A bespoke Soleil Panel

The Soleil does appear in the catalogue as a monochrome panel only.

I guess somtimes on has to make an exception.

All embossed parts were painted except for the inner circle, and then we thought to add some gilding.

After all these years I’m still surprised by the effect of the light on a picture taken in the same setting !

As Always.

Fred

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Gilt-leather embroidered Waistcoats

At this stage I can’t comment extensively on this posting, pictures however are speaking for themselves. .

For a French fashion designer we made a series of panels and here are the first pictures of the waistcoats he made from two Verentuil panels.

What strikes is the gilt-leather being transfigured by the work of meticulous craftsmen, transformed by people with a vision for the possibilities of our leather. Their work lifts our gilt leather, making it magnificent in its new given function.

As Always

Fred

Double Damask an 18th century gilt leather design

Double Damask is one of those designs sitting in our collection for ages, there is hardly any demand for it and I wonder why. It was one of the first designs we made after we got hold of the book “Spanish Leather” by John W. Waterer published by Fabre and Fabre in 1971 Plate 61 shows 2 pictures of the design

Mr Waterer analyses and describes so well the pattern that I just have his text copied 😉

As he says the leather panel in V&A is tooled leather, which we modified so to add the embossing. Why ?

Anyone’s guess I don’t remember.

An interior in the Boston area
By Annabel Hall (Private Lives) in a Yacht

Its a tricky design, difficult to explain I’ll try to illustrate, stay with me !

A tapestry of 9 sets of 4 panels
A set of 4 quarters 100 X 74 cm 39.37″ X 29.1″
A set of 4 quarters
A set of 4 quarters
A tapestry of 9 quarters carries the 3 designs made of 4 quarters each, as shown above … As clear as crystal !

As Always

Fred

New gilt-leather seats for two Portuguese baroque chairs

Anyone can see the chairs are in perfect condition and that leathers seats are all but gone. This type of gilt leather was originally part of a wall covering. Circa 1735 it is installed and is the proud of the house, then fashion changes and the room is redecorated, the once precious leathers are stored in the attic, where a leak in the roof …… etc etc (fiction) than somewhere around 1810 they are recovered by an amazed granddaughter some leathers are reinstalled in a hallway some turn into a screen and some find their final destiny on chairs. This is what you are looking at now, the story is fiction but the senario is good.

Time to set to work !

The pattern on the chairs is the Marot panel in a polychrome version. The Marot is a classic design we have in collection, the panel as shown here above is gilded in a light silver-gilding the birds had a coat of shellac and the panel is antiqued so to down-tone the shine.

The expert hand of Lut …
The base colour for the grapes and flowers are added … the expert hand of Lut !
As by magic all the polychrome paint is added, indeed … still the expert hand of Lut !

Now its time to add antiquing to bind all colours and to down-tone the shine even more.

Side by side you can appreciate the difference between a panel which is antiqued and one which is not. Time to go and see the uphosterer.

OMG they have been difficult to make decent pictures of !

Isabelle Arcay: the uphoslterer. isabelle.arcay@sfr.fr

As Always

Fred

Crane Estate a set of gilt-leather panels. Verentuil and Palmette polychrome

Best Wishes and Happy New Year 🙂

Thank you all for reading and following this blog.

I wish you all a happy and healthy year 2022

Our first leathers this year go to Crane Estate near Boston they were ordered by our long time distributors and friends from Belfry Historic Consultants Inc https://www.belfryhistoric.com/

Crane Estate is impressive by its architecture and spectacular landscape and as if this is not enough it Crane has quite an unusual history, go and find out https://www.craneestateevents.com/

Its an honor to supplie the Estate with a set of gilt-leather panels.

“Courtesy of Jay Burnham Photography” https://jayburnham.photodeck.com/

Verentuil and Palmette gilt-leather in a polychrome version in accordance to submitted colour strike off’s

Verentuil Polychrome

Palmette Polychrome

I hope to able to post some pictures of the upholstered item at a later date.

Checkout Spicyfrog64 its … Lutson 2.0 link bellow.

As always

Fred

What we do too :

http://spicyfrog64.com

Gilt-leather Larvic Museum Oslo

Gilt-leather reproductions made for Larvic Museum Oslo.

The choosen design was the Moncla in a poly-chrome version.

The pre-antiqued panels drying in the workshop

Leif Arvidsen of Lages AB, Sweden,
The upholsterer with whom we have worked on many occasions,
here in charge of the Larvic chairs.

The set of chairs as to be seen in Larvic Museum Oslo

As Always

Fred

Chairs for the Nebraska State Capitol

This was a considerable order we made for the Nebraska State Capitol. It came to us via our distinguished distributor J Buscemi from Classic Revivals Inc

Several moulds had to be cut and over a hunderd panels had to be made.

All the chairs of the Governors hearing room which dated from the 1920’s had to be restored and the leather coverings replaced including those form the Councelors chairs and the Governors chair.

Some pictures I’ve got from the net for you to appreciate

A chair form the audiance room

A Councelors chair and the chair of the Governor

Unfortunately the pictures are of not too great a quality
A seat
The governors seat back

As Always

Fred

EAC Days: Postponed Journées JEMA: Annulées

Due to the pandemic for the second time in a row the European Artistic Carfts Days from 6 – 11 April are postponed.

I hope we will be able to open our workshop to the public later this year.

For the sake of the visitors we made a series of framed details of the Rose & Tulip Border.

Detail Rose & Tulip Border
Detail Rose & Tulip Border
Detail Rose & Tulip Border

In these troubled times my thoughts are with you, stay safe and keep your spirits high

As always

Fred

Bespoke Moncla II

In the previous posting I showed some pictures of an unfinished Polychrome Moncla Panel.

This posting is kind of before / after topic.

Painted yet unfinished panel
Finisched panel, antiqued and waxed

Detail of the unfinshed panel
Detail of the antiqued and finished panel

Yours,

Fred

Bespoke Moncla,

This is a classic 18th century design and since the very beginning of Lutson a compagnon in our collection.

Bespoke as most of the leathers we produce, indeed you have your say.

This panel is not finished yet, but it gives an idea where we’re heading to.

Here some details


For the pictures I use a Olympus camera in automatique mode, I don’t manipulate the picture afterwards.

Soon to come, the finished panel. I understand the general excitment on the web …

As Always Yours

Fred