An Old Irish Hutch – Our Curbside Find

Sometimes our best finds are those that are not only cheap but free! You come across them when you least expect it. They add a soul and a story to our homes. I found a piece that does just that last week, an old Irish hutch. 

Have you ever come across something that was so cheap or even free that you couldn’t believe it? Last week I shared a snap shot of just that on my IG stories. While in the drive thru line at Chickfila I was glancing through the Facebook marketplace and randomly came across this old hutch. There weren’t any details on it but it had what I thought was a very English look to it. I was in shock when I saw that it was FREE to whomever picked it up off their porch first. I knew I had to try!

It was such a spur of the moment thing that I didn’t have time to line up help to load it. It was just around the corner from Josh’s office but of course he was in a meeting. I was on my own but I was going for it, crossing my fingers that it would be there when I arrived. Lucky for me it was. The hutch was separated into two pieces when I arrived but boy was it heavy! It’s completely solid wood and very bulky. I happened to have a couple of pieces of thin plywood in the back of the van that I was able to lay down and slide the hutch on to the van. Loading it into the van I’m sure was comical to anyone who may have been watching. A couple of choice words were used while trying to lift and load. I’ve always considered myself determined so I wasn’t leaving with out it!

After much sweat and some choice words she was loaded up and ready for her new home. Just after I closed the back of my van another couple pulled up in a truck to pick it up the same hutch. You can imagine my delight when I told them I had already gotten it! Here’s a quick photo I snapped after loading it. Where there’s a will there’s a way, friends!

 

Josh couldn’t believe I was able to get it all loaded up on my own and you can imagine how relieved I was when I had help unloading it that evening. I moved the hutch that I had built into my office and put the new one in its place. After giving it a good cleaning I started to do a little research on it. The only markings we could find was a small carving on the back that said Wexford. From what I could find Wexford is Irish. I thought the piece was English but it turns out it’s Irish! Antique Irish hutches or dressers as they call them had a bottom section with doors that would slide up and down, like this has, to keep chickens. I also had a couple of readers messaged me on IG to confirm that. I’m not sure that this piece is and older piece or very old as in antique. Some of the markings seem to be intentional to me.  Either way, I just adore it. I think it fits the wall perfectly. I’ve had a lot of people ask if I’ll paint it. I’m not big on painting furniture that has a pretty grain to it. Honestly, I’m not sure what I’m going to do with it just yet. I think that it would look great either way. I’m going to leave it just as it is for now because I do like the contrast of the white walls and dark stain.

I quickly styled it a bit last week but I’m not completely happy with it just yet. Over the next couple of weeks I’ll tweak it a bit until I get it just right. I love that it was a plate slate in the back of each shelf. I may add some more plates along the back. There isn’t much closed storage. The bottom shelf is exposed. The doors that open up and down are not very large. I may try to find some baskets that will fit through the opening to storage the items below in for a cleaner look.

I just love the inset drawers and tails on each side of the hutch. It’s such a statement piece!

It’s just another testament to patience and the value of a collected home. Collected things you love over time is always the way to go. It gives your home soul and a fun story to tell. In the next few weeks I hope to write a post on all about the collected home and tips for styling those collected items. I’ll keep you posted on the hutch and if I find out any more info on it. It’s been quite fun learning about it so far. Have a great week, friends!