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Inlay was an optional extra, usually found on
good quality pieces or those that are known to have been special, and
in effect it replaced carving in certain areas in this period. Inlaid
decoration was found in many parts of the country, but flourished
particularly in the south, with close similarities in patterns from
south Pembrokeshire through to the Vale of Glamorgan.
The style contrasted with both the heavy Elizabethan
taste of the previous century that is associated with the north of
England, whereby large areas of parquetry were combined with carving,
and with the newer 
marquetry, where the underlying carcase was hidden. The inlay was
delicate and restrained covering only a small area, relating to the
space rather than merely filling it, and accentuated the main parts
as opposed to using them as simply a base for ostentatious
decoration. There was a balance between ornament and the shape of the
piece, whose necessarily heavy proportions were lightened and given
movement and rhythm. The designs were usually found on clearly local
forms, particularly full-size and miniature
coffers. A number of features linked this coffer
to a larger group which included the chest
of drawers above and fine dressers
with both potboard
and cupboard
bases. A particular hallmark of the workshop responsible was the
flowing design on the drawers, which was similar to that on the chest-on-stand
above, but with tulip head terminals. Such simple curvilinear designs
using stylized flowers were particularly suited to  narrow
rectangles and had long been basic to the decorative arts in many
media, the idea being similar to that of the scrolling vine trail but
with flowers or circles in the interspaces.
Many of these stylized floral designs relied on
a single pale colour which caught the light against the dark oak, and
the timber is usually presumed to be either holly, sycamore, poplar
or fruitwood, all easily available with the first particularly
pliable when freshly cut. Others used a dark wood for contrast,
normally in quite small pieces, and this is presumed to be bog oak,
which is easily cut before it dries completely, although it is likely
that ordinary oak soaked in stain was often used.
Towards the end of the century simple inlaid
designs were revived in urban furniture, and became available in
ready-made thin strips. These were occasionally obtained by rural
makers and sometimes used to form more complex patterns, but most
persisted with the traditional method well into the 19th century.
More
details regarding this and other furniture types can be found in Welsh
Furniture 1250-1950 by Richard Bebb |
