The secret life of chairs...

Not all of our restorations are modern; we just finished restoring 4 of these 18th century French chairs, and it got me thinking: EIGHTEENTH CENTURY! As they are almost 300 years old, I can't help but wonder - where have they been and what have they seen?! They were most likely handcrafted by Jacob Brothers in Faubourg Saint Antoine, Paris, which is near Bastille and was (and still is) the center of furniture manufacturing in Paris. Many of the pieces for Versailles were made here.

They are part of a personal collection (which includes more pieces), and I do not know how they were acquired, but they have been clearly well taken care of. Only minor touch ups were necessary, and those were done with strict adherence to period practices (as much as we could).

As well, the reupholstery was done as the original, and we are proud of the results:

Custom king bed with Bronze Tile base

This bed. It is really something else. The design process is such an interesting operation. Our client comes to us with a concept; we put ideas on paper, start some sketches (always by hand, never computer), add some dimensions, sort through the technicalities, and begin production. That's when the fun really begins, because as the concept and design come to fruition, a piece begins to take on its' life and character, and everything comes together.

That's what happened with this bed. There were some challenges, but we are very proud of the end result. This bed is fabricated in a beautiful rust silk velvet, with a cantilevered ledge that sits on 1" bronze tiles, which fit around all three exposed sides.

What you don't see is that under the cantilevered ledge there is a small groove that will house a light strip (yes!), and the space under the headboard is for the transformer box. As you may have discovered, we are big on small details, and making sure the corner tiles incorporated the rounded radius was important to the design of this bed. Making and applying the bronze tiles was a painstaking process, but the result is well worth it.

Classic Design sighting: New York Times & Domaine Home

via Domaine Home

I blogged about this beautiful Louis XVI daybed back in February, and it's always so nice to see the pieces we restore, and fabricate, in their actual environment. Domaine Home (one of my favorite shelter blogs) did a beautiful post about the transformation of a brownstone in Brooklyn from one owner to another. The difference is amazing, and both incarnations are gorgeous.

The same home was featured in the New York Times blog last week, and I glimpsed the leather chesterfield we made for this client, last seen here in October. 

via New York Times 

Beautiful home, beautiful photos, and we are so honored to be a part of the design.

Bolster back velvet sofa with lucite legs

Just finished in the workroom - two matching sofas with low arms and bolster back pillows. The fabric is amazingly lush - sand colored silk velvet by Glant.

The client requested a very deep sofa that could also double as a bed, if necessary. Only sweet dreams can happen here!

The sofa has the very cool illusion of floating, thanks to the recessed lucite sled legs - they are almost too gorgeous to hide!

Royere Week: Jean Royere-inspired Polar Bear Sofa

Yes, it's Royere week! This is the Classic Design version of Shark Week. This is another piece we recently finished - also inspired by the Polar Bear style - and better known internationally as 'Ours Polaire'.

The sofa version has the same rounded shape as the chairs, and incredible comfort as well. This sofa is for a different client, and she opted to go with white oak cerused feet, which contrasts nicely with the teal velvet. Another version of this sofa can be found here.