Irreplaceable Artifacts: Decorating the Home With Architectural Ornament

Description

The wonderful architectural details salvaged from 19th- and early-20th-century buildings are often readily available and frequently affordable. But many of us don’t know quite how to use the iron grille work, wooden lintels, carved terra cotta, or other beautifully crafted items we find at antique shops, flea markets, garage sales, and salvage yards. This gorgeous volume by the owner of the renowned New York City store of the same name explains how to utilize all these rich rescued ornaments, often in inventive ways other than those originally intended. Column capitals, for instance, make terrific table bases; a wrought-iron gatepost becomes an elegant light fixture; stained-glass panels can be made into a room divider; an elaborate stone surround camouflages an ordinary stove hood. Many magnificently crafted stone, metal, or wood items succeed simply as dramatic sculptural pieces hung on the wall or set on a table. The joy of using these things, as we learn from this wonderful book, is threefold: they enhance our homes; they reduce the need to expend new resources and energy, since they recycle preexisting items; and they help to preserve our magnificent architectural heritage. Rather than being tossed into landfills (as was formerly the case), these elements can become part of our present, enriching our lives with the power of the past and lending a timelessness that graces the present. –Amy Handy