la Brocanteuse

Mar 18, 2013

French linen

My interview with SA magazine  
GARDEN and HOME 
 about collecting French linen has been published 
and currently available on shelves nationwide.
(April 2013 edition)
For  readers that are  logging onto my blog  via the article, thank you, welcome and if you would like your name added to be informed about upcoming events, feel free to contact me via colette@lecapfoods.com




Sharing some previous published images  on this blog of my French linen and finds...



Soon it will look like this again, with all the sorting and preparing for the next upcoming event at 

 VINTAGE IDEAS
SIMONDIUM 
26-28 April 2013 
Paarl Franschoek rd(R45) 
9.30 - 4pm
www.festiveideas.co.za

The image below was taken the day of the magazine interview, with some of the linens we were getting ready for a event in December 2012.


Image by Henrique Alexa Wilding photography








 vintage lace on old bobbins


old French documents for framing






original old French La Poste 
(postal bags) re purposed as cushions 








found at Brocantes  and in attics 
in the French Country side
















allowing me to stock my own 
pop-up Brocante
at events


with original old hand monogrammed linens:
 drap (sheets), serviettes,nappe(table cloths)
chemises, torchons (dish cloths) and chanvre table runners( farmers linen)








thank you for following me here!


Colette 






Mar 4, 2013

gilt as in gold


Inspired by found objects and textiles 
with the same hues: old gold, ivory, bone white.
 The reflection of mirrors and shimmer of crystals,
this master  bedroom is an ongoing process 




The old  hand carved gilt mirror, 
 2.5 m tall,was the starting point.







 inevitably small objects with ornate gilt detail 
find it's way to the carved marble mantle


original French miniature paintings 
done on ivory in delicate frames,



old colored engraving of pastoral scene 
 in wood with velvet frame


tiny gilt slip cast and marble urn


The brass perpetual calendar was found by Dd at a Brocante near Tours on our previous trip to France,
 the date reading:Tuesday, 10 July- indicating
  the day we returned , ( reminding me it is  time to start planning the next sortie-)
  I hold this calendar very dear as she negotiated with  her dad to give her pocket money ahead to enable her to buy it for me as a birthday gift - 9 yrs old and already a trained eye...



 a lovely old mirrored screen with ornate carved embellishments that was originally purchased for Dd's bedroom, works perfectly here, so it stays for now.





old  gold silk and velvet  tassels against
vintage french linen that curtain the screen.



a selection of textiles ,found at fabric houses and markets in France- some old ,some new,
  ivory silk, brocade, velvet and suede
all in the mix 
sharing the same underlying gold and ivory hue
  




one of a pair , very old gold velvet curtains found by a friend at a antique auction, were used
 to re-upholster a canape



little french bees and wreaths on 2 salon chairs





 the designs on the fabric used for window inner blinds and selected upholstery are  all different, but work together just the way I like it, not perfectly matched, yet complimenting the overall look with it's uniform gold and ivory colors.


Italian painted boxes to hold trinkets
 on my writing desk









I will share the completed room in full when the final touch is in place...a gorgeous old length of textile in textured gold hue(probably used as pelmet cover before for a bed as the size fits almost exact) with embroidered silk cut work. 
It will become a  canopy of sort above the bed with old silk drop lengths in pale gold/ivory silk of medium weight that has been waiting for a project for many years.- 
making do with what is found and working with that...





Origin of BOUDOIR

French, from bouder to pout
First Known Use: 1781

Definition of BOUDOIR

  a woman's dressing room, 
bedroom, or private sitting room 

BOUDOIR today

The term boudoir tend to focus on Renaissance and French inspired bedroom styles.

Recently, the term boudoir has come to denote a style of furnishing for the bedroom that is traditionally described as ornate or busy.

a bientot

Colette

Before moving in, after restoration: this was the fireplace surround installed in the sitting area of the bedroom.
After a unfortunate fire in the bedroom, I went searching for a surround in stone or marble and found this gorgeous hand carved surround in previous images from Italy. - being sceptical of wood again since the Godin open  fireplace behind glass door overheated and the intense heat escaping caused the painted wood to take flame.We chose this option for the bedroom fire place since I thought it would be rather nice not to have to worry about falling asleep with a log fire still going safe behind glass door. Not a fault with the product, but it proofed a mistake in installation now rectified. I can highly recommend this option.

Floor: reclaimed wooden parquet flooring original to the house, laid in new herringbone design, this image shows pre staining to ebony dark color.