one place? And practical, too.
If space isn’t an issue, choose a large-scale dresser to create a real style statement. It will look especially stunning in generous open-plan living spaces, as a showcase for your best china and elegant glassware. Limited on space? Then opt for a compact design that offers optimum storage in a streamlined fashion.
When buying, take time to think about what you want to use the dresser for. If it’s for display then open shelving is a great solution. If you’re also looking for extra storage, then pick a model with a combination of cupboards and drawers, plus wine racks or pull-out baskets. Also, check your measurements, a dresser that’s too big will unbalance a room and could hinder movement.
Planning your dream kitchen
It’s not essential that the dresser matches your kitchen cabinetry, but it should complement it. Choosing a dresser in a contrasting shade gives the kitchen a bespoke feel and makes it more of a statement piece of furniture. Consider the current trend for darker shades of navy and grey to really add a wow factor, it’s less of a commitment than painting the kitchen cabinetry.
There are no rules to say kitchen dressers always have to stay in the kitchen, the more stylish designs we’ve picked would work perfectly in the dining room, too.
Best for modern country style kitchen dresser
Grey is the new cream of the painted furniture world. This soft shade of Dove Grey is perfectly on-trend, beautifully offset against the lime-washed wood. The elegant design is a generous size with plenty of hidden storage and three shelves behind glass-fronted doors.
For health and safety, always secure a free-standing dresser to the wall with specialist safety brackets to prevent it toppling or being knocked by children or pets. In most cases, they will be supplied with your dresser.
Best for vintage style kitchen dresser
This design is sure to be a much-loved country choice, looking like a replica of an heirloom piece found while scouring antique shops. This traditional-style dresser combines a distressed painted finish with a weathered top to achieve the highly attractive rustic cottage look. Made in solid wood.
Handcrafted in from solid ash with a lacquered finish in statement on-trend black, it’s ideal for those who are bold enough to go for dark kitchen colours. Black is the perfect backdrop to enhance crisp white crockery, too.
This slim dresser is ideal for smaller kitchens. It may only have no small drawers for hidden storage, however, it does have a wine rack that holds up to 25 bottles of vino. What more could you want? The top section is a traditional dresser style with three adjustable-height shelves for displaying your finest china.
Best for classic kitchen dresser
Beautiful solid oak and oak veneer dresser with traditional Shaker-style doors will compliment almost any kitchen. Painted in a rich soft grey (the new ivory), it has a warm oak worktop and offers plenty of both cupboard and display space. The addition of two exposed wood fronted drawers adds a subtle rustic touch.
Typically larger pieces of furniture come with larger price tags. Ikea comes into its own when you want a statement piece of furniture on the lower end of the budget spectrum. This classic white design delivers everything you need from a dresser, with heaps of storage in the lower cupboards and three adjustable-height display shelves on top.
Best for traditional country style kitchen dresser
A beautiful oak dresser is just the thing to achieve a traditional country look. This generously sized design combines drawers, cupboards, display space and a 16-bottle wine rack. This hearty dresser is made from solid oak, which will prove to be a timeless piece of furniture for a country-style kitchen.