Now You See It, Now You Don't

This beautiful Cane back sofa sold the first day on the floor (price $1800). The most difficult part of maintaining the web-site is sometimes the stock sells before I even get a photo. My apologies to all my Vancouver clients, who I know wish they could see more on the site. The reality is, I can give people a sample of the kinds of furniture that you will see in Surroundings, and a price point for future reference.

A lovely 1930's armchair re-upholstered in a linen blend, sold for $1285.

One of the many spectacular chandeliers that came through the store this fall. This one sold for $495.

This is one of the best Canadiana dressers I have had. All the wood knobs are original, as well as the escutcheons ( keyhole covers). The escutcheons are almost always damaged in a piece this old ( circa 1870). The dresser sold for $850.

I know we all lead busy lives, and it is not always easy getting into the store. But, for those who really want something special for their home, making regular visits to the store is required. Remember if you have a  request, we keep a wish list for our customers.

Vroom Vroom

It is a 1950's soap box racer. Fun. I found the racer a few months ago in several pieces. It now sits proudly up for sale in the store $885.00. Yes, it has steering, and No, there are no brakes. I love the wheels, they most likely came from an old pram. A lot of love went into making this racer back in its day.

The best part of this little racer is the memories that it is conjuring in all my customers. It seems many of us remember building or own version of the soapbox racer as kids. I remember my siblings building pretty primitive go-carts and then take them flying down our driveway, across the road, and into the neighbors apple orchard. I know, your wondering where were my parents. Alas those were the days when kids ran around freely, unsupervised, learning a great deal.

It did not take long before one little customer asked politely if she could get into the racer. Vroom, vroom, and away she goes.

Everything...... Including The Kitchen Sink

 I love my kitchen sink. Now how many of you can say that?  The sink is often taken for granted, after all here is where all the hard labour of the kitchen happens. While I realize that the trend is to drop a bomb on appliances, put in granite or quartz countertops, and then call it day, I, however, refused to join the crowd.

My little house (emphasis on the word little) was a farmhand cottage built poorly in the 1960's. When I purchased it 8 years ago, I fell in love with the location, and knew I would have to rebuild the entire cottage. I wanted to pay homage to its roots, it had to still look like a farmhand cottage when I was finished. Easier said then done.  It was the kitchen sink that perplexed me. I wanted it it be functional, modern, and yet look like it had been there for years.

I found a lovely oak table at counter height, it was from Doncaster school, the dewy decimal system (the original google search engine) used to sit on it. I had a western maple counter top made for it, and as you can see from the photo it extends past the cabinet so I have storage for Ida's dog food. 

Next it was off to Ikea. Yes, I said Ikea, because they do great kitchen items. The sink and commercial looking faucet are from Ikea, the fabric (which hides recycling and compost bucket) is from France.

The window over the sink looks over my garden and to the large farm next door. I could easily do dishes happily for hours at this sink. Life happens in the kitchen, here is where my family comes together for Christmas, Thanksgiving, birthdays and anniversaries. It is here at my beloved kitchen sink where we  talk and get caught up with each others busy lives, re-connecting, doing something as mundane and joyful as dishes at the kitchen sink.

Kristiane

The Story of a Sofa and Chair

It all starts here in the city of Brussels. I have just arrived from Maastricht, and my goal is to get Belgian Linen for upholstering.

My cousin James and his wife Justyne take me down a back alley, down some scary stairs, and lone and behold is the mecca of linen! Upholstery grade linen is very hard to find here in Victoria, in fact, the last customer we worked with paid close to $200 a metre for linen. 

Here in Belgian the price is fabulous, approx $75 Canadian, the big difference is the fabric comes 9 feet wide. I bought a bolt. The above photo shows the staff laughing as they attempt to fold it so I could get it into my suitcase. By the way KLM charged me 75 Euros for the overweight suitcase. Worth every penny.

Back home in Victoria, I headed off to the Auction houses to find some frames to re-upholster in the linen. I spotted these in the back room of Lunds, 2 chairs and 2 loveseats, horrible fabric, with great bones. I quickly gutted them down to the frames, removing all foam. The frames were made by the Michigan Frame company, Grand Rapids, 1956.  On the inside they were truly works of art.

Here is a close up of the finished product. I wanted the chairs to look more European. So the upholsterer and I decided the wood should be raw, masculine piping with the traditional upholstery tacks. What appears to be burlap is actual woven Jute ( also purchased in Brussels).

We moved back the tack line to give the chair again a more deconstructed look.

The finished product. The chair complete, the seat is feather, the inside is cotton, horse hair, and coco mat. No foam in the chair or love seat. To die for comfy.

