Autumn’s Embrace

Antique Letter EngravingFor antique collectors, any change in season is the perfect excuse to use antique furniture and accessory finds to make a splashy tableau around a home, showing off their treasured collection. As we gather next week for Thanksgiving, we look for inspiration when creating table settings that express our own personal taste and the love we have for those with whom we share this special day. These creations are etched into our memories, gleaned from our personal collections and family mementos. Whether inspired by the rustic or more formal decor, antiques are an excellent starting point for our holiday table display.

Antique Furniture Table SettingAntique Furniture Table Setting

Make a perfect mix of rustic and refined by bringing in the element of nature with delicate wreaths on blue transferware plates topped with small pie pumpkins to heighten the autumnal appeal.

Antique Furniture Table Setting

Antique AccessoriesThis 18th Century Italian Madonna statue makes an eye-catching centerpiece for our celebration while adding a timeless and tender element to this table setting. The dusty miller, mums, berries, hydrangeas, lilies and roses in rusty hues complete this vibrant, seasonal tableau!

Antique Furniture Table SettingAntique Furniture Table Setting

~
Autumn’s Embrace by Inessa Stewart
As summer gives its way to fall,
It ushers cooler breath of winter.
We take joy in seasonal rebirth
With every shimmer of a leaf and in ever timber’s splinter.
 
The birch trees now dressed in amber
Scatter relics of summer’s luster
As we embrace these golden days, delighting in
The palette of every fruit and berry cluster.
 
Celebrating the bounty of autumn crescendos
Around the family table dressed with scarlet and gold,
We pleased to share the joys of the season
With feasts of harvest embracing us into ancestral fold.
 ~
Antique Furniture Table Setting
Inessa Stewart's Antiques

Antique Pin of the Week: Country French Fall Finery

Antique French EngravingThe inviting personality and comforting patina of Country French antiques and accessories are even more welcome this time of the year when we look for new ways to add instant warmth to our homes. The charming texture and depth of antique furniture, antique paintings, and copper layered with the masters’ touch are special additions to make your house into a home this holiday season!

Country French Antique Furniture

Country French Antiques Country French Antiques

Antique of the Week ~ Antique French Louis XVI Bedroom Set

Antique French EngravingSince the early days of the French monarchy, antique furniture styles have followed the lead of the Royal French Court. From the moment the royal wedding in 1770 of the daughter of the Emperor of Austria, known to us as Marie Antoinette, and Louis-Auguste of France, who was to become King of France only four years later, her interest in ancient Greece and Rome, and the classic architecture and furniture those civilizations produced, started to exert its influence on the preferred styles of the court, eventually resulting in what today is known as the Louis XVI style.

Antique Bedroom Set

The Queen of France was also known for her exquisitely romantic bedroom furniture and appointments, the influence of which can be seen in Versailles today, and which is reflected in the Louis XVI style throughout the 19th century. A splendid example of this romanticism and classic design is our choice this week of a truly special antique three-piece bedroom set.

Antique Armoire Antique Armoire

Antique Bedroom Set Bed Antique Nightstand

From its stately architecture with its tailored lines and fluted corner posts which so resemble the fluted columns of ancient Greece, to the elaborately cast and hand-chased bronze ormolu mounts, this three piece bedroom set exudes a timelessness that has maintained its appeal for over two millennia!  Upon closer examination, we discover that exotic mueche mahogany was used, a wood imported from North and South America’s tropical regions with a unique grain variation.  This highly prized wood provides the perfect backdrop for the jewelry-like quality of the bronze ormolu mounts, which depict rosettes, exquisite floral and foliate motifs, and even the ribbon that appears to band together the fluted corner posts which is a reference to the fascis carried into the Roman Senate to mark the beginning of a session.  Hand-crafted by extraordinarily talented artisans in the 19th century, our own 21st century in-house artisans have transformed the bed to accommodate a Queen size mattress set by crafting rail extensions, leaving the headboard and footboard intact and original.

French Antique Furniture

French Antique Furniture We are certain Queen Marie Antoinette would approve!

Inessa Stewart's Antiques

 Inessa Stewart

Antiques in Style is a source of joy for me to create, and hopefully will be a source of inspiration for you! The variety, artistry and history of the antiques and vintage pieces that surround us every day provide pleasure, beauty and sometimes even intrigue.

The classics never go out of style, and each era, country, and even artisan's interpretations create an environment that is always full of surprises.

It is truly a pleasure to bring such timeless style together for every client and follower of my blog. And of course, your input is always welcome!

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