I know that I have been very silent in past weeks so I thought that I would give you an update on what’s going on and give away a copy of a recently published book that will be of interest to many of you.

My life has changed greatly in the past year as I have 1) been laid off 2) had some of my photography published in a book and 3) am moving to South Carolina and 4) have a book publishing deal.  Let me explain … or at least skip to the free book part if you don’t care about 1-3.

The Layoff

In February of 2010 I was laid off from my Software Consulting Management position, which was initially a shock, but since 25% of the division I was in was laid off – it made sense that the management above it had to be consolidated as well.  It was a relatively new job to me (compared to the rest of the management team), so I could expect some of the LIFO principle to be involved due to the experience that goes with tenure.

I dabbled in interviews for a new position but that wasn’t what I really wanted.

I immediately told my wife I would start my own software company and we agreed to rearrange our financial life to make that happen.  After all, I had been employee #2 (cofounder) of one company which was later acquired, employee #11 of another which eventually went public, employee #400 of another that later went public…. it was in my blood.

I spent a number of months training myself in technologies that are current favorites in the web-world and had some promising prototypes already working on several ideas.  I had a past product manager for Adobe ready to invest and be a part of it.  His overture was welcome but it was only weeks into my endeavors and I wasn’t ready to have a co-founder already.

Enter Photography

Initially I just took photos for fun.  For years, I just shot what was around me.

Then I started dabbling in photography as a way to decorate the walls of my vacation home with things that were local and important to me (The Chesapeake Bay) instead of buying art at retail prices and of subject matter that was kinda-sorta befitting the location of our home.

For those of you who followed along on OldHouseTours.com, you could see that I had a great desire to photograph historic homes in the area as well.

Long story short, one of those home photos became the photo for a charity event staged in the home – on flyers, tickets, website, etc.

I was contacted out of the blue for use of more of my photos for use in an upcoming book on Carpenter Gothic style architecture – “Storybook Cottages” by Gladys Montgomery.  Two of those photos ended up being published in the final book.

As soon as the book was published, I naturally bought a copy from Amazon, which you can do here.  I received the copy and oohed and ahhhed at the presence of my two photos – one which was full page.  In reality, they’re not really anything special or artistic – they are just very direct observations of the front of a house in Cape May and the trim within the Loch Aerie mansion.  More on this book in a bit…

Move To South Carolina

Amidst all my personal excitement, my wife was stalked on Linkedin by a headunter who kept returning to review her background but never contacted her.  After a while my wife finally reached out to her and asked what was going on.  The headhunter explained that she had a job in SC (we’re in Philadelphia) that was a perfect fit for her, but she figured that we wouldn’t want to move.

Long story short, the job was an amazing opportunity and the city (Greenville) was one that could fulfill all our requirements, so we took it.

She moved immediately and I have been stuck up North waiting for houses to sell… in a lame housing market.

Photography Book

Now something improbable happens.  I get contacted directly by the president of a book publishing company to do a book on my Chesapeake Bay photography.  It turns out that the director of the charity that used my house picture in their event  liked my Chesapeake Bay work and passed it on to the head of the company.  He liked it too and asked me to do a book solely of my work, which I couldn’t pass up.

So putting my “software work” aside, that is all I have been working on for months.

The book may never happen.  Lot’s of things could derail it along the way, but for the time being,  I have to turn everything in on August 1st and fingers-crossed, it gets published next year.

Here’s where the giveaway comes in.

The author of book “Storybook Cottages” mentioned earlier, Gladys Montgomery, sent me a free copy in the mail to revel in my newfound state of being published and I received it yesterday.  Since I now have two copies and I know there are many Victorian architecture fans out there, I thought that I’d give away one of the copies to one of you who does.

Here’s all you have to do to get a chance to win a free copy of the book:

1) Hit the “Like” button on my photography page on Facebook before August 31st and on that date, I will pick a name randomly and ship you the Storybook Cottages book for free.  What does liking my photography page do?  It keeps you in touch with my activities leading up to the launch of my Chesapeake book next year.  If you just “like” me until August 31st and unlike later, that is fine too.  No issues with that.

Anyway, I thought that I owed everyone an explanation of the slow updates on Rare Victorian as well as take advantage of an opportunity to get an extra book out to someone that would appreciate it.

