Snapshots

Just a few snapshots of some new before and afters

Original Louis Vuitton trunk

An original Louis Vuitton trunk travelled into our studio to be tidied up.

Andrea June

Calavaggio

Cal (Calavaggio)

Cal is our artist here at Romantiques, here she is hard at work again, if Cal is not hand painting on your living room walls, or  hand painting your favourite image on a piece of your furniture, she's creating another delectable piece of art for a frame. 

Andrea June

Bespoke Wellington Chest

$1,900 

or make an offer 

This hand painted unique noir and gold leaf Mahogany Wellington Chest, with 6 drawers and 2 doors will fit perfectly into any space.

This second hand wellington chest was 1 out of 5 ever to be customised, beneath the first drawer where the pigeon coup is, once was a drawer, but has now been tailored to offer a more functional space.

A piece that is like a picture in life size, a unforgettable piece that is a memory on it's own, a piece that works for you, you don't have to work for it.

Scrawled across the chest that stands 113cm high, steps 50cm deep and spans 66cm is a beautiful hand piece of writing written by ones self that reads-

"Ever now and then i find myself living in wistful moments. 

The type of moments that have nothing to do with what is considered rational..... but something slightly better.

Moments that make me feel like i'm seeing through a different set of eyes...

....thee perfectly symmetrical crack in my ceramic mug

.....sunday evenings 

.....the smell of your hair

When this happens, when i see outside my usual pattern of thought, sometimes there's nothing i can do but wonder at the ridiculousness of it all, wonder what i can possibly do to preserve whatever semblance of priceless insight.

i've gained... so much that i feel as if i could just blow away like a dry leaf in the wind.

These moments,to me, are like the air. Or blood. The beating of my heart. they're essential. they keep me from holding my breath..... for no reason at all.

Though sometimes, things are better left ambiguous. It keeps things interesting.

Now that i've told you all this, none of it really makes any sense. But then again.... 

It doesn't really have to".

Need i say anymore this piece speaks for itself. 

Inspection is welcome by appointment

Pick up needs to be arranged within seven days of auction finishing, from Sydney's northern beaches.

If you have any questions please email me 

afinearrangement@hotmail.com

or call me 

Andrea

0420301512

Edwardian oak display cabinet

Edwardian oak display cabinet

For sale click the link above, to place a bid.

A second hand delectable treasure.

A bespoke piece of art.

A piece that Lends an old world charm with its own quirky personality.

A piece that takes you away to any place you'd rather be.

 A worn hand painted Oak display cabinet, standing 206cm high, reaching 120cm wide and stepping 41cm deep finished in an antique rub, bearing a hand painted piece of art, and a quote that reads -

 'each of us are angels with one wing, who can only fly by embracing one another'  - Luciano de Crescenz

Like a treasure chest, the inside is just as gorgeous as the outside, all lined with black felt, to give it depth, which will be a perfect compliment to any piece in any house of any colour, as this statement piece is made to be a frame for the rest.

it's a piece that works for you, you don't work for it.

Inspection is welcome by appointment

Pick up needs to be arranged within seven days of auction finishing, from Sydney's northern beaches.

If you have any questions please email me 

afinearrangement@hotmail.com

or call me 

Andrea

0420301512

A new taste of the old.

The Romantiques collections

The A.J Collection is for anyone who is looking for something bold and quirky, a collection that showcases flamboyance and flair to a tee. A collection that lets you be the creator, the artisan.

Melissa- A crisp collection. think of fresh linen and lavender a collection that is simple but opulent.

The Fourie Collection- A collection of timeless colours inspired to reflect a luxurious authentic european feel.

City Chic a charming monochromatic collection that showcases sexy sophistication with a hint of cheekiness as it gives you a subtle pop of colour.

The classique collection is a collection of antiques that have been revamped to transport you to another place and time.

A revamped classic piece of furniture is a perfect statement in any house to give warmth and depth.

For those who love Dita Von Teese

Painted in Water colour by Romantiques.

image originally a photo from dita's book 'burlesque and the art of the teese'.

P.S Awesome book.

A little bit edgy

I have started expanding my own range of furniture - the Andrea June Range, a range that turns tizziness on its head, and showcases the meaning of sexy sophistication and exotic edge. 

One of the most recent pieces we have finished here at the studio are actually a pair of chest of drawers, hand painted by Romantiques artist Caldonia O'Leary. 
(one has already been sold). 

 I thought it would be a great addition to my range to do one of the chest of drawers with Dita Von Teese and red velvet on the inside lining the drawers-When i think of burlesque dancer Dita Von Teese (born Heather Renée Sweet)  i think of pure glamour, and the other with Marilyn Manson on the front with black velvet on the inside-

 and when i think of Marilyn Manson (born Brian Hugh Warner) i think of him as a a masterpiece.

There is not much to say about both of these hand painted pieces but i absolutely adore them.

they speak for themselves. 

A contemporary rendition of Marie Antoinette - of our favourite queen

Played by Kirsten Dunst

Hand Painted by our artist here in the studio Caldonia.

An old world charm

Have i ever mentioned i love walking into the studio in the morning?

