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Gearing up for France

We're getting excited about our upcoming trip to France.  Just a few more days!  We've got a lot more planning to do, but it always gets done.  It'll just be Renee and Alexander this time.  Watch out, France!  This mother and son duo is a force to be reckoned with when it comes to antiques!

In Normandy this trip, we're staying in a new bed and breakfast that looks really charming. It's a fully... View full article →

On Our Way

Well, after zipping up our sweater-filled suitcases, we made it to Dallas and are waiting for our flight to Paris.

Here's Renee, pouring over "The Notebook," a fixture on every French Metro buying trip. It's where every detail of each day's work is kept, until it gets into the laptop at night. So, what's in the notebook so far? Our clients' wishlists, of course.


So, have we ever lost a notebook?... View full article →

Safe Landing

Our arrival in France this morning was met with six inches of snow already on the ground. A magical blanket of white covers the French landscape on this sleepy Sunday.


Our first task upon arrival this morning was to fulfill the wish list of French Metro’s restoration team. Waxes, polishes, stains, and other secret potions of the woodworker can be found in a generations-old shop, Produits Dugay, in... View full article →

I love France in the winter, when it's snowing!

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Forging On

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Village to Village...

Our September buying trip was a twenty-five day trek through countless villages in four different regions of France:  Normandy, Brittany, la Touraine, and l'Ile de France.  Every region of France is unique with its own traditions and culinary specialties,

its own architecture, 

and of course, its own charm.

Each French village has its unique personality that gives its inhabitants a sense of belonging--one that's been passed down through the generations. They all share in common familiar destinations that are part of the fabric of everyday life:

The nearby farm...

The local castle...

The weekly market...

The public park...

as well as the central church and the bustling cafes.

Our container from France has just arrived, and our doors are closed starting Friday, November 24th while we unpack!  From the villages of France to your own homes, the journey these treasures make in finding their place in the next generation is always such a mysterious one.  We at French Metro look forward to showing you our latest finds when we re-open our doors on Friday, December 1st at 10:00 am.  

A Castle Tour of Brittany

A longtime dream of mine was to travel the region of Brittany and visit as many castles there as I could. On our recent trip to France this summer on the hunt for treasures for French Metro, I took the opportunity to slip away to Brittany for a couple weeks. After landing in Paris with my parents, Renee and Terry, we split ways and I took the first train to Rennes, the regional capital.

The Parlement de Bretagne in Rennes

First stop on my castle tour was the medieval fortified village of Dinan where I stayed in a house from the year 1816 in the heart of the village. The building was from the same time period as our 1816 vaisselier from Brittany.

House from 1816

Street View of Dinan

Medieval Archway in Dinan

One of my ultimate destinations, the village of Dinan, was the home of one of the greatest French knights to have ever lived, Bertrand du Guesclin. Knowing he had never lost a battle and become the Constable of France, I had to make this stop.

Statue of Bertrand du Guesclin

The medieval village boasts a small chateau and is one of few heritage sites in France that maintains a complete encirclement of medieval walls.

Chateau of Dinan

Gatehouse into Dinan

View of the Walls

View of the Walls from the Chateau

My next stop was the chateau of Vitre, another medieval fortress first constructed in the 11th century.

The castle also included a lovely little chapel that was beautifully sculpted on the outside.

From there I went to the Chateau of Josselin, built at a strategic point on the Oust river. The current chateau was built in 1370 and still houses the same family. An incredible chateau with a fully furnished interior and lush green spaces.

Exterior of the Chateau of Josselin

Inside the Walls of Josselin and View of the Residence

Inside was this stunning Louis XV console table.

An absolutely amazing library and fireplace!

Greenspaces within the Walls

Up next, Combourg, once the home of celebrated French writer Chateaubriand. An imposing structure centered in the middle of a large park, this chateau had on display a mummified cat, once believed to have been buried alive within the walls in the Middle Ages as a superstition to keep out evil spirits.

Chateau of Combourg

From there it was off to the coast toward the port of Brest, a former haven for corsaires in the 17th and 18th centuries. In Brest I visited the chateau that guards the harbor, now a naval museum and still an active Naval base. I tried to get a glimpse of the chateau from the same perspective as our painting in the shop of the chateau, but unfortunately the area was restricted.

View of the Castle from the Port

View of the walls looking down at the spot where I could have had the same vantage point as our painting.

Here's a look inside the walls of the chateau before entering the museum.

An impressive 14 foot high sculpture

A very large bust originally decorating the Naval Academy

The chateau of Kerjean was an unexpected find in the countryside, but one of my favorite visits. Built in the 15th and 16th centuries, this small manor house  was surrounded by a 16th century star fort.

Facade of the Chateau of Kerjean

Interior Courtyard

Entrance into the Surrounding Star Fort

Corner Bastion of the Fort

Inside, a variety of 17th century regional Breton furniture was on display that reminded me of our 1631 coffer desk in the shop.

