elements i love

French shipment now instore….

elementsilove — Fri, 25 May 2012 12:36:36 +0000

: New French Shipment Instore!

As quick as i could i have posted some pics of the French shipment now officially instore! It is a quirky collection, with a mix of both French & Swedish antiques pieces, and some fun lighting & lamps from the 60′s & 70′s. We found a number of beautiful mirrors but my favourite is the elegant 1940′s ‘chapeau de gendarme’ shaped mirror below …..more pics will be posted to the What’s In Store page over the next week. We will be open both Saturday and Sunday this weekend, 26-27th May ~ we look forward to seeing you ~ (& a special thanks to Westbury Textiles for the fun Capri red & white striped fabric that covered the windows during the set up)

Petite French chandelier 26/F6

French console 129.f6 & Mirror 107.f6

Fab set of four, two tone Tolix chairs. 6/F6

French iron 20thC desk 95.f6

Delightful French 2 tiered wrought iron jardinere 28.f6

Beautiful 18thC Swedish long case clock 124.f6

And last but not least we have a beautiful range of ceramic pieces and homewares in store…all hand chosen by molly et moi! ….

Love these autumnal coloured glass votives….

love these too!

Crushed white vases from Belgium

Mollyetmoi Collection

Sneak peek of our French antiques…

elementsilove — Mon, 21 May 2012 08:34:19 +0000

Just a quick post to let you know our French shipment will finally be in store this Friday, 25th may. It is hard to believe we were buying in France in winter and now it is winter here! Not many items are photographed yet, as it is always the absolute last thing to be done, but here are the very first sneak peeks of some delightful finds.

The Surry Hills store will be closed Wednesday 23rd & Thursday 24th whilst we are setting up the new shipment… These fab finds & much more will be in store on Friday, Elements i love... will be open Saturday & Sunday (!) so make sure you pencil in a visit on the weekend.

Collection of French mannequins…

: Gorgeous vintage Cartier-Bresson sewing box…

Napoleon III oval mirror, rare shape, lovely worn patina

Fell in love with this Murano egg lamp…

Fab find, old gramophone speaker…

Pretty little enamel & iron corner basin stamped with Paris

Tres belle ~ original zinc clock

Once a year…

elementsilove — Wed, 09 May 2012 04:15:56 +0000

Once a year Mother’s Day comes around….. it’s perfect timing (the month of May) to indulge in little fun, buy something on your wishlist, or enjoy a late breakfast & leisurely morning. I have included a few suggestions below if needed…

For those who also end up mothering the dog of the house - perhaps the family pooch could give back too, we have a lovely book in store ‘The French Dog’ by Rachael McKenna, full of adorable pics of well-kept dogs lounging around chateaus in France, such is life!

The French Dog, by Rachael McKenna

Vintage glass dessert bowls

Original brass letters with worn blue paint 180mm x 180mm

Silvered lanterns & votives…

I am not sure how it began, but i am glad that it did. In the past few years we have created our own little tradition on mother’s day ~ in lieu of a long lunch we have opted for a spot of retail therapy, followed by a bite to eat at the cheese & antipasto bar…The beauty in this - is that there is no-one in the city and its actually fun to shop with your family in ~~toe~~ tow when it’s all about YOU! (caution, i would not recommend this with toddlers etc)

12 drawers to hide life’s paraphernalia in…

: Put the champagne on ice…only 3 left!

Like Paris, flowers are always a good idea…

Wherever in the world you are and whatever you end up doing on Sunday, May 13th – enjoy the moment ..& Have a Happy Mother’s Day!

20thC Industrial cabinets & vintage finds….

elementsilove — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 07:09:19 +0000

Can’t believe it is over 2 weeks since we opened the doors to our new little sister store…it’s been busy.! Thank you for all the great comments and to those who have joined the blog, welcome! We are settling into the neighbourhood and the shop, AND getting used to working on Sundays and Mondays ~ make sure you check the blog for the Sunday openings. We are really looking forward to unveiling our wonderful new finds, from France, in just a few weeks.

Vintage "Tooths" painted glass advertising panel

Some locally sourced vintage pieces add a touch of whimsy and are always good for a talking point, “nothing like a game of tennis and a beer to keep you fit!” Some things never change…? We have a few other smaller advertising signs collected in our travels from France (chocolates & olive oil), England (biscuits) & (India) sugar!

: Beautiful pair of antique ships light, converted to lamps…

Charming Anglo-Indian low table & vintage signal lights

I am loving the look of the industrial pieces in the new space, i think they really suit so many interiors and everyone seems to have a different room where they want to place them, the bathroom, the bedroom, wall-mounted or as a bedside….

20thC Industrial iron cabinets & pretty French gilt mirror

20thC apothecary cabinet, perfect for a collection of treasures or glassware...

Love dogs, especially real ones....the stone terrier is no trouble though!

Elements i love... settling in

& finally, the winner of our first ever giveaway (our 100th subscriber) is Jodi Ansell! Congratulations ~ we will be in touch….

elements i love..shop window

Just opened.! Antiques & much more to come..

elementsilove — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 05:28:22 +0000

Wow what a frantic old week that turned out to be ! We quietly opened the doors to our new little sister store Elements i love... and enjoyed lots of visitors & shoppers coming in throughout the weekend. Saturday afternoon was particularly busy with many people going to Ray Hughes Art Gallery to the official opening of the wonderful Lucy Culliton sold-0ut exhibition of flowers in vintage bottles.

The rain stayed away but many of the friendly locals came to welcome us to the neighbourhood – thanks! we look forward to settling in over the coming months….

