If you are considering changing the door knobs in your house and have decided that Antique door knobs would best make your doors fit in your classic decor you may have realized that finding the perfect ones is difficult if you are looking at flea markets or auction houses. There are some nice antique crystal knobs available but for use in homes that were built rather recently they need to have practical hardware so they can fit modern doors. One way to have the look you want and the fit you need is to turn to reproductions.
Reproductions are not antiques restored. If you live in a Victorian home that was built in the 1880’s and you need to replace some door knobs, you might then consider to have them restored. This would involve sending them to a professional who can fix whatever need fixing and replace broken parts with similar parts from the period, not recently made parts. Only in doing so would your home have antique knobs, and remain authentic in decor.
There is no problem with an eclectic look and mixing periods and styles in decor, but one must be clear as to the intent when buying antique articles for a house.
If then the antique look of crystal door knobs is what you are looking for, then it is much easier and cheaper to achieve by using reproductions.
Reproductions offer several advantages over period door knobs, in that you don’t really have to retrofit them to the doors. Simply tell the seller the particulars of your doors and the knobs will fit. They are easy to install, look very good, without cracks, or scratches, and will cost much less than antiques will.
There is a lot of misinformation online about antiques and consumers should beware and ensure that they are getting what they expect. Most resellers are honest and will clearly identify it is a reproduction or if you are in fact getting an antique crystal door knob, as they have no interest in selling you something that will be returned. Online vendors like Amazon have a great return policy but would prefer to have satisfied customers. For this only I do think that it is safe to buy online but to know the reputation of the seller.