More on the book from Amazon:

Charming old houses in a uniquely American form are lovingly showcased in this engaging book. Romantic, imaginative, and eminently photogenic, Carpenter Gothic homes feature fairy-tale–like exterior details—steep gables; pointed arches, windows, and doors; elaborate gingerbread trim; and porches—in addition to one-of-a-kind, highly desired interior features that imbue the homes with a wealth of character—arched entryways, bay windows, stained glass, fireplaces, and wooden ceiling beams. The first of the Victorian romantic architectural revivals to sweep America during the nineteenth century, the Carpenter Gothic style was inspired by the pattern books of Andrew Jackson Downing and made possible by the invention of the steam-powered scroll saw. Homebuilders created these delightfully fanciful houses in most states across the country. Storybook Cottages highlights both the picturesque exteriors of these homes as well as the incomparable interiors that give them such warmth. Presented are stunning photographs by Paul Rocheleau, Tim Street-Porter, Steve Gross, and Sue Daley, among others, along with illustrative examples from Downing’s pattern books, and black-and-white images from the Historic American Buildings Survey. The text examines the roots of the style, from Medieval Europe and Gothic cathedrals through Inigo Jones, Augustus Pugin, and the Gothic Revival; the role of the American Gothic, from the pattern books of Andrew Jackson Downing and Alexander Jackson Davis (Rural Residences, Victorian Cottage Residences, The Architecture of Country Houses) that inspired the style to the impact of the scroll saw, which allowed local builders to interpret Gothic Revival architectural details in wood, thus creating the Carpenter Gothic style; and the hallmarks of Carpenter Gothic, from sharply peaked gables to board-and-batten siding, peaked windows and doors, gingerbread trim on porches, stained glass windows, and decorated bargeboards, among other features. The primary focus will be on exterior architectural details in homes and carriage houses, but will also include decorative elements of the Carpenter Gothic style, from wallpapers to carpets and furnishings. The text will also discuss historic interiors, adapting the style for modern living, and floor plans, wallpapers, carpets, and furnishings inspired by the Carpenter Gothic style.

Book Review: “Jacques & Hay 19th Century Toronto Furniture Makers” by Ruth Cathcart

Jacques & Hay is a name that pops up frequently in the Victorian-era furniture world within Canada.  It reminds me of how the Jelliff, Belter, and Herter names always pop up here in the U.S.  When attributing furniture we find here in America, the tendency is often to assume the piece was also made here – almost without a second thought.  Occasionally, European origin comes to mind as a possibility, but most of the time people will default to American cabinetmakers for attribution because that is what we know.

It’s curious, though, that pieces by Jacques & Hay are not more commonly visible in the U.S.  Their factory and showrooms would have been 100 miles from Buffalo, NY and at one time they were the largest furniture manufacturer in the whole of Canada.  Aside from their more mainstream lines of furniture, they made furniture for prominent citizens,  hotels and other commercial buildings.   In 1860 they  were commissioned to make furniture for the use of the Prince of Wales during his visit to North America.  Bedroom sets were made specifically for him in each of the Canadian cities he was to visit: Montreal (curled Maple), Ottawa (Oak), Niagara Falls (Cherry), and Toronto (Walnut).

There were two major fires in their factories that had them starting over from scratch: 1854 and 1856, but each time they bounced back stronger than before.

Ruth’s book is an exhaustive study of the various incarnations of this company over it’s 35 year career.  With many more photos than those shown below, the book demonstrates how this manufacturer made furniture through all the styles changes of the Victorian era, including Gothic Revival, Rococo Revival, Eastlake, Renaissance Revival and Modern Gothic.

One especially notable piece made by them was for the Queen’s Hotel in Toronto: “The Great Sideboard“.  If you follow the link you will see a sideboard of gargantuan proportions.  It won Jacques & Hay the Place of honor for furniture at the Philadelphia Exposition in 1860.

Published in 1975 by the University Press of Virginia for The Henry Francis du Pont Winterthur Museum, this book holds some valuable reference material for Victorian furniture fans. I personally purchased it for the multitude of Phoenix Furniture Co. photos such as the one above that provide a reference for the furniture that they made in the late 1870s.

The photos are part of a broader article on the furniture of Grand Rapids at the time of the Centennial by Kenneth Ames. Berkey and Gay, Nelson, Matter and Co., and Phoenix are all prominently featured with excellent catalog images.

“The Influence of Charles Locke Eastlake on the American Furniture Manufacture, 1870-90″ by Mary Jean Smith Madigan is another noteworthy article as are “Design Sources for Nineteenth-Century Window Hangings” by Samuel J. Dornsife (30 pages with exceptional images) and “Associated Artists and the American Renaissance in the Decorative Arts” by Wilson H. Faude.

Although no longer published, used copies can be found via Amazon.  You may try here or here for a copy if this interests you.

Speaking of the Centennial, you may be interested to see some photos that I recently took of the only major building that has survived from the Centennial Exhibition, Memorial Hall in Philadelphia.