Well i do. i love pulling up the doors and smelling the scent of my new favourite love, my candle from circa candles- still lingering in the air. 

Deep breath- smells like creativity.

Just recently i have found it more exciting when i walk in. Like i said before there is no want of our excitement in our line of work, not even for me. As i walk in on the right one of the most recent completed pieces in our studio, sitting next to a parisian scene hand painted like as if it were a movie prop. 

The vintage, farmhouse style coffee table has this feel about it. For me it feels as if i have just opened a really old book, and the pages are worn around the edges.

Once a Queensland Maple coffee table that sat meekly in the middle of a mish mash room.

Although it was a beautiful coffee table then and i loved it, i just love it that bit more, it needed a change.

Quite a transformation, now here sits a delectable treasure, that i adore.

Once a coffee table with a traditional hand polished maple top with a hand painted base in Mocha. A striped inlay with productions in each corner, green crazed moulding which canvassed an opaque production on each side, bordered by worn gold leaf. 

Now a bespoke piece of art. Lending an old world charm. natural Maple top with worn inlay in off white, a hand drawn antique map. A worn base painted in off white finished in an antique rub and torn back to natural, showcasing the gold leaf on the moulding and is more functional. (spill hot water form the kettle, drop frozen ice cubes, place down you drink- it works for you, you don't work for it)

Also another feature to this that makes it extra special is the eye for detail, we papered the inside of the drawers with old maps of the world. 

A romantiques signature look, nothing is plain on the inside.

Beauty is form the inside out after all right?

p.s this piece is looking for a home, and so are  many others.
for any enquiries email us at info@romantiques.com.au 

From this 

Came this

A True Timeless Beaty

Antiques- True antique pieces that have history written all over them. pieces that have been passed from one generation to the next.

I love antiques and always have  (i thought i'd share that with you), especially this piece we just recently had in our studio.

A Walnut chest of drawers with artworks of timber inlays dating back more than 100 years. 

This piece required to be repaired as over time the piece had little parts that had been damaged.

The owner of the chest of drawers an influential woman herself, Connie Crisp one of Sydney's best architects in her time. 

Mrs Crisp requested specifically that Geoff from Romantiques do the job after being recommended by John  Austen one of the master cabinet makers. 

We found the job a delightful one, having Mrs Crisp telling us her fruitful stories.

I must say the way she spoke about antiques gave us so much joy here at the studio, Connie felt the same as we do- we feel that antiques give soul whether it be in your home or elsewhere.

Here at the studio we are forever talking about painted finishes and artwork. But a true beauty everyone forgets about that was here longer than you and me are those soulful pieces of antiques. I love the early victorian circa 1850 Walnut sideboard inside my home paired with the long white refectory dining table and dresser, the sideboard gives the room extra depth, warmth and a little bit of history.

I think it is truly sad that some people are getting rid of their antiques full of history and replacing them.

Here at Romantiques we encourage you to keep your antiques, make them an invest for yourself for years to come. It's also surprising what what antiques can be paired with both colour and style wise.

So next time you look at your antiques whether it's a walnut davenport circa 1830's or its a a chippendale design bombe commode circa 1753 appreciate the piece that appreciates. 

Another Possibility

You may have read my recent post called rich and quirky contrasts, i actually found a before picture of that chair.

It has become my favourite setting of the moment just let me tease you....

Pink Fuchsia upholstery on a reflective pewter, French farmhouse style chair sitting around an art deco dining table, bearing a hand painted gothic cross.
 So fabulous actually that's an understatement divine is a better word choice to describe how i feel about these pieces together.

So here is the before.

And from that came this

Love it!

Endless Possibilities

At one stage in this piece's life undoubtedly it was sitting in someones garage, gathering dust and no one had any use for it.

Actually we know the owner thought the piece was plain useless. Geoff was doing a delivery of a lovely Oak display cabinet finished it an Antique rub. Where the Display cabinet was to be placed was sitting the parker sideboard completely empty, they asked Geoff whether we could do anything with it here at our studio, Geoff laughed (thinking in his head that it was the perfect piece to showcase what your furniture  at home can turn into no matter what its original condition) so we brought it back to our studio-"the creativity vortex".

When the sideboard arrived it looked tired and worn, it was lacking excitement , and it had total loss of its own personality and character. It was a piece that any person would walk by without realising it was there.

It only took us here a matter of hours to figure out what the piece lent itself too, the moulding on the sideboard gave us a good feel, we looked at it like a frame of an artwork. We begun our work in stages and to help the the process along we created a back rail and recycled 2 pairs of old feet.

The rest like i always say, is about the piece connecting with us, letting us bring out its true personality. The feel we got from the piece was that is was a statement piece, it doesn't need anything else around it. Ironically it stood by itself most of it's life in the corner.

The idea stemmed from Geoff with his knowledge and expertise having a massive background in European style furniture and in connecting with the piece itself.

Second stop myself, to put Geoff's ideas together and produce the finished product.

After we collaborate as a team and love the way the finished product is going to look, it goes around in a circle again from Geoff through to Cal to put our services into play.

So from this

Came this

Your furniture really does have endless possibilities no matter its original condition.