The love seat sitting in the front window of the store. The 2 chairs have been sold for $1285 each, one love seat has been sold for $1685. We currently have one love seat left. As you can tell lots of work, love, and passion goes into these creations. 

I think I have enough linen left to do another couple of chairs, so Im off to hunt down 2 more chair frames. 

The Best of TEFAF ( according to moi)

It all begins with the arrival to Amsterdam. I needed a few days to get over jet lag before heading off to Maastricht for the European Fine Art and Antique Fair (TEFAF).

Maastricht was booked solid for the show, so we stayed in the quaint  town of Eijsden, about 10 minutes south. Eijsden proved to be a wonderful surprise,  great restaurants ( we ate my favorite meal for the whole trip at Vanille), beautiful buildings, market, and the weather was plus 20!

This is a typical street scene in Maastricht during TEFAF. I guess you could say the show injects some money into the local economy. The streets were literally packed.

Upon arriving at TEFAF, the entrance was spectacular with light displays and the wall of roses. Yes, that is a 10 foot wide wall of live roses.

The buzz was already about "the horse". As we walked through the booths opening day of the show everyone was asking have you seen "the horse". That horse is the work of artist Nic Fiddian Greene. His magnificent metal sculpture was in the booth of Sladmore Gallery of London. The sculpture took up the entire space, it was crowed and intimate, you had to walk very close to the horse, a deliberate install decision by Sladmore. Price $475,000.00 pounds

My personal favorite of the show is an articulated artist model of a horse and rider 19th century. This was proudly offered for sale by Perrin Antiquaires of Paris. Price $75,000.00 Euros   

So disappointed that the photo does not do any justice to this incredible raw crystal chandelier. Sorry I can't remember the dealer ( I believe they were from Paris), price was around $500,000.00 Euros. Trust me, if you saw it in person, it was worth every penny.

My personal favorite Dealer at the fair was Axel Vervoordt. His booth was so crowded I could not get a decent photo. However, as always Vervoordt left a lasting impression. For his booth he installed a library complete with plank floors, 15 foot hardwood bookcases, a fireplace and sofa. He created an atmosphere that no other dealer came close to. He truly demonstrated how you live with beautiful things.

For those of you not familiar with Vervoordt I highly recommend his books, and of course you can goggle him to your hearts content.

Kristiane

Packed and Ready to Go!

I have just finished packing my bags. Tomorrow I board a plan to Amsterdam, and then drive down to Maastricht to attend the European Fine Art and Antique Fair ( TEFAF). The show celebrate its 25th Anniversary this year, and represents the very best in the field.

I often tell my clients when they are starting out to purchase antiques, always look at the best you can find, develop an eye, this is essential in learning. Few of us can afford to purchase the quality we see at TEFAF, but that does not mean we should not look and learn.

Taking time to surf items on 1stdibs has become one of my biggest educational tools for clients. We are so fortunate here in Victoria, antiques are a fraction of the price that you would pay in the larger cities around the world .

I'll be back on the last day of March, just in time to see my garden coming into spring budding. I promise to take lots of photos and show you what I found to be the most interesting of things

Veneer......... Show Some Respect.

I often refer to my beautiful drop-front casement piece as command central. This is where I sit and work when I'm not in the store. I love this piece. I looked for over 3 years before I found it. Take a close look. Yes, it is Veneer on solid wood.

Take an even closer look and you will see satinwood inlay. This was an expensive piece of furniture in its day and I paid top dollar for it 10 years ago.

I have often heard the words " oh it's a veneer" said with a touch of distain. I find is staggering that people are oblivious to the fact that sometimes they are looking at a piece of furniture that is over 150 years old. Now take a look at the above cabinet and tell me what is so distasteful about veneer.

Some basic facts, we have been veneering for centuries, in fact, it dates back to the ancient egyptians. Veneering was traditionally done on only the most expensive and luxurious furniture.

Veneer is essentially a thin layer of wood, usually of exquisite grain, burls, birds eye, and quarter sawn. Often these woods are not capable of providing stability in furniture making (particularly burls) , therefore, they are used only in veneer form. My casement piece is a fine example of burled walnut on pine. More than just a pretty face, veneer on a solid wood core often prevents warping.

Sadly, the 1930's and 1940's saw veneer of poor grade being used with insufficient glues on much furniture. Keep in mind this was post depression and post war, supplies and craftsmanship were in limited supply. By the time the 1970's arrive veneer is viewed as being poor in quality.

If you want to read up a bit about veneer go to www. joewoodworker.com for a great article. Most importantly do not make the assumption that solid wood means quality. Every piece of furniture needs to be evaluated on its own individual merits.