I was perusing one of my oft-used Victorian furniture books, Furniture Made In America, 1875-1905, and ran into a table that I knew that I had seen before.  My recollection is that Meg and Bruce Cummings had one in their catalog and lo and behold, I found one there for sale.  Meg and Bruce run Southampton Antiques of Southampton, MA.

This table was manufactured by Bardwell, Anderson & Co., Boston, MA.  It looks as if the table only had to travel about 100 miles in the last 125 years to reach it’s current location.  I am surmising that the table is from their 1884 catalog.  Two of their catalogs are represented in the book, including their 1889-90 catalog but the reproduction images aren’t annotated and catalog pages are heavily intermingled with the catalogs of other manufacturers.

The book is organized in categories (parlor, bedroom, etc.) vs. being organized by maker.  This organization makes it easier to identify one’s furniture since you can find a myriad of desks (or parlor furniture or whatever you might have) by multiple makers in one series.  It makes it difficult, however, to see the full spectrum of furniture from a single maker in one place.

Bardwell, Anderson, and Company manufactured their furniture on 19 Charlestown Street and had warerooms at No. 81 Union Street in Boston.  It appears that they were known for their extension tables and this particular table was available in 12, 14, 16, or 18 foot versions.

If you need a relatively inexpensive gift for the holidays for a Victorian collector, the Victorian Antique book page is a good source for some ideas.  Most of the links on the page are to Amazon.com which is a very efficient operation that is able to get books out the door and to your doorstep quickly.  Shipping is free during the holidays and today is the last day for free 2-day shipping for delivery by the 24th.

To me, the core must-have books for Victorian furniture collectors are:

• Styles of American Furniture by Dubrow & Dubrow
• Furniture of the 19th Century by Dubrow & Dubrow
• Victorian Detail: A Working Dictionary by Priscilla Meyer

On to the Victorian Furniture Book page …

I picked up a copy of Rococo The Continuing Curve and thought I’d pass on some thoughts about it, which you should realize come from the mind of an antique furniture collector who only dabbles very slightly (currently) in other items of decorative art.  You’ll understand why I mention that in a minute.

The table of contents:

1. Forward – Paul Warwick Thompson
2. The Continuing Curve – Penelope Hunter-Stiebel
3. Rococo Redux: From the Style Moderne of the Eighteenth Century to Art Nouveau – Melissa Lee Hyde
4. Juste-Aurele Meissonnier and His Patrons – Peter Fuhring
5. Ornament of Bizarre Imagination: Rococo Prints and Drawings from Cooper-Hewitt’s Leon Decloux Collection – Gail S. Davidson
6. Louis XV Style – Penelope Hunter-Stiebel
7. Eighteenth-Century Nancy: The Good King and the Blacksmith – Penelope Hunter-Stiebel
8. Radiating Rococo: The Dissemination of Style through Migrating Designers, Craftsmaen, and Objects in the Eighteenth Century – Sarah D. Coffin
9. German Rococo: From Cuvillies in Munich to Nahl in Potsdam – Ulrich Leben
10. Rococo in Holland: The assimilation of a Foreign Style – Reinier Baarsen
11. Emulation and Subversion: Nineteenth-Century Rococo Revivals in the Graphic Arts – Gail S. Davidson
12. The Rococo Revival in English and American Nineteenth-century Silver – Sarah D. Coffin
13. “Equal to Any in the World”: Rococo-revival Furniture in America – Jason Busch
14. Art Nouveau – Penelope Hunter-Stiebel
15. The Modern Curve: Form, Structure, and Image in the Twentieth Century and Beyond – Ellen Lupton
16. Endnotes, Bibliography, Acknowledgments Photographic Credits, Selected INdex of Names

This book is very comprehensive in discussing Rococo as is evidenced by the date range in the title, the spectrum of the items covered, and the global reach of the chapters.

For me, I am left wanting for a few dozen more pages in Jason Busch’s American Furniture section, which is only 12 pages long.  There are a few John Henry Belter pieces as well as furniture by Charles White (which I will address in a later post), and Julius Dessoir.

There are a series of “probably pieces”: one each of “probably Boston”, “Paris or NY”, “probably United States”, and “Probably NY”. For me it seems somewhat odd that a book of this stature has so many “probablies” in it, but their inclusion is probably more for demonstration of form than for identification of maker.

There are images from advertisements or catalog covers for George Henkels, Prudent Mallard, and Charles White but nothing that will provide clues for furniture identification.

The Louis XV chapter has a fair amount of 18th century French furniture and the book as a whole has extensive coverage of 18th century decorative arts in general.  This blog focuses on the Victorian era and the book is a nice reminder that Rococo was not invented by Belter.

