The weight of a dressing table is heavily dependent on the size, style, and type of material used in its construction. A typical dressing table can be estimated to have a weight of fifty to two hundred pounds.
Dressing tables, otherwise known as make-up tables or vanities, are beautiful pieces of furniture that can really enhance a bedroom or dressing room. Figuring out how much this piece of furniture weighs, however, can be tricky.
People who are moving often have to come up with a good estimate of the weight of their furniture. For a dressing table, finding this estimate can be difficult. Most dressing tables come in several pieces; a table, a chair, a mirror, and the vanity or drawers.
Each one of these components must be weighed separately in order to determine the total weight of a dressing table.
The Table
Contents
The table is typically the largest and heaviest part of a dressing table. Usually, the table part of a dressing table has shorter legs than a dining room table or desk, giving it a lower center of gravity than most other household tables.
This usually means that the weight of a dressing table is only marginally less than a “typical” table, but the lower center of gravity can make it feel much heavier to a furniture mover. The tabletop of a dressing table can be made out of several different types of material.
Lower-end tables, such as those that come from a big box retailer, tend to have tabletops that are made of plastic or particleboard. Overall, these types of tables have lower weights than higher-end tables.
Depending on their size and design, they will typically weigh between 35 and 100 pounds.
Dressing tables in this category tend to be rather flimsy and can easily become damaged during a move.
Higher-end tables, including those sold by fine furniture stores and those that are custom-made, tend to be made of solid wood. A solid wood dressing table can weigh between 100 to 300 pounds.
These tables typically feature solid wood legs and tabletops and are quite durable. Antique dressing tables usually weigh slightly more, weighing in at around 125 to 350 pounds.
Tables with glass table tops tend to be lighter than wood dressing tables, but the glass tabletop is much more fragile and likely to break during a move.
Ideally, these types of tops should be removed and wrapped separately during shipping.
The Chair
Chairs that go with dressing tables are usually considered to be part of the table by most moving companies, but they are separate pieces of furniture.
A dressing table chair usually matches the design of the dressing table, but there are many cases where the design is completely different.
Plastic and upholstered chairs tend to be the lightest, usually weighing around 20 to 40 pounds. Adjustable chairs will add about five pounds to the weight. Chairs on casters or wheels will add an additional five pounds.
Dressing table chairs made of particle board usually weigh around 25 to 45 pounds. These chairs are rarely adjustable or on rollers and tend to rest on four solid legs.
The heaviest dressing table chairs are made of solid wood with upholstered tops. These also tend to be the most expensive type of chair.
Usually, these types of chairs weigh around thirty to sixty pounds. This is especially true for antique chairs; these types of dressing table chairs are not only extremely heavy, but they are also very difficult to move because of their extreme fragility.
There are some types of dressing tables that have an attached chair or bench. Because of how these types of tables must attach to the chair, they tend to add about fifty to one hundred pounds to the overall weight of the dressing table.
The Mirror
In some cases, the mirror of a dressing table can weigh as much as the rest of the table. This is especially true for antique tables and mirrors.
Older tables are not only usually made of solid wood, but the mirrors are made of solid glass. Glass mirrors usually are encased in a solid metal frame, which can add a lot of additional weight. Antique mirrors usually weigh between one hundred and three hundred pounds. Moving them will require a lot of special attention.
Typically, it is generally recommended that the mirror be removed and specially wrapped. The weight of these wrapping materials, which can include padded blankets, is usually factored into a moving company’s estimate of weight.
This means that owners of antique dressing tables can find themselves paying for an additional twenty to fifty pounds of weight simply because of the extraordinary amount of wrapping and packing material that must be used to safely move an antique dressing table.
Modern but well-made dressing table mirrors are usually a veneer put onto a piece of solid wood. These mirrors usually weigh a lot less than antique mirrors and are also, therefore, a lot easier to move and store. A modern-made mirror will usually weigh between twenty-five and fifty pounds.
Lower-end dressing tables will typically have a shiny veneer mirror that is attached to a piece of particleboard. These mirrors can weigh as little as five pounds and rarely weigh more than twenty-five pounds.
Mirrors can be free-standing, or they can attach to a dressing table. Depending on how the mirror attaches to the table, it can add between two to ten pounds to the overall weight of the piece of furniture.
It should be noted that if a dressing table is being moved, the mirror must be detached. The attached mirrors are extremely fragile and can break very easily during a move. Look for a pin or latch that will allow you to detach the mirror before you try to move this piece of furniture.
The Drawers
Between the table, chair, and mirror, a typical dressing table will weigh between one hundred to four hundred pounds. The final thing to consider, however, is if the table has any type of detachable organization, such as drawers or shelves.
Again, the weight of these items is heavily dependent on the design and materials used.
The organizer or shelves of a dressing table will usually add about twenty to one hundred pounds to the total weight of the piece of furniture. Cheaper mass-market dressing tables usually have a set of shelves that are made of particleboard or plastic that will weigh on the lower end of this range.
Antique dressing tables, however,r may have very intricate shelving with hidden compartments and built-in organization. These components are usually made of solid wood or metal and can therefore add a lot of weight to a piece of furniture.
Items in the drawers or shelves of a dressing table can add a lot of weight as well.
Of course, anyone moving one of these pieces of furniture should move it completely empty, but if you are computing weight for a moving company, be sure to include an estimate of the items stored in the dressing table in your calculations.
