BOATLOAD OF BEAUTIFUL: NEWEST SHIPMENT FRESH OFF THE BOAT

Summer has definitely arrived, and with it a boatload of beautiful French antiques! Our newest shipment is fresh off the boat from France and we've unboxed, sorted and tagged almost 200 pieces. 

1.  French Winnowing Basket  2.  French Country Jam Holder  3.  Louis Philippe Weathered Pine Buffet d'Appui 

4.  Napoleon III Table  5.  Henri II Style Washed Oak Cushion Mirror  6.  Palissy Style Majolica Trompe l'Oleil Crab Plate   7.  Palissy Style Majolica Trompe l'Oeil Homard Lobster Plate  8.  Palissy Style Majolica Trompe l'Oeil Langouste Plate 

9.  French Faience Oyster Plates and Master Server  10.  Louis XIII Style Washed Oak Buffet

If you haven't had a chance to stop by yet, now's the perfect time. Our 10,000 square foot shop is filled to the brim with beautiful French antiques.

Late 18th Century Louis XIV Style Washed Oak Armoire

Antique Country French Pine Cheese Table

If you're busy having a little fun in the sun, please take a look on our website. We're adding new pieces weekly. And be sure to sign up for our newsletter so you're the first to know when new shipments arrive!

À Bientôt!

Lolo & Mimi

WEDNESDAY'S WORD OF THE WEEK: TORSADE

TORSADE

tor·sade [tawr-sahd, -seyd]

noun [tawr-sahd, -seyd]

   

1.  Furniture. refers to the twisted column that was a chief element in furniture design during the reign of King Louis XIII.

2.   Clothing & Fashion. an ornamental twist or twisted cord, as on hats.

Also called barley twist from barley sugar twist.

Origin:

1880–85; < French: from obsolete tors twisted, from Late Latin torsus, from Latin torquēre to twist.

Torsade or Barley Twist Leg 

In French design, the spiral shape known as a torsade became a major element of the Louis XIII style. The shape dates back to 333 AD when Constantine the Great, the first Christian emperor, brought back a pair of helix shaped columns from Jerusalem to be used in the altar of St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. According to tradition, these columns, known as Solomonic columns, were originally used as structural pillars for the roof of the Temple of Solomon.

Gianlorenzo Bernini's Baldacchino in St. Peter's Basilica. 

A new basilica was constructed in 1506, and the same spiral columns were preserved and 

used in the new architecture. They still stand, built into the supports of the church across from Gianlorenzo Bernini’s Baldacchino (one of the greatest examples of Solomonic columns), and are viewed by the millions of visitors to the site every day. 

Church Altar Front                                                                         Church Altar Back

The twisted columns gained popularity in the Catholic regions of Europe and became a feature of the Baroque style. They were often used in altars, on the dial case doors of late 17th and early 18th century longcase clocks and the legs of French, Dutch and English furniture. 

Louis XIII Style Barley Twist Desk

Barley Twist Side Table

Louis XIII Barley Twist Hunting Buffet

While English collectors and dealers often refer to the twisted shape as barley sugar twist after the sweet barley sugar twist stick candy that resembled the 17th and early 18th century leg, the French prefer torsade or barley twist.

1.  Louis XIII Style Barley Twist Dining Chairs  2.  18th Century Louis XIII Style Walnut Armoire 
3.  French Louis XIII Style Side Table  4. Rare Louis XIII Open Barley Twist Writing Table

It's easy to add a French Twist to any decor!

À Bientôt!

Lolo & Mimi

A HARD DAY'S WORK

"Where do you buy your pieces?" is one of the first things customers ask when told Lolo is in France on a buying trip. They're always curious about how and where he shops. Many follow up with, "I would love to go with him!" They are under the assumption he stays in four star Parisian hotels and sips fine French wine while eating pâté and foie gras in between sights! Granted, his maman's house is worthy of four stars and he does eat delicious meals of crab, oyster, lobster and the likes while he's "home." 

Fresh Oysters

La Cotriade d'Armor (Breton Fish Stew)

But you won't find him strolling the banks of the Seine. He's too busy crisscrossing the French countryside in a 24 foot truck, lifting and loading furniture, heavy furniture.

Pair of Louis XV Bedside Tables

Drop Leaf Table

French Art Deco Period Coffee Table

Set of 6 Louis XV Cane Dining Chairs

Washed Oak Louis Philippe Buffet

Louis XV Music Stand

Louis XV Buffet

Louis XV Desk

And when he arrives home after a 16 hour day, everything has to be unloaded and put in storage before he starts out the next day. It's not glamorous and it's hard work. But it's his job, a job that he loves.