If your are interested in the origins and progression of Rococo, then there is probably no finer book.  If you are an admirer of the full menu of decorative arts (sconces, candelbra, paintings, etchings, snuffboxes….), specifically in the Rococo style, then it is all in there for you.  If you are looking for a 19th century Rococo furniture reference book, then this isn’t it.

Amazon.com has copies, here.

If you collect books and information on Victorian antiques and you are a fan of Leon Marcotte, you should nab a copy of this 1994 issue of American Furniture, edited by Luke Beckerdite. There is a 24 page article on Marcotte with some photos of his work that I had not seen before. I paid $128 for my issue (above) which was still new in the wrapper (14 years old and still wrapped ?!?) but there is one currently on Ebay currently priced at $4.24 – final price up to you.

Other sources – Amazon

I had previously mentioned that I’d be giving you a little more of a review on my latest book purchase, Victorian Detail, by Priscilla S. Meyer, so here goes.

Lise Bohm tipped me off to this book, as she occasionally does, and this time I hit some research paydirt immediately upon receiving it. I had been trying to identify a particular chair that repeatedly shows up at auctions and was finally able to point to Charles Klein as the maker due to this book.

The full official name of the book is Victorian Detail: A Working Dictionary. The latter part of the title is the important part. For those of us who didn’t major in Decorative Arts in college or haven’t worked at an auction house for 25 years, it’s good to find a Victorian-specific “Dictionary” that educates the reader on the decorative elements of furniture – specifically Victorian furniture. Yes, there are other furniture anatomy books but they are so broad in scope that they aren’t helpful. Although I’m interested in it, I don’t currently desire to learn about the finishing touches of a Chippendale highboy.

I’m going to detail the Table of Contents because I believe that it gives you a complete picture of the value of the book:

Temple Furniture

• Joseph Meeks’ 1833 Furniture Line
• Identifying Neo-Grec Pieces (1865-1873)
• Empire Reproduction in the 1890s

Palace Furniture

• John Belter’s Amazing Chairs
• Meeks, Baudouine and Other Belter Competitors
• Rococo-Revival Detail Close Up
• Unpierced Belter
• The “French Antique” Style (1850)
• Gilding, Straight Lines and Louis XVI (1865-1875)
• Real Louis XIV, XV and XVI (A Chart)
• Palace Reproductions form the 1890s
• Pre-Civil War Plantation Furniture

Castle Furniture

• Gothic Furniture (1830-1865)
• Elizabethan Style (1840s-1865)
• Mitchell & Rammelsberg, An Early Factory
• Everything One Company Made in 1863
• A Dictionary of Construction Detail
• “Modern Renaissance” Style (1850)
• Renaissance-Revival (1865-1875)
• Grand Rapids Goes Baroque (1875-1880)
• Gothic, Elizabethan, and Renaissance (1890′s)
• Eastlake Gothic Reform
• Turkish Cozies and the Orient (1880′s-1900)
• Stickley’s Reform: Mission
• Colonial Reproductions

Dictionary of Design Details (pp. 134-146)

Right next to the table of contents is a list of all the cabinetmakers included in the book, which includes many of the familiar and unfamilar: J.S.L. Babbs, Charles Baudouine, Beebe & Lee, John Henry Belter, Berkey & Gay, Thomas Brooks, Alexander Jackson Davis, Gould & Co., John Hall, J.L & G.A. Hazard, George Henkels, Herter Brothers, George Hunzinger, John Jelliff, S.J. John, Kimbel & Cabus, Charles Klein, Charles-Honore Lannuier, Ignatius Lutz, Prudent Mallard, Leon Marcotte, Joseph Meeks, Mitchell & Rammelsberg, Nelson & Matter Co., Daniel Pabst, Duncan Phyfe, George Platt, Pottier & Stymus, Alexander Roux, Francois Seignouret, Edwin A. Smallwood, A.J. Stewart, Gustav Stickley, Louis Comfort Tiffany, James W. Woodwell.

The book is completely in black-and-white and is profusely illustrated. After wearing out the Schiffer Dubrow books for so long, it’s nice to find another book with a fresh set of images that aren’t reproduced in other publications. There are many period in-situ pictures of furniture as well as a handful of manufacturer catalog excerpts.

If you don’t know what a volute, acanthus leaf, or anthemion looks like on Victorian furniture, then the diagrams in this book would help you. The Dictionary of design details at the end of the book has many photographs of decorative elements and, as an example, there is a breakout of the difference in the appearance of acanthus carvings between Renaissance, Rococo and Grecian designs.

