That word “patina” is another reason, I’m sure, we all respond to Welsh dressers. It’s the lovely combination of dirt, smoke and beeswax, worked into the wood over two hundred years or more, that creates the warmth and color we all search for in a piece of oak. It makes us feel good. It’s not comfort food; it’s comfort furniture.

But why do we call them ‘Welsh’ dressers, even if the piece of furniture was made in Yorkshire or Shropshire? Dressers were made all over England, Scotland and Wales from the late seventeenth through the nineteenth century. But the term dresser has become synonymous with Wales, probably because of the large number of high quality examples that have come out of there.

Welsh craftsmen were known for their skill and individuality, and dressers from Wales tend to have an abundance of decoration and added features like scalloped cornices and pierced aprons, while English dressers are, as a rule, plainer.

No matter where they were made, no two dressers are ever alike. Inevitably there will be variations in decoration on the top cornice, the arrangement of drawers and cupboards, and the style of legs.

Dressers were made with whatever wood was at hand - pine, elm, or fruitwood, but most are oak. It was easy to split, stood up to wear and tear, and had a beautiful grain and color.