Pavillon Coté Sud Now Open!

Chers Amis de Bon Gout! Bonjour!

Today I am thrilled to announce the Pavillon Coté Sud sample show room of building materials is complete and ready for visitors here at Au Vieux Paris Antiques!

You will be able to see different flooring materials ranging from handmade, 18th century terra cotta floor tiles in two colors, along with a selection of several hand aged re-edition quarried stone dalle or bar flooring in various colors, textures and formats.

A spectacular handmade and aged re-edition of parquet de Versailles flooring is available for your reception rooms as well as pavé (cobblestone) for your driveway and parking areas. 

There is a selection of 18th century fireplace mantles in wood, stone or marble, as well as 18th century interior doors to enhance your rooms with tasty Provençal bon gout.

To top off your home, you will see 19th century handmade Roman barrel terra cotta roof tiles for that signature Provençal look.

Please plan a visit here soon to see, touch and appreciate in person these very special materials.

Mes Amitiés,

Robert E. Smith

Au Vieux Paris Antiques

337.332.2852

The September 2015

Blog was devoted to flooring!!

Classic 18th C. handmade "red" terra cotta floor tiles

Somewhat rare "yellow" terra cotta floor tiles

Re-edition aged stone with marble cabochons

Re-edition quarried stone, each piece aged by hand for one hour

The upper right quadrant is a newly made panel of parquet de Versailles which matches the mid-18^th century panels in the other three quadrants.

Note newly made panel on top of a mid-18th century parquet de Versailles floor

One of a faux pair of wall cupboard units from the large selection of interior doors available

Split granite pavé or cobblestone for driveways and parking

Handmade 19^th century “Roman barrel” roofing tiles

A cast iron fireback with the blazon of the royal house of Bourbon;

fourteen firebacks in stock to choose from.

Please visit soon!

"On the cutting edge!"

Chers Amis,  Bonjour!  This summer I seemed to be attracting table knives like never before and this was a good thing!

This all started with the acquisition of an extraordinary set of 24 dinner and 12 fruit and cheese knives in their original presentation coffre.  The knives are an unusual find on several counts, the large size of the set in its coffre only being a starting point. The former ownership is known and attested to by a tag on the coffre probably from the mid 20th century giving the name of the Arrivabine family. This family was “Second only to the Medicis in Italy” says a knowledgeable Italian friend of mine! The handles, engraved with an “A” with the Count’s nine point crown above further corroborates this elevated ownership.  The Italian made handles are not the normal silver plate but are of full silver while the oversized steel blades are marked “Wm Jackson & Sons Sheffield”. Evidently at the time, fine Sheffield made steel blades would have been imported from England for use in a commission of knives of this level of quality. See below two of Count Arrivabine’s family houses these knives could have been used in.

Following finding this splendid set, I acquired another set of 11 knives with full silver handles as apposed to silver plated handles!  Full silver handles are a very rare occurrence seldom seen in the market place. Following these two sets I managed to acquire a few more sets of both dinner and fruit and cheese knives with silver plated handles in several different patterns as well as the ever popular fiddle thread and uniplat patterns.

With the holiday season approaching it is a good time to have at the ready the proper cutlery for all those special holiday meals. The following photos gives you an idea of some of the ample stock available here at Au Vieux Paris Antiques, so please plan a visit to see these knives as well as the extensive selection of fine antiques available.  

Mes amitiés,
Robert E. Smith

The following knives have silverplated handles:

Visit the Au Vieux Paris Antiques homepage (click here)
Browse a sampling of the merchandise available (click here)

Mes amitiés,
Robert E. Smith (337) 332-2852

http://www.auvieuxparisantiques.com

Salon du Château d'Abondant

Chers Amis de L’Ecole du Bon Goût,

Last month when I was “studying” at the Musée Louvre for two full days, I took numerous photos of a circa 1740 salon that has been of particular interest to me since it was acquired in 1989. This room is unique in the Louvre’s collection of period rooms in that it was acquired quite intact architecturally speaking as well as with much of its original furnishings. The original furniture includes: four marble top console tables, two canapés, two bergères, and the chandelier.

In addition to this remarkable physical survival, the names of the craftsmen involved are known! François-Simon Houlié supplied the boiserie paneling and the console tables, all painted in the same two shades of muted green by the painter Jean-François Chevalier. Louis-François Trouard who was marbrier du roi sculpted the fireplace chimney and the console tops from the same marbre de Sarrancolin and Michel Cresson created the seat furniture, again painted to match the boiserie and consoles. The over door paintings are by Jacques de Sève and the chandelier is métal argenté and cristal de Bohême. The fabric of the curtains is a reproduction of the original fabric used for both the curtains and the seat furniture.

Today many aficionados of décor are paranoid about having their interiors called too “matchy matchy” !! I myself like a very coordinated décor and this salon gives us a glimpse of a very successful original décor where everything was truly “matched”! Because of the limited and muted color pallet utilized throughout and the total absence of gold leaf, the room has something of the feeling of contemporary rooms popular today done in muted color schemes.

If these photos inspire you to “womp up” a serine but luxurious Louis XV décor for your very own, see following some antiques available now at Au Vieux Paris, to help you in your creation.

Mes Amitiés,
Robert E. Smith

•   •   •   •   •   •   •   •

Following, antiques available now at Au Vieux Paris.

Visit the Au Vieux Paris Antiques homepage (click here)
Browse a sampling of the merchandise available (click here)

Mes amitiés,
Robert E. Smith (337) 332-2852

http://www.auvieuxparisantiques.com