Pat Monroe Antiques furniture - Austin.  The Collection consists of French Antique Furniture, Italian Lighting and selected pieces of Swedish and English furniture. The French Antique furniture are the basis of my collection. I also like to add "intellectual texture" like, maps, books, or artifacts. When I look for pieces of antique furniture, Austin is not usually where I buy. I work with private estate sales, private auctions and the wonderful sources I have discovered and my favorite, overseas travel.

MY FIRST CRITERIA
When I shop I think through my purchase like this: 1st it has to catch my eye. That is artistically exceptional. Is it stunning, striking, beautiful, elegant artistically? Basically I have to really like it first and then I think "Could my clients use it?" Would it fit with today's styles, large homes, condominiums, cottages, beach-lake or mountain homes? I look at the shapes of the lines of legs, sofa backs, table edges, the table pedestal and also the patina, and the color of the wood. If that checks out I continue.

WORKMANSHIP
As I come closer  I check out the quality of workmanship, carving, painting, joint and try to assess the age from hinges, separations in the wood, the drawer bottom-runners-dovetails, the back of the piece, and underneath.

REPRODUCTION?
If I think it might be a reproduction I look closely at the pattern of the wood holes, the pattern a cutting tool wood made, at the shape nail heads and in the drawers under lining paper and I look for faux pegs. 

CONDITION & QUALITY
Then what is the condition of the piece? I look at the quality of the repairs, table tops, type of wood and finish and the weight of the wood. Wiggle it gently to see if it is loose.

FUNCTIONALITY
Next I look at how practical it is.  I like functional pieces in working order. If the chair seat is too low, is there a way to raise the height of the seat? If the commode is beautiful but stand a full 55" it's too tall for most people. I love long benches but if it is too long it won't work. Do the drawers work smoothly; do the pulls stay on when I pull them? Yes I've had them fall off!

PRICE AND PERSPECTIVE
I will ask the price and then I will stand back and look, get a perspective. Would if work in a contemporary home, a soft Swedish style home, or Old World. etc. Can I really carry this piece after shipping and a few repairs and not lose money? Is there something that is bothering me?

QUESTIONS

 will ask the dealer all sorts of questions: how old, from where, from whom, repairs, what is it made of, how they came upon it. AND I will always remind them I will be a repeat customer and then ask "Is there anything else I should know about this piece?" This is where they need to come clean or never see me again.

You can finally seat all of your family and guests at one table!

The monastery table above is a handsome and simple table with iron stretcher bars. The first monastery tables were known in the 14th and 15th centuries and by the time the 16th century arrived, they were made and used in most European countries. Monastery tables were used as dining tables for monks. The dining hall would be filled with the long and longer tables. These earlier versions were usually made of walnut. The dining hall was also called a refectory and there is where you get a "refectory table".

A monastery table looks somewhat like a French Farm Table.

This monastery table has an oak finish and was bought from a monastery in France that was closing. The stretcher bars are iron decorative stretchers, which was typical of the Spanish refectory tables in earlier centuries. This table was originally made in the middle of the 1900s. The dimensions on the table are 11' 3.5"l x 3' 3.25" wide and 29"h.

Priced at $6900.

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We sell to both designers and end-user shoppers at Pat Monroe Antiques. Recently, we are selling more and more to online customers.

I believe designers are well worth the investment. Their experience and education goes a long way to getting you the look you want within budget. See the list of designers and their services available on the Red Vault.

However, many people simply like to do their own shopping. I have a few suggestions for our online CHAIR shoppers, and what you can do to make a better, more confident purchase.

Facts you should consider- Scale: Scale is an important issue. Big rooms, tall ceilings, and grand scale suggest the need for larger furniture. Many antique pieces are smaller due to smaller people in the past, especially in France. On the other hand, one of my recent clients, having been to a celebration in an antique Colonial home in Massachusetts, loved the size of the smaller period furniture. Redoing his home with 8' ceilings, he felt this was the perfect solution, that would include beautiful antique pieces, that would be to scale with the height of the ceilings. Clever thinking. He loves the more diminutive period furniture he bought from my gallery, Pat Monroe Antiques.