The book goes into historic detail on some of the elements that it documents. Did you know that lion heads were a favorite design of Napoleon, were frequently used in English Regency, reappear in the Neo-Grec style, and were frequently used by Mitchell & Rammelsberg? Lion heads were common in late 1890s Renaissance and less common in earlier Renaissance (1850-1880).

Unfortunately the book’s not cheap. I don’t believe it is in production anymore so the pricing is based on availability. Victorian Details is available on Amazon. Lise may still have a very nice copy left and another source for this book is via AbeBooks.

Highly recommended if you can secure a copy for yourself.

Well, I missed something, and that is why your participation is key here. There’s a lot of knowledge out there that we all could benefit from if everyone commented on blog postings and wrote in the forum (or just sent me an email). It’s been kinda quiet around here recently, and I hope everyone feels comfortable enough to post comments, send me feedback or be participative in the forum.

If you remember these beds a few days back; the bottom bed is on the cover (as well as page 169) of a book entitled, “Victorian Splendor”, above. Thanks to Steve, a new Rare Victorian visitor for spotting this fact. If you’re unfamiliar with the book, it’s content centers around recreating Victorian interiors with authenticity. It explores the home decor one room at a time and has many images of furniture in situ, surrounded by Turkish Revival draperies, dados, and period wallpaper. Paperback copies are available on Amazon.com for as low as $2.25 right now.

I always knew that staging pieces when you are trying to sell them will enhance the visual appeal, and thus, the potential price. Imagine if the seller with the 41-word description had staged the bed as above. There might have been a different result (the bed did not sell).

I understand the issue with staging the larger pieces – there isn’t the room to do so. Then there’s the issue of lighting. That’s why you see a lot of furniture sitting in the driveway in these photos – natural light is the best.

Thanks again, Steve, for the heads up on that.

On another note, I am about 70% through a complete redesign of the Rare Victorian blog. I’ve never been completely pleased with the aesthetics of the blogging platform that I’m currently on and am moving to the WordPress platform. I’m very excited about the new look and am looking forward to launching but I need to dot some i’s and cross some t’s first. I need to make sure that everything works as it should before shutting the old platform down. I’ve already successfully migrated all the posts over to the new platform, so we won’t be missing anything.

Here’s where you come in. Send me an email if you’d like to beta test the new Rare Victorian before it launches to the broader audience. Also, If there is an aspect of the current site that you have suggestions for improvement on please contact me and let me know. The cement hasn’t hardened on the new design and I still can make changes for the better. If you find something difficult to find, or missing from the current design, let me know, and I’ll see what I can do.

Look for a launch of Rare Victorian 2.0 sometime in April.

Time for the second Rare Victorian free giveaway!

I have two of these, so I’m giving away a First Edition copy (1998) of Nadja Maril’s, “Antique Lamp Buyer’s Guide – Identifying Late 19th and Early 20th Century American Lighting” from Schiffer Books. This book retails for $29.95.

For those of you who aren’t familiar with Books from Schiffer, they are high-quality books on high-quality glossy paper with the most photographs of any line of collector books out there. Most of the page real estate is devoted to the photographs. This is a good comprehensive overview of the lamps through the past two centuries including table, ceiling and floor lamps from dozens of makers. The book is in excellent condition with no creases, bumps or markings.

The winner will be the one with the most new posts in the Rare Victorian Forum between now and March 31st. I’ve taken a snapshot of all the members’ post counts as of today and I will take another on March 31st to identify the winner. Both replies to existing posts and newly initiated topics count as one new post. Past posts do not count in your total for the contest and will be subtracted from your total on March 31st to get the “new” count. That means that everyone, including newly registered members can win. If you aren’t yet a member of the message board, you can register here. All we ask for is username, password and email address. If you need help getting started, read the short FAQ here.

I will, at my discretion, disqualify anyone from the contest who is trying to game the system by posting quick one-liners to fluff up their post count. Thanks for your participation and let the contest begin!

Table of contents:

• Preface and Acknowledgements
• Introduction
• Glossary of Terms
• Chapter One: Early Fluid Lamps
  • Whale Oil Lamps 1783-1859
  • Burning Fluid Lamps 1830-1859
  • Colza Oil 1783-1859
  • Lard 1783-1859
• Chapter Two: Lamps Designed for Use with Kerosene
• Chapter Three: Lamps Designed for Use with Gas
  • Gas Lamps 1817-1920
  • Gasoline Lamps
  • Gas Fixture Styles
• Chapter Four: Lamps Which Use Electricity
• Chapter Five: A primer on Metals
  • Identification
  • Care and Protection
  • Cleaning Damage