Breton Lit Clos or "Closed Bed"

17th Century Coffer 

They also had a coffer dated 1501.

The last stop was the Chateau of the Dukes of Brittany in Nantes. Inside was an extensive museum filled with artifacts showcasing the Breton region and the history of the city.

Entrance to the Chateau

Tapestry from the Time of Francois I

Regional Breton Oddities

 

Painting of a young Breton woman in regional dress

A set of enormous scales measuring at least 5 feet wide

17th Century Marine Coffer

18th Century Vignette

19th Century model of the Bastille carried around during the national holiday.

Truly a dream journey, I feel fortunate to have visited these seven castles from the medieval and renaissance periods.

Summer 2021 in France

Ten weeks?  Yes...making up for lost time.  French Metro Antiques spent the summer in France and what a glorious summer it was!  Terry, Harrison, and I arrived in Paris on June 9th, the first day France reopened to Americans with proof of vaccination.  White cards in hand, we were in!  Harrison immediately hopped on a train for a ten day vacation in Brittany, while Terry and I picked up our rental car and headed out.

 

The first ten days were non-stop work--antiques, antiques, antiques--and reconnecting with our French colleagues…

”Ah vous etes la?  Superbe!. Vous allez bien?  Et la famille?"

All our friends were so surprised and so happy to see us, and the feeling was mutual.  Transatlantic friendships over the past twenty years cultivated through a passion for antiques are unbreakable, even by a pandemic.  

 

 

 

 

We quickly got into the rhythm.  Shop, eat, shop, eat, shop, eat!

 

With ten weeks ahead of us, Terry and I adopted a new pace.  Time to work but also time to take in France at a more leisurely pace.

 

Harrison soon rejoined us for another ten days of work. And we headed south to hit the professional markets for antique dealers.

 

 

 

Three weeks of work behind us, and it was time for a real vacation.  Terry and I took off to spend three weeks in the Loire Valley, lodged in a fifteenth century manor house in the city of Blois.

Castle visits, garden walks, and sparkling Loire white wines...

 

Next, a week on the Atlantic in the city of Biarritz near the Spanish border.  Amazing views from our apartment, and the best food market in all of France!

Our park bench right in front of our apartment in Biarritz.

A day in Saint Jean de Luz led us to a dear friend of one of Renee's former French students who was overseeing a group of artists creating giant puppets for the Ravel festival of music.

 

 

Plus we found a very special eighteenth century copper piece nearby for French Metro!

 

Next, a week in the Tarn, a new region for us where we were home based in Albi. 

 

A complete fluke was meeting by chance our son Elliot’s friend, Tom, in a café in Toulouse fifteen minutes before he was getting married. Years earlier, Tom had come to Fayetteville for Elliot’s wedding.  So surprised at the serendipitous encounter, we were ecstatic to witness our first French wedding at the Toulouse City Hall.

 

 

Next stop was La Rochelle where we were lodged on a large sailboat in the port.

 

 

And finally a week in Honfleur in Normandy on the English Channel.

Renee and her French high school pen pal, Claudine, celebrated 50 years of friendship.  Two fifteen year old girls still keeping in touch!

And last, a visit with dear friends near Rouen where it was pure tourism and catching up.

I have traveled to France over fifty times in my lifetime, and this was my longest stay since my studies in Dijon in college.  So what was the best thing about this trip?  Working and playing in the culture I love so much with my best friend.

 

Cam's First Buying Trip

Finally–my first buying trip as part of the French Metro team! I patiently waited my turn when Harrison, Renee, and Terry traveled to France last summer and this January was my time! We arrived in Paris on January 9th and I got to spend three weeks traveling all through Normandy and the Loire Valley in search of unique antiques to fill our shop!

My first thought (after antiques, of course!) was about… food. I had to have snails and foie gras, two essentials when traveling in France!

We even got to celebrate Terry’s birthday at one of our favorite restaurants!

Then, it was off to the hunt! 

We found several pieces including a great razorback to bring back for our hog fans!

Louis XVI Marquetry Game Table

Set of Six Louis XVI Chairs

 

Pair of Art Deco Nightstands

Large Artisan-made Birdcage

Hand Carved Oak Vitrine c. 1880

Large Iron Key Sign

Brass Drum

Louis Philippe Secretary

Painted Louis XVI Settee

Pair of 18th Century Stucco Friezes

Zinc Window

Mid-Century Brass and Glass Bar Cart

 

In between shopping, we were able to visit the cathedral in Chartres..

As well as the city of Rouen with its famous clock, the Gros Horloge.

At last, we ended the trip with a visit to my brother Alexander’s new house in Blois!

The landmark stairwell Denis Papin in Blois changes its steps multiple times a year.

 Shipping issues around the world have hit French Metro as well, but our spirits are up.  Our container from our January buying trip is finally here! We will be closed Monday, June 6th through Friday, June 10th while we unpack and will reopen our doors on Saturday, June 11th. Hope to see you then!