 

Size:  The bergere in the photo is short, 35", and is placed next to a tall enfilade, 43". You can see from the photo why size is important. If a man in your life is extra tall, this chair is not for you, however the enfilade may be. Measure the piece you are considering and then compare it with something similar in your house. Try to imagine how it will look in the place you are planning for it. Take your measuring tape over to the space, and see the height, width, and depth. Draw a "to scale" room and draw it in the room on a grid, so you can see the whole effect. Think about how tall your ceilings and other furniture in the room are. See if you can bring it home on approval, and be sure to check the measurements, if you see the word "diminutive".

Chair seats: This is especially tricky with antique furniture, for so many antique chairs are not only smaller, but also have thinner cushions on them. Be sure to ask the dealer the height and width of the SEAT as well as the chair itself. The measurements given usually are the widest part, tallest part, etc. If it's an armchair, the width between the arms is an important measurement to know. Some groups of people are large, and some are not. A point to consider. The answer to a seat that is lower than you want is to build up the cushion when you get it reupholstered, heighten or shorten the chair legs (most wood workers know how to do this), or add something under the feet of a chair like metal pads or casters, which come in all sizes.

Height of a Chair:  In this photo, the Swedish Antique Table has been creatively put together with rattan chairs with linen cushions. At each end of the table are off-white linen wingbacks -  simple and creative with a look towards Spring. Two different heights and two different chairs. With upholstered chairs, the backs can also be heightened and shorten while you are reupholstering your chairs. This can be important when you want a set of chairs for your dining table which seats, lets say eight, and you can only find sets of 8 or 10 of all the same type of chairs. To create your host and hostess chairs, simply buy a set that has two more side chairs than you need.  Those two extra side chairs can be made into your host and hostess chair by heightening the backs 3-4 inches. Now you have a full dining set.  If you find arm chairs you would like to go with the side chairs, you can heighten or shorten the backs while upholstering for a minimum cost, also.  Another idea is to reupholster the arm chairs or wing backs, you want to use as head chairs in something fabulous, that coordinates and heightens their importance as head chairs. When you are doing this, be sure the woods are close in color (though, I think very few people would bother leaning down to check), or at the least, be sure the difference isn't big enough to worry.

Upholstery: When you are looking for chairs, faded or old out-of-date upholstery reminds me of seeing a house for sale with a black kitchen. Everyone says "Ugh!", while you quitely say to yourself, "YES!", becuase it is so easy to change the paint or upholstery, and it keeps the price down! The green chair on the right was upholstered in the 1950s. The cushion is flat and the upholstery faded and worn. I reupholstered it in a white cowhide, shown on the left, and attached silver nailheads for a little modern twist.

Photos on-line or in an email attachment: The color may or may not be correct. When I first started, I had a camera and lighting that added pink or blue to the photo. As much as I tried to correct it, I couldn't seem to get it right. (I have a better set up now.) A designer had found the perfect chandelier for her client, however the client kept saying, "...but I don't want a pink Chandelier". As hard as the designer tried to explain it was really silver, the client held faithfully to her first impression. The color is not always correct. You must question the seller specifically about the color. Ask the seller to compare it to something that has a set color like, "Is it foam green or turquoise?", "Is it gray or putty?" Look at all of the photos carefully to see varying color. Ask for more photos, maybe to send prints of the piece. Ask the dealer to find a specific paint color number or name, and then go to your oil paint, or house paint store to see it. Don't forget that most pieces have a variation in their coloring.

At the end of the sale, before you buy always ask: "Is there anything else I should know about this piece before I buy this piece?" This is the time the seller should address all imperfections you did not ask about. When the seller finishes telling you that one piece of information and explaining it, ask "What else?" Continues doing this until there is nothing else the seller has to tell you. On a last note, be sure to read and take notice of all information provided.  If the chair is 33" in height and you are six feet tall, you need to rethink it. If there are six chairs, don't expect eight to show up. Both of these situations have actually happened to otherwise clearly bright people. So, pay attention.