glammed-up pair

this pair of chairs was too cute and nicely made to leave behind at a recent estate sale.  (though mrs. jones was unable to conjure up the name for this particular form, john tackett, the devoted classicist, has advised that they are in the style of charles eastlake, and might be labeled as being from the aesthetic movement: 4th quarter of the 19th century.) the kind of kooky carved details at the top seem sort of pagoda-like, don’t you think?  anyway, in honor of prom season, and since the ladies at market central have been asking for something gilded, i settled on glam silver leaf over a black underlayer, adding a raw-umber-tinted varnish on top to protect and give a “been around a while” look.

here is the before:

(having never dissected a chair before, it was fascinating seeing what was under the dusty old uhpolstery…all those layers of stitching and padding and burlap and springs.)

and on the subject of upholstery, since there are so many different ways you could go with these (hot pink velvet and turquoise mohair were on my shortlist)  i decided to leave them un-done, and to let the buyer finish them to their liking.

here is the after, and some details below

they are available at market central, and on etsy.

{and they were featured on chinoiserie chic…many thanks to lovely tastemaker beth connolly for the mention!}