WEDNESDAY'S WORD OF THE WEEK: ACANTHUS

ACANTHUS

a·can·thus [uh-kan-thuh s]

noun [uh-kan-thuh s]

   

1.  Plants. any shrub or herbaceous plant of the genus Acanthus, native to the Mediterranean region but widely cultivated as ornamental plants, having large spiny leaves and spikes of white or purplish flowers.  

2.  Architecture. a design patterned after the leaves of one of these plants, used especially on the capitals of Corinthian columns.

Origin:

1610–20; New Latin, Latin < Greek ákanthos bear's-foot

The origin of the Corinthian Order, illustrated in Claude Perrault's Vitruvius 1684

Of all the decorative designs inspired by nature, the acanthus leaf is the most iconic. With some resemblance to thistle, poppy and parsley leaves, it is one of the most widely used and popular motifs in architecture, furniture, interior design, and textiles. It can be found on everything from Corinthian capitals to manuscripts.

Acanthus Leaf
Illustrations by Nan Richards for Lolo French Antiques et More

The motif was particularly popular in the court appointments and furnishings of King Louis XVI, however stylized carvings are found in all King Louis styles. The conception and treatment of the margin and shape of the leaf, is the principal characteristic of the different period styles.

Lolo French Antiques et More
Item #LA259P
Pair of Dagobert chairs with acanthus ornamentaion

Lolo French Antiques et More
Item #LFASS101
Louis XV style chandelier with crystal fruit and acanthus motif

Lolo French Antiques et More
Item #LFALO974
Louis XIV style buffet d'appui with acanthus ornamentation

What style is your favorite?

À Bientôt!

Lolo & Mimi

DOUBLE VISION: Louis Philippe Mirror

Need some interior design inspiration? See what we've found! Source your favorite finds at 

 Lolo French Antiques et More.

Amy Morris Interiors
Amy Morris, Interior Designer
Emily Followill, Photographer

Lolo French Antiques et More
Item #LFA256
Grand French Louis Philippe Period Giltwood Mirror with Cartouche

À Bientôt!

Lolo & Mimi

LIEN BIEN: Links We Liked This Week

Every Friday we share a few LIEN BIEN (good links) we've recently discovered around the web that we think you may want to read or watch over the weekend. From stories to recipes to our favorite movies and songs, we try to include a little bit of everything. Hope you'll enjoy and please share with us what you're reading or watching in the comments. We'd love to know!

Warehouse-turned-workspace on the set of Nancy Meyers' comedy The Intern
Francois Duhamel, Photographer

1.  Designing Director (via Traditional Home)

2. Parisian fête to welcome bebe (via Style Me Pretty)

3. Debut novel filled with social satire (via The New York Times)

4. Whitewashed  (via REFINERY29)

The fruits of summer
Johnny Autry, Photographer

5. Pomme d'amour, the apple of love (via Garden&Gun)

6. Pickin paints and  furniture – there's an app for that (via Elle Decor) 

7.  Celebrating 7 decades of  the Series 7 chairs (via design milk)

8. Art of the game (via Architectural Digest)

9. Is Instagram killing originality? (via domain)

10. Dapper Designer (via quientessence)

À Bientôt!

Lolo & Mimi

DOUBLE VISION: Arthur Smith Boxing Painting

Need some interior design inspiration? See what we've found! Source your favorite finds at 

 Lolo French Antiques et More.

Traditional Home
Michael Abrams, Interior Designer
Werner Straube, Photographer

Lolo French Antiques et More
Item #LFA300
"The Count" Boxing Painting by WPA Artist Arthur Smith

À Bientôt!

Lolo & Mimi

LIEN BIEN: Links We Liked This Week

Every Friday we share a few LIEN BIEN (good links) we've recently discovered around the web that we think you may want to read or watch over the weekend. From stories to recipes to our favorite movies and songs, we try to include a little bit of everything. Hope you'll enjoy and please share with us what you're reading or watching in the comments. We'd love to know!

Peter Copping's vacation home in Normandy, France
Richard Powers, Photographer

1. A delightful French chateau (via ARCHITECTURAL DIGEST)

2. By the seashore with Coco Chanel (via Veranda)

3. Warby Parkered (via Huffington Post)

4. Summertime Blues (via Vogue)

Iced Lavender and Vanilla Almond Milk Latté
Bess Friday, Photographer

5. A tasty and refreshing iced latté (via APARTMENT34)

6. Tea Time (via Houzz)

7. Dog Days of Summer (via moderndog)

8. Picasso painting returned to France (via theguardian)

9. Languostines are the new foie gras (via bon appétit)

The Rise and Fall of Versailles

10. Watch the rise and fall of one of the world's most opulent palaces  (via hulu)

À Bientôt!

Lolo & Mimi

DOUBLE VISION: Trestle Table

Need some interior design inspiration? See what we've found! Source your favorite finds at 

Lolo French Antiques et More.

                                                                        

Birmingham Home & Garden
Jan Ware, Interior Designer
Jean Allsopp, Photographer

  

Lolo French Antiques et More
Item #LFA266
Antique Spanish Trestle Table with Iron Stretcher

   
À Bientôt!

Lolo & Mimi

                                                                                          

WEDNESDAY'S WORD OF THE WEEK: PANIER

PANIER

pan·ier [pan-yer, -ee-er]

noun [pan-yer, -ee-er]

   

1.  a basket, especially a large one, for carrying goods, provisions, etc.