Early Italianate wrought iron console table & original French gilt mirror

Our shop is very pram (baby) and dog friendly - we had whippets, dachsunds, schnauzers, king george something or rather cross and all were very well – behaved!
Look forward to seeing you soon…

Our little sister makes her debut

elementsilove — Thu, 05 Apr 2012 06:58:25 +0000

Easter is just a hop, skip and jump away and so is some very exciting news that i am delighted to now share with you….

The past year has been quite a whirlwind and we have been so inspired by our travels, (especially our sojourn to New York!) AND on top of all the lovely comments & positive energy from those of you who have visited the blog or found your way to our rambling warehouse in Leichhardt — we are thrilled to announce the opening of a little sister boutique to Architectural & Antique Elements aptly named,

Elements i love shopwindow

As you may know its been a little over a year since i began blogging….& in that time we have been quietly looking for the perfect gallery style space to call our own – something a little funkier, closer to the city & with a lovely big shop window to showcase our specials finds.

We think we have found that and more at our new Surry Hills location – we look forward to seeing you soon, the plan is to swing the doors open late next week so come in and say hi! (its easy to find, just a few doors up from Bourke St Bakery)

Hope you have a great Easter break…

Can’t live without ~colour & texture…

elementsilove — Mon, 19 Mar 2012 03:31:02 +0000

I have to admit I don’t mind a wet and rainy afternoon, they are a great excuse for staying home & doing some slow cooking. On days or weekends such as this it is well worth having some pieces you love that make your house a home & a splash of colour can be good for the soul ~ no matter the season….

this lovely collection of Royal Doulton pieces sits in the corner of my mothers south coast home where we cook up all sorts of delights~

Collection of flow blue & gilded Royal Doulton pieces c 1920's

Decorate children’s rooms with these striped red, white & blue French skipping ropes…AND put them to good use on sunny days…

Colour, texture, original & real...

Find a corner in the bedroom for these pretty French chairs, they are lovely to look at and handy to throw your clothes on at the end of a long day…

French armchairs oozing old world charm...

A colourful find in France from my recent buying trip, old french toys – plenty of other fun decorative pieces coming in very soon…

Colourful skittles from France

Collection of brocante in Paris

Love this fabulous French industrial piece - it has it all - colour, texture & scale…would look great in a kitchen/living area or part of restaurant or bar area?

French 1920's industrial cabinet

My friend Lisa arranging a very colourful & eclectic tiled entry….do you love these tiles? find them here…

design dilemma - what tile goes where?

More rain is forecast for April….

rainy days of summer+autumn+..

Antiques & a little ray of sunshine…

elementsilove — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 05:54:49 +0000

It's the weekend, roll out some pastry on this marble topped bakers table 89.f5

delicieux praline tarts from lyon

Just like february last year, i posted about the rainy days of summer! Amongst the many days of tropical rain, there have been some beautiful moments of sunshine. Lovely dappled sun in the morning and warm afternoon rays bathing the showroom in a dreamy light ..here are some pretty pics of whats in store, some old, some new.

dappled sun at 6.45am

love the way the morning sun captured these pieces on my mantlepiece…

French oak haberdashery table (103.f4) with lovely old trough filled with pots & flowers

Console table & chest of drawers - both pieces have marble tops

Showroom, late afternoon....

French oak bufffet, a very handsome fella..147.f5

antiques & art

One of, an elegant pair of Swedish demi-lune tables

Just in,a great pair of rustic Oriental doors

French metal trough - great decorating piece. 15.f5

pretty, french, rustic elements...

i don’t think rain is on the forecast so have a great weekend!

wintertime in france…..part II

elementsilove — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 00:52:30 +0000

From the outside looking in an ‘antique buying trip to France sounds trés romantic, however in reality the schedule is exhausting, especially the very early morning rises in the dark, in the middle of winter……

-1 degrees - its cold outside & inside & its 8am.

~ despite this, it is always inspiring!

The travel, the different faces & places, & the wonderful finds that ‘i have to have’ make it all worthwhile. Though along with all the really interesting, quirky and fab pieces, there is much ‘antique’ junk on offer. What not to buy becomes equally as important as what we choose to put in our container.

Visiting Maison+Objet in Paris, one of the great interior design trade shows, seemed like luxury (having heating, lighting & food available) after some decidedly chilly days spent in old warehouses & cold mornings at flea markets. It was both exciting and interesting to see the trends that are coming our way but also a tad depressing too ~ seeing the worlds resources being used to produce ALOT of same, same future land fill. An abundance of faux french ‘antique’ furniture can only make ‘the real thing’ that much more desirable, non?

M+O - is it the real thing?

French country or seaside..whatever takes your fancy is on offer..

Faux French, Indian or Moroccan...

Lots of leather..chairs, lights, trays, tables..

Now this is a light...

Spheres arounds lights, a popular trend....

m+o-winter bulbs in abundance...

m+o-glass & lovely fresh or faux flowers - it was hard to tell..

french dealers hard at work, what crisis?...

Flea market fun

Flea market fun..

winter time in france….

elementsilove — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 22:51:27 +0000

The long days of summer feel very distant at the moment, the very short winter days in Europe are a good reminder of how lucky we are to have such a warm temperatures for many months of the year! Buying antiques in this weather can make for some hasty decisions – i hope when the shipment arrives we will like it!

finding french antiques....

original old shopfront near versailles

majestic trees make the winter landscape

if i had more time….i would take more photos with my new camera (it’s great, a lumix) & eat many more pastries….

Something sweet to eat...?