I'VE BEEN BAD--MORE CHAIRS

There are times in life when resolutions need to be re-evaluated. I know, I had promised not to buy any more chairs...I have a lot in inventory. But once in a life time chairs are something that I couldn't pass up and shouldn't; so I didn't.

This pair of mid 20th century pull up chairs has all of the details that make for a perfect chair:

----solid and figured veneered mahogany

----KLISMOS form

----excellent condition

----beautifully caned backs in excellent condition

----iconic mid-century form of pull up chair

----attributed (perhaps) to Billy Haines or another designer of equal reputation

I'm sending these guys out to be reupholstered in an ivory w/ chocolate stripe tweedy fabric. (I would love to do them in a bold greek key, but it is too specific and might frighten away buyers....)

    

I'll post new photos when the chairs come back next week.

I hate to brag, but we have been having the most wonderfully cool summer so far. Last week warmed up a little, but then we even had a little rain (unheard of in Southern CA in the summer) and beautiful clouds thanks to a hurricane down south. My heart hurts for those suffering with the drought, fires and storms. I am so thankful to be blessed this year.

Be well and thanks for joining Jones and me.

Mary

ATTITUDE: THE POWER OF INSPIRATION (being in spirit))

Last week was a tough one for me. So many cares crept into my usually positive mind....worries about one grandson (about to be 13 and the usual issues with that age), worries about two children and their current life choices, worries about my precipitous crash in sales numbers (normal for this season), the murder of innocent people seeking freedom in Syria, sadness over Spain's (I lived in Spain for 7 years) economic turmoil, Monsanto and its lies and its poisoning of our foods (GMOs)--you name it, I ALLOWED "IT" (whatever the "it" was) TO BRING ME DOWN. Where was my strong faith that God was in charge and working behind the scenes for the good of all of creation? Obviously, that faith was not present in my pity-party.

So Thursday (auction day) I was out in the garden with my wonderful first cup of Espresso strength coffee of the day (finally coffee is considered to be healthful--which I have known forever) feeling very sorry for myself and STILL wishing I had bought that pair chairs from 2 weeks ago (how in the world can God bless me if I'm stuck in the past--when God is in the present--which is where I know that I should be--I know, I'm rambling).......when into my head pops: "there is a pair of chairs waiting for you in the "pile". (At my Thursday auction, the pile means a big mound of furniture items--and I do mean big--that are considered to have little value.) 

There was no doubt in my head where that voice came from. And I changed my attitude from pity-party to GRATITUDE and ACTION. I jumped up; showered; threw on my clothes; slathered on the make-up; apologized to Jones for having to stay home; picked up a banana and my remaining coffee and was out the door. Even LA's traffic gods were lined up in my favor and the usual heaviest-day-of-the-week LA freeway traffic parted--and I made it to my auction in record time and just a bit after the auction started at 9 am.

About 40 mins. into the auction, the pile was becoming much smaller and my expectation of the perfect pair of chairs had not waned (not even a bit). A great pair of Drexel, early 1960's chests suddenly appeared from the pile.....

I had no room for them and immediately envisioned these beauties (they are top quality walnut and in super condition) lacquered in a deep turquoise...I gave Angela (my upstairs dealer neighbor) a call to see if she could use them--yep, she could. So I brought these babies home at an unbelievable bid--where was everyone who should have been bidding against me? Yes, their eyes could have been temporarily blinded.

My chairs had just made their appearance from the pile (which by this time has been whittled down to almost nothing). I don't like to look closely at items that are coming up to the block--I hate to draw attention because I just might inspire other bidders to bid against me. From about 30-40 feet, these guys were looking pretty good. I have to admit that they weren't exactly what I had in mind--but when dealing with inspiration and gifts, one has to keep an open mind. Once they came to the block, I held off bidding for a few bids (good auction strategy: wait for a lull in the bidding to start your bids--it knocks other bidders off their rhythm). And then I kept the bid, bringing these amazingly beautiful chairs home.  Remember: I had not really inspected them carefully--always a risk. But, as they say: NOTHING VENTURED, NOTHING GAINED.

.............GORGEOUS!!!!

And just take a look at what I brought home.........

   

I plopped a pair of my vintage Fortuny fabric pillows on the chairs........perfection.  I'm going to give a few detailed shots as these bergeres are perfect example of mid-20th c. chairs created in an 18th c. style. I believe that they are English.

   

Note the gracefully down slopping carved back rail and the finial detail where it meets the reeded vase turning of the leg support.

See the beautiful reeding of the legs, the turning/carving of the sloping back rail, the tiny finial (in the first photo at top you can see the tiny pointed tips of the legs--ballerina legs) are all marks of top quality furniture making. AND I haven't even started talking about the upholstery: it is a c. 1960's light peach (that shades to deeper peach in the light) top quality silk velvet upholstery that I think dates to the early to mid 1960's --no staples, the upholstery work is done with nails.  While inspecting these chairs once they arrived in the shop, I found very, very old storage stickers still attached to the chairs. The only way to explain the absolutely perfect condition of the upholstery on these chairs is that they must have been in storage for 50 years (or so).  Oooops--forgot to mention the caning--so many times old/antique caned chairs have holes in the caning which is very, very pricey to repair--BUT NOT THESE GUYS!

Roberto is coming in Thursday to clean and polish (hard paste wax) my new loves--I'm going to leave the patinated surface as found as I think this old surface adds interest and depth to the chairs.

-Angie loves her chests...I'll post on Angie's shop, Bonita Interiors, later this       week.

-Jones got his hair cut and he looks AMAZING.

-One child has had her faith restored (the situation is still a work in process-- aren't we all)   "All works for good......."