Louis XV Armoire

Set of 8 Louis XVI Dining Chairs

Inside of Warehouse

He loves the thrill of the hunt, never knowing what he'll find or who he'll meet. He loves having a laugh and a joke and maybe an occasional glass of wine with a stodgy old dealer. He loves stumbling across what many would consider a piece of junk, an armoire or buffet in such disrepair that nobody wants it, knowing he can restore it to its original beauty. He loves being able to spend time with his family in France. And ever so often he'll get lucky and fill his truck early and enjoy the afternoon visiting a beautiful botanical garden or 13th century abbey.  

Jardin des Plantes

Family Outing

His joie de vivre is most evident, though, when he arrives back home (Birmingham, AL) and animatedly tells a couple about the piece he stumbled across in the back corner of a little shop off the beaten path. He realizes, as they both begin smiling, that he found exactly what they were looking for, making all his hard work worth it. 

You can let Lolo do the hard work for you, also. Just "Let Lolo Know" and he'll find that Empire armoire or ten foot farm table you've been wanting. You'll be the one smiling then.

À Bientôt!

Lolo & Mimi

WEDNESDAY'S WORD OF THE WEEK: PIED DE BICHE

PIED DE BICHE

pied-de-biche [pee-ey-duh-beesh; French pyeyduh-beesh]

noun, plural pieds-de-biche [pee-eyz-duh-beesh; French pyeyduh-beesh]

Furniture. a termination to a leg, consisting of a slight outward curve ending in the semblance of a cloven hoof.

Also called hoof foot.

Origin:
< French: literally, doe's foot

This obsession with animal parts we have may have started with antlers, but it ends with hooves. At least the feet of furniture does. Furniture based on wildlife anatomy dates back 3,000 years to the creature comforts of animal-worshiping Egyptians, whose beds stood on carved bull legs, gazelle hooves or lion feet. The hoof foot, carved to reflect the natural appearance of an animal such as a deer or horse, appeared in fine French furniture towards the end of the 17th century.

Hmmm....

 The legs of furniture were sometimes stylized representations of animal limbs, but the feet were rendered realistically. It is very common to see the hoof foot found at the base of cabriole legs.

Antique French Louis XV style walnut side table. Circa 1880s. Serpentine moulded top. The scalloped apron houses drawers on each end with iron pulls. Resting on cabriole legs ending in pieds de biche.

Antique French Country Louis XV style confiturier (jam holder) from Normandie. Circa 1870s. Handcrafted of cherrywood featuring a single paneled door with unusual full hinge above a carved apron. Raised on short cabriole feet ending in pieds de biche.

Louis XV armoire handcrafted between 1750 and 1760 in Rennes of solid wild cherrywood. Double chapeau de gendarme cornice topped with a carved urn filled with stylized plumes of feathers, blossoms, leaves and tendrils above four doors divided horizontally at the center by two drawers. Each door features a fougère (fern) patterned central panel. Scalloped apron rests on short cabriole legs ending in pieds de biche. 

The hoof foot, or deer foot, is referred to as pied(s) de biche in the trade. It appears in Régence and early Louis XV furniture designs. It was popular in stately furniture throughout the 1700s when horse hooves became popular.

Lovely Country French sofa table/console converted from an antique farm table. Circa 1870s. Cherry wood. The carved apron houses three drawers with bronze pulls. Resting on cabriole legs ending in pieds de biche. 

And my favorite is this Brittany console Lolo found. Look how realistic the feet are.

Charming antique Louis XV style Country French console in chestnut from a hunting lodge in Brittany. Circa 1880s. Beveled top with gadrooned edge above carved apron with motifs typical of artisans from the Brittany region. Raised on four stylized cabriole legs ending in pieds de biche. Single serpentine shelf. 

What do you you think about the hoof? How is it used in your home?

Á Bientôt!
&
Happy Holidays!

Lolo & Mimi

LOLO IS ON A MISSION...DAY 2 FLEA FINDS

Brrrr....it's chilly in France, but Lolo is on a mission this trip. Neither wind nor rain, nor a cold blustery day could keep him from the vide-greniers, brocante and marché aux puces!

Local Marché aux Puces

After  a long day of hunting and haggling, Lolo definitely didn't walk away empty handed!

Farm Table and Benches

Drop Leaf Side Table

Henri II Buffet

Henri II Petite Armoire

Pair of Os de Mouton Chairs

Hand Carved Louis XIV Fauteuil

Ottoman

Country French Rush Seat Chairs

Corbeille Louis XV Painted and Upholstered Bed Frame

Louis XIII Armoire

Country French Louis XV Farm Table

French Flip Top Pantry Table

Pantry Table Fully Extended

Hinge Detail

Henri II Desk

Country French Buffet

Louis XV Buffet Deaux Corps

Louis Philippe Enfilade Buffet

Louis XVI Marble Top Buffet

Louis XVI Dessert Buffet

À Bientôt!

Lolo & Mimi