Tag Archives: Antique Dealers

You Should Love Where You Live

September 19, 2013UncategorizedAntique Dealers, design booksMrs. Blandings

Love Where You Live: At Home in the Country arrived about the time I was getting my house ready to be shot for Spaces Kansas City. While I loved the book at first sight, I was momentarily distracted by an uncontrollable mania to “finish up” some things around here.

Then, earlier this week, I received a lovely email from an old friend that, while completely unrelated, served as a mental nudge to revisit Joan Osofsky’s book. If you stop here to visit very often you know that I have an affinity for people who have emotional attachments to things.

Not things like BMWs and the recognizable jewel of the moment, but old things. Sometimes rusty things. Often not very expensive things.

So Osofsky, who owns Hammertown Barn, a handful of lifestyle stores in Hudson Valley and the Berkshires, struck a chord with her book of her customers’ homes which echo her aesthetic of cozy sophistication.

Her own houses open and close the book and it was the later (the last) that drew a sharp intake of breath and elicited the thought, “I want to live just like that.”

You can find Love Where You Live here and more about Osofsky and her shop and philosophy here.

All images courtesy of Rizzoli New York; photography John Gruen.

Wright for Me

April 23, 2013UncategorizedAntique Dealers, ResourcesMrs. Blandings

If, like Maria and Claudio Luti, you think your home might be enhanced by a Picasso drawing, you could hop over to Wright to view images from one of their next auctions, Picasso: Master Drawings from a Private Collection, which takes place this Thursday (April 25th.)

I’ve been working on a project in which Picasso plays a minor role (certainly that was never the case in real life) and I’ve developed a sort of personal attachment to the artist. The untitled etching above is one of my favorites from the sale, though certainly not expected to be the most dear.

But the piece I would want most is this photograph by Andre Villers. For me it is as if this image of Picasso’s studio mirrors the breadth of his creativity. And it’s a jumble, which is unfailingly appealing.

You can view all the lots here as well as the items in Living Contemporary, which are terrific as well. You may be surprised to find that there are many pieces that are incredibly affordable.

Image, top, New York Times Style Magazine, Spring 2013, photography Ruy Teixeira; other images via Wright.

Out and About – Christopher Filley, Again

October 17, 2012UncategorizedAntique Dealers, Out and AboutMrs. Blandings

Sometimes I want to keep all the good stuff to myself (you should see the things I don’t mention here) but did want to let you know that Christopher Filley has just returned from the home of one of his dear friends and is providing foster care for some of her things. (You see Faith and Charity above – Hope must be springing eternally somewhere else.)

A full-size chinoiserie bed being one of my favorites.

Hmmm…headboard, footboard and painted rails, too. “Wouldn’t it be great if you could float it in the room?” asked Christopher when I was there. Indeed.

A pair.

The top. I mean, really.

And this window, which did not come from the estate, is fantastic. I’ve seen its sibling at the home of one of my favorite local designers, backed with mirror, adding depth and sparkle to her patio. Who couldn’t use a little more depth and sparkle?

Christopher Filley

45th and State Line

816-668-9974

New Kid on the Block

March 8, 2011UncategorizedAntique DealersMrs. Blandings

I have a well-worn path up and down 45th Street in the antiques district just east of State Line. Depending on the day, I’ll stop here for this or there for that and always at Christopher Filley’s and Parrin & Co. to see Barbara, both for the furniture and the friendship.

Then one day not long before the holidays, I heard a new dealer was opening. “Trish, you know Trish,” and I did. She’s had a wonderful space at Mission Road Antique Mall, a space that was Chris’s for a while, then Steve Roger’s; it has always had good energy.

“I do. I do know Trish.” I understand that she was in her new shop for a couple of days with the door locked, apprehensive about opening. But, let’s face it, if you’re an antique dealer who never sells you’re not a dealer, you’re a hoarder.

And Trish Hedley is far too gracious to do that. She has opened her doors and, no surprise to anyone who haunts the street, her things are on the move.

She told me that sometimes she feels like Mrs. Kravitz as she’ll brew a pot of coffee and walk up and down the street to see if the other dealers could use a cup. That doesn’t sound nosy to me, that sounds neighborly.

Make a point to visit Trish at her new shop:

Nufangl

1707 W. 45th St.

816-931-0021

You can still find a sampling of her wares at Mission Road in a space just behind the register.

Italian Love Story

November 29, 2010UncategorizedAntique DealersMrs. Blandings

Maybe it’s the approaching holiday, when everything glittery, sparkly and jingley seems oh-so-smart, but these Chiavari chairs fairly leapt from the pages of Elle Decor and World of Interiors this month. (Next month. What to call it when December comes mid-November?)

Long past are the days I held infants aloft (they spit up, you know, nearly always when you are holding them just over your face) but these chairs are irresistible. So sleek and sexy they make me want to perch just on the edge, looking mysterious with kohl-lined lids, vodka-soda adding nary a notch to my nipped waist, swinging a foot shod in a very high heel with a questionable ankle strap. Black.

Just baroque enough to muck up your mod, just mod enough to perk up your provenance. They are a fantasy for me, but could be reality for you. Still at Joanna’s. 750 for the pair. (You can give her a ring at 816-753-7606. Nothing in it for me; I just think all great chairs need a good home.) Glamourous and bargain aren’t usually drinking buddies, but sometimes the holidays provide a magical mix.

Image, top, Elle Decor, December 2010/January 2011 (a stunningly good issue), photography by William Waldron. Next, World of Interiors, December 2010, photography by Eric Boman.