2.  one of a pair of baskets to be slung across the back of a pack animal.

Also called pannier.

Origin:

1250–1300; Middle English panier < Middle French < Latin pānārium breadbasket, equivalent to pān (is) bread + -ārium -ary; see -ier  

Marchand de Paniers, Carle Vernet, 1820

The French have fancied paniers (baskets) for centuries, even before the art of basket making was formally recognized as a trade in France during the 15th century. Baskets have been used to gather flowers, fruits and vegetables from the fields, to present or display breads in village boulangeries, to transport live chickens to be sold to or brought home from the village markets, to harvest grapes for champagne making, and to carry the daily marketing home. 

Antique French Winnowing Basket

By the 13th century, the village of Vallabrègues, alongside the Rhône River near the town of Arles, was the largest basket producer in France. Most of the vanniers (basket makers) living there were wandering artisans that settled on the riverbank because the soil was perfect for growing willow used to make baskets. At one point, when baskets were the main source used for the gathering, storing, drying and transporting of fruits, vegetables, breads and produce, 450 out of a population of 1,818 were vanniers. Basket makers from all over France gather every August in Vallabrègues to celebrate La Fête de la Vannerie (Festival of the Basketry).

Guy Barbier, Vannier at Fête de la Vannerie à Vallabrègues
Source

Fête de la Vannerie à Vallabrègues
Source

With the emergence of wooden crates and the introduction of cardboard and plastic in the 1950s, however, the basketmaking industry virtually disappeared in France. Today, there are only about 200 vanniers left in France, making antique baskets even more collectible.    

Antique French Gathering Baskets

French baskets come in all sorts of shapes and sizes. Originally rustic and created out of necessity, paniers are now functional as well as decorative. They're perfect for storing toys, magazines, blankets, laundry and so much more. Gathering baskets can easily hold firewood or fresh laundry. A French oyster basket looks great filled with towels in a powder room or toys in a playroom. Open sided baguette baskets make wonderful umbrella stands, and French banettons look beautiful when displayed in the kitchen as a centerpiece for dried flowers, fruits or vegetables. Simply line one with an antique French towel and use it to serve a warm baguette.

Antique French Bannetons

Whether large or small, simple or fancy, French baskets always add a touch of warmth and Country French flair to any decor. How do you use or display your favorite panier? Let us know!

À Bientôt!

Lolo & Mimi

BASTILLE DAY: LE QUATORZE JUILLET

Bastille Day, or La Fête Nationale as they say in France, is celebrated to commemorate the importance of the storming of the Bastille, an ancient royal fortress in Paris.

On the morning of July 14, 1789, the people of Paris confiscated weapons from Les Invalides and then marched towards the medieval prison. After a bloody encounter, the crowd broke into the Bastille and released the seven prisoners held there. This event symbolizes the end of absolute monarchy and the beginning of the French Republic.

La prise de la Bastille by Jean-Pierre-Louis-Laurent Houel

The Fête de la Fédération (Feast of the Federation) was held the following year on July 14, 1790, to celebrate the first anniversary of the insurrection. 

Cadets of the École Militaire Interarmes marching down the Champs-Élysées.
© Marie-Lan Nguyen / Wikimedia Commonsons

Today, the national holiday is celebrated in France by everyone. The festivities include food, music, dancing, fireworks and the grand military parade down the Champs Elysees with French jets flying overhead. The parade is the oldest and largest military parade in the world and is led by the President of France. It starts at the Arc de Triomphe and ends at the Place de la Concorde.

The Patrouille de France's Alpha Jets
© Marie-Lan Nguyen / Wikimedia Commons

Families and friends then gather together for a lavish midday feast and conclude the celebrations with fireworks and dancing. Villages across France host their own parades and street parties with plenty of champagne and fireworks.

Fireworks in Paris
Source

Joyeux Quatorze Juillet!

Lolo & MImi

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

HAPPY 4TH OF JULY!

HAPPY 4TH OF JULY!

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

C'EST UNE HISTOIRE FAMILLE (IT'S A FAMILY AFFAIR)

Lolo and I are excited to introduce you to Cole Brock, my son and our newest employee. Cole graduates this summer from The University of Alabama with a bachelor of arts degree in history. His plans were to attend law school until I asked him to help at the store one Saturday while Laurent was out of town. Little did I know what an effect that would have on him. He couldn't wait for Laurent to get back so he could talk to him.

Cole on his official first day at work

Cole's always loved history and has collected "things" for as long as I can remember. Our home was filled with art and antiques, so scouring the stalls of flea markets from New York to Paris as a child was exciting and fun for him. He enjoyed the thrill of the hunt during these adventures and developed an appreciation for antiques and their history. 

Cole getting his portrait done in Montmartre before heading to Les Puces

But it's Laurent's work ethic, passion and love of antiques that has inspired and motivated Cole to want to learn not only the business but the fine art of furniture restoration that Lolo has mastered. He wants to experience the same satisfaction and joie de vivre Lolo experiences doing what he loves. 

Lolo, Mimi and Cole

Only history will tell if he stays on the same career path that Lolo chose over twenty years ago! In the meantime, he'll be happy to assist you with any inquiries you may have. He has a lot to learn, but Lolo says he can already tell "Cole feels it." And Lolo knows!

À Bientôt!

Lolo & Mimi