The collection
Every antique is one of a kind, and only a few pieces are photographed here. So this catalogue is arranged the way a collector thinks: by form, by period, by timber. Where a piece is photographed, it appears as a plate. For everything else, ask.
Where a piece is listed on Creative Caernarfon, its entry links straight to it. Listings checked 2 October 2026; stock is one-off, so ask Sara if a listing has gone.
POn Creative Caernarfon
Every piece shown whole, in the photographs from its own listing. Titles, periods and sizes are as listed; for anything else, and to check a piece is still available, ask Sara.
No.01
Welsh dresser
Price on application. Ask Sara whether it is still here.
Plate 01
A small period pot board dresser: open plate rack over a two-drawer base and a low pot board. The Arts and Crafts copper and the embroidered trays are the owner's own collection, shown for display only.
No.02
Coffer
Price on application. Ask Sara whether it is still here.
Plate 02
A panelled oak coffer with carved front panels and a plain lid. More detailed photographs are available from Sara on request.
No.03
Welsh dresser
Price on application. Ask Sara whether it is still here.
Plate 03
A Caernarfonshire oak dresser: open rack above a base of three drawers over panelled cupboard doors.
No.04
Welsh dresser
Price on application. Ask Sara whether it is still here.
Plate 04
A North Wales oak dresser with a closed base: drawers over cupboard doors, the rack dressed with plates and jugs for display.
No.05
Windsor chair
Priced on Creative Caernarfon. Ask Sara whether it is still here.
Plate 05
A hooped-back Windsor armchair with a pierced central splat, spindle back, saddle seat and turned legs.
No.06
Hall chair
Priced on Creative Caernarfon. Ask Sara whether it is still here.
Plate 06
Aesthetic Movement chair with a floral ceramic tile set into the back, clean geometric lines and turned front legs. Listed in good antique condition with wear consistent with age.
No.07
Mule chest
Priced on Creative Caernarfon. Ask Sara whether it is still here.
Plate 07
A painted mule chest with a sailing ship on the lid and two drawers below the well.
I
The pieces with Welsh names, and the dresser that stood in nearly every Welsh farmhouse kitchen.
01
dresel
An open rack over a base of drawers, cupboards or an open pot board. Many come apart into two pieces, which matters for moving them and for checking whether the two belong together.
Photographed: Plate 01, Small Pot Board Welsh Oak DresserPlate 03, Period 18th Century Welsh Oak Dresser, CaernarfonshirePlate 04, Antique Welsh Dresser of North Wales
Worth asking
02
three-stage press cupboard
A press cupboard in three stages, finished with an open canopied tier at the top. Tall and architectural, and generally associated with North Wales.
Worth asking
03
two-stage press cupboard
The two-stage press cupboard: a recessed upper cupboard under a canopy, over a cupboard base. Carved initials and dates on the frieze are worth asking about.
Worth asking
04
small coffer
A small Welsh coffer with a lifting lid, often with a drawer or two beneath. Easy to place in a modern house, which is part of the appeal.
Worth asking
05
cwpwrdd
Large cupboards for linen and household goods, often in two parts with a recessed upper stage. The Tridarn and Deuddarn are Welsh members of the same family.
Worth asking
II
Long-case clocks, where the dial, the movement and the case each have their own story.
06
Tall pendulum clocks with a hood, trunk and base. Check whether the movement is 30-hour or 8-day, whether case and movement started together, and the full height against your ceiling.
Worth asking
III
Everyday country furniture: what families ate at, stored in and sat on.
07
Kitchen, farmhouse and refectory tables, with the chairs, stools and settles that went with them. Tops are often boarded and have shrunk and moved over time. Leg height and the depth of the frieze decide whether chairs will slide underneath.
Worth asking
08
Lidded chests, from simple boarded construction to framed and panelled fronts with carving. The construction, the hinges and the wear on the lid all help date a coffer.
Photographed: Plate 02, Period Oak Coffer
Listed on Creative Caernarfon
Worth asking
09
Chests for bedding and linen, some with drawers below the well. Usually a practical size for the end of a bed or a landing.
Photographed: Plate 07, Nautical Mule Chest
Listed on Creative Caernarfon
Worth asking
10
Hanging cupboards, food cupboards and corner cupboards. Doors, hinges and backboards are where later repairs usually show.
Worth asking
11
Glazed and panelled cabinets for display and storage. Old glass, replaced glazing bars and the condition of the back are the things to look at.
Worth asking
12
Dining-room serving pieces with drawers and cupboards, from Georgian forms to heavier Victorian ones. Length is the measurement that most often rules a sideboard in or out.
Listed on Creative Caernarfon
Worth asking
IV
For buyers who start from the house rather than the form: the era of the rooms, or the wood that suits them.
13
Furniture made in the reigns of the four Georges, 1714 to 1830, from country oak to finer mahogany. In country pieces, proportion and an honest surface often matter more than ornament.
Worth asking
14
Furniture from 1837 to 1901, including the carved oak revival pieces that echo earlier styles. Ask whether carving is of the period or added later.
Photographed: Plate 06, Victorian Chair with Decorative Tile Back
Worth asking
15
The timber of most Welsh country furniture. Old oak moves with humidity, so a dry, centrally heated room can open up joints and panels over a winter.
Listed on Creative Caernarfon
Worth asking
16
Country pine was very often painted when new. Stripped pine is a later taste, so traces of original paint can say a lot about a piece.
Listed on Creative Caernarfon
Worth asking
17
Furniture made by local joiners for farms and cottages rather than town houses: practical, solidly made and often regional in its details.
Photographed: Plate 05, Antique Windsor Chair
Listed on Creative Caernarfon
Worth asking
18
Plainer, heavier pieces where wear and repair are part of the character. Worth knowing which repairs are old and which are recent.
Worth asking
V
Pieces that do not sit under a single form, and pictures and prints that come with the furniture.
19
Smaller antiques and one-off pieces that do not fit another heading: country objects, treen, mirrors and the occasional surprise. Stock changes often, so ask what is in.
Worth asking
20
Paintings, drawings and prints sourced alongside the furniture. Ask about the medium, the frame and anything known about the artist or earlier owners.
Worth asking
Every antique is one of a kind, so the catalogue is arranged by form and period rather than as a list of stock. Photographed pieces are shown as plates; for everything else, tell Sara what you are looking for.
Possibly not. Ask Sara on 01286 400155 or through the enquiry form before you plan anything around a piece.
Use the Ask Sara link on its plate, which fills in the enquiry form for you, or call. Ask for photographs, measurements, condition notes and what is known of its history.
Purchases complete through Creative Caernarfon. This site takes enquiries only and takes no payment.
It depends on the piece. Ask Sara directly what work, if any, has been done to the one you are looking at, and which parts are original.
Height for the rack and cornice, a wall wide enough for the base, and a route in. Many dressers separate into rack and base, so ask for the measurements of each part as well as the overall height.
A 30-hour movement is usually wound daily by pulling a rope or chain; an 8-day movement is wound weekly with a key through the dial. Ask which a clock has and whether it is running.
Put it in the enquiry form: the form, the size it has to fit, the period you like and anything you would rather avoid.
Count the stages. A Tridarn has three and ends in an open canopied tier at the top; a Deuddarn has two, a recessed upper cupboard under a canopy over a cupboard base. Both are Welsh press cupboards, and the Tridarn is generally associated with North Wales.
It can. Old oak moves with humidity, so a dry, centrally heated room may open up joints and panels over a winter. It is worth asking Sara about any splits or movement already in a piece, and whether it is in its original colour.
