Post Bed (Double) kit
16th cent. (Tudor) onwards. A simple wooden bed with low head and foot boards. Beds of this time were strung with rope and the ends attached to wooden pegs. The pegs would be used to tighten the ropes when these had become slack from continued use. Hence the saying, ‘goodnight, sleep tight’.
1/24th - £9
Washstand kit
Mid 18th cent. (Georgian) onwards. Used to hold a jug and basin for personal washing. There was a wooden splash board around the top to protect the wall from water.
1/24th - £7
Pot Cupboard kit (with opening door)
18th cent. (Georgian) onwards. Before the installation of toilets inside houses, a chamber pot was used at night. It was sometimes kept under the bed but quite often a special cupboard was used to hide it from view.
1/24th - £6
Swinging Cradle kit
Early 16th cent. (Tudor) onwards. A simple box of moulded boards hung between two upright posts that were joined together by two stretchers at floor level.
1/24th - £9
Chest of Drawers kit (with 3 opening drawers)
18th cent. (Georgian) onwards. The chest of drawers derives its name from the early chest, which was basically a box with a hinged lid. Later, came the mule chest, which had a drawer at the bottom of the chest. It was called a mule because it was a hybrid between the old chest and what was to become the chest of drawers, i.e. a chest entirely taken up with drawers and without an opening top.
1/24th - £10
Clothes Press kit (with opening doors and drawer)
16th cent. onwards. The forerunner of the wardrobe. The interior is divided into two parts - one side has shelves for folded clothes, the other pegs for hanging clothes.
1/24th - £18
Close Stool kit (with opening top)
16th cent. (Tudor). An early form of toilet, only found in very well off homes. Basically a stool with a hinged lid opening to reveal a seat with a hole in it. The bucket beneath would be emptied by servants.
1/24th - £7.50
Truckle Bed kit
16th cent. (Tudor) onwards. A small bed on wheels that during the day could be stored out of the way under a larger bed (e.g. see lower image), such as, a four-poster or post bed. Often used by children of servants.
1/24th - £3.50
Beds & Bedroom Furniture Kits