The Prized Vintage Furniture Brand Everyone Should Know To Look For At Thrift Stores

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You've probably heard the stories — or maybe urban legends — of people finding Stradivarius violins at yard sales. Whether they are true stories or tall tales, imagine the thrill of unearthing a treasured antique item among the clobber of a garage sale, flea market, or thrift store. If you stumble upon furniture or decor items sporting the label JANSEN, JANSEN/Paris, or another locale or specific address, you may have struck the motherlode. While any Maison Jansen piece would be a once-in-a-lifetime thrift store find, it's their case goods (solid wood furnishings usually made for storage) that you should be on the lookout for.

Maison Jansen was an ultra-luxe Parisian design house coveted by royalty and the wealthy between the 1880s and 1989, when it folded. The furnishings were an immediate hit, and over the century that followed, Maison Jansen earned commissions from the Kennedy White House, the Shah of Iran, and the Duchess and Duke of Windsor.

If you score an authentic Maison Jansen creation, it'll instantly upgrade your space, but you should also upgrade your insurance coverage. Items often sell for thousands, with some prices closing in on the six-digit mark. However, Maison Jansen wasn't big on labeling their wares. As a result, second-hand stores and other resale outlets may be unaware they're selling something so rare. This also makes it difficult to know whether what you've found is authentic.

Bookcases, dressers, armoires, sideboards, bar carts, and cabinets are among the Maison Jansen case goods that earn the highest bids at auction. But they come in more than a century's worth of styles, as well. Even at the outset, Maison Jansen took inspiration from the past, but the style evolved with the times, making a distinctive "Jansen" look a bit hard to pin down. Some Maison Jansen furnishings have an 18th-century Bourbon flair, while others are full-on 1970s style with mirror finishes and plenty of metallic accents.

A few characteristics of Jansen-designed case goods are marble tops, decorative painting, chinoiserie, and heavily lacquered fine wood like mahogany. Brass and mirrored accents also commonly adorn them. You might find a Regency-style commode or a mid-century modern sideboard whose only commonality is its Maison Jansen origin.

If you believe you've picked up a real-deal Maison Jansen furniture piece that isn't marked, seek out an expert who can help you discern its authenticity and value. To learn more about Maison Jansen, and maybe glean the skills to ID a bona fide example, pick up a copy of "Jansen" by James Archer Abbot. This iconic red-covered tome is an exhaustive guide to all things Maison Jansen.