-One child will always be a work in process--at least he is actively in process.

-Spain received bailout money....that is definitely a reason to rejoice (the Euro really turned Spain on her head 12-13 years ago when the peseta converted to the Euro).

-It seems that progress is being made regarding Monsanto and GMO's.

-Syria is still breaking my heart.

-I have some potential sales lined up--a few prayers needed in that direction.

And I love my chairs...if I had not listened to that "still soft voice" in my head I would not have received the blessings of the day. I would probably still be stuck in my pity-party and what-ifs, if-only-----not a good place. Instead of in the peace of Gratitude.

Have a wonderful week, thanks for joining me in this crazy adventure.

Mary and Jones (and Cole)

FROM THIS TO THAT.....and more

As you can see, Roberto had a few free hours (he never has free hours) on Friday (Miracle No. 1). But before he arrived, I went into a minor panic because Dennis (super mover) had not delivered my items from the Auction house....what would Roberto do without the shipment?? After a quick call to Dennis, who promised to bring the items before 3pm (Roberto had to leave by 4); Roberto and I set about destroying and rearranging the shop...I usually give Roberto the basic structure of what needs to be done and he figures out the rest without my having to micro-manage. The above photos show the first stages of getting ready for the new items--hard to believe that anything else could possibly fit into this space!! (No, I'm not sharing Roberto or giving out his number.)

Here's Roberto measuring and leveling the gilt console for installation. (Isn't he cute--and a life saver.)

Here is the console just installed and with a couple of decorative items. Those are the figural lamps that I bought at auction. They are huge and I should have suspected that they were "Marbro" at the Auction... When they are arrived in the shop yesterday, look at what I found on the sockets.........

   

Yep, there is that "Marbro" sticker. (Miracle No. 2/Serendipitous Gift) One way of dating objects is by whether the state abbreviation used on the label is a two-letter or the older multi-letter abbreviation. The two-letter form came into use in 1963. Although the sticker uses the older multi-letter "Calif." abbreviation which would indicate that the lamps were created prior to 1963, I suspect that this use of the multi-letter "Calif." was a hold-over. I'm guessing that these lamps date to the late 1960's, but I can't be certain.

Roberto (I helped a little-mainly directlng traffic) really shifted gears and after Dennis left and the console was up (about 3:25) he started on the the chaos shown above and just look at what we/Roberto accomplished by 3:55 (that is only 1/2 an hour of hustle (Miracle No.3).

   

         

This is what the final arrangement of the console looks like (Sergei took the chinese guys) --not bad--I like the alabaster duck detail.

Miracle No. 4--Sergei arrived with the "Marbro" Alabaster lamps (boy, had I been worried!) which are now perfectly patinated. And he took the new Chinese figural lamps for minor restoration--after more or less 50 years, there were a couple of tiny chips to the flowers. Sergei PROMISED that he would bring these lamps back next week....we'll see.

Now I have to choose the right lamp shades for the alabaster lamps.

   

Neither of these shades is quite right. The white shade needs to be taller. I like the black shade, but it is a bit too tall and the yellow reflexion of the gold foil gives it an "old world"/English library air; whereas the white shade puts it squarely in the mid-20th c. I think that I'm going to go for the taller white shades which will allow the lamps to be appropriate for various settings and will be much less formal.

Now, a quick update for the leather chaise longue that (like the Chinese figural lamps) was a sleeper at the auction (a term that here means no one paid attention to the lot). The chaise had been beautifully upholstered and  maintained by its original owner and it shows the care which it was given. Pretty Chic.

   

  

I still have a way to go before everything finds its right place in the puzzle of putting the shop back together--but it is almost done.

Hope that ya'll (yes, I did live in the South for a few years) are having a wonderful Spring Sunday--it is gorgeous here: about 80 and clear. Jones looks gorgeous after his bath and haircut (I even got my hair cut) and we'll be off to work in a few minutes.

Thanks for joining us on this adventure.

Mary and Jones (and Cole)

Amazing Marbro Lamps--True Love

Marbro Mid-Century Brass Lamps

I'm bragging....I can't help it. I just acquired this unbelievably stunning pair of super large Marbro Lamps WITH THEIR ORIGINAL SILK APPLIQUED SHADES. I have never seen a pair of original early 1960's shades (that is 50 years) in this condition--only one faint spot which I think will come out. The brass casting and chiseling work is top notch with the applied patina and finish retaining its original surface. The lamps even retain their original finials (which are too high up for me to photograph. I'll give you some detailed images that will highlight the quality of craftmanship.

Detail photos of custom brass base showing a traditional chinese form, but incorporating Egyptian motifs.  

 

Brief history of Marbro Lamps: shortly after World War II the Markoff brothers began creating their unique and highly sought after custom lamps. Marbro lamps were designed and fabricated using only the highest quality porcelains imported from Europe and Japan,  Murano glass, custom brass pieces, European crystal and bronze. The custom shades were also designed by the Markoff brothers with each shade individually designed for specific lamps which were created in the Marbro factory located in South Los Angeles. The majority of the lamps were one-of-a-kind. Marbro lamps were sold exclusively through decorators, architects and very high end furniture stores. In the early 1990s the company was sold and shortly thereafter ceased operations. Marbro lamps are today highly desirable and demand premium prices.

These fantastic mid-century brass lamps measure an incredible 50" h, including the finial (original). They would be perfect paired with a mid-century table not too much over 24" in height--or on custom pedestals which would make a huge statement.

I have had other pairs of outstanding Marbro lamps and these are right up there with the best. I have a super and very large pair of Marbro lamps in carved alabaster that I will highlight on my next post.

Thanks for joining me on this adventure.

Mary, Jones and Cole