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We bring to you Edition 3 of THE quintessential MAGAZINE freshly launched yesterday! Our latest edition of the magazine particularly celebrates collections – the grouping together of well-loved practical or sculptural objects – and their ability to transform our homes and our lives.
Find even more inspiring stories in this edition, as we look into the life of Louise Olsen creative director of Dinosaur Designs, with our Meet the Maker feature.
The visual imagery is just delicious!
We catch up with two, er, shall we say, slightly obsessive collectors and chat about the allure of collecting in Every Piece has a History and The Collector.
Make sure to subscribe to view our editions online, complimentary as always. Enjoy!
American Tin Ceiling Panels
Just arrived in store at quintessential duckeggBLUE, here are a few of our favourite industrial & vintage finds…..
Industrial Lighting, Ladders & Typography
Vintage Leather Satchel Bag, Ladders & Original Club Chairs
Patinas, age & wear …… just what we LOVE….
While we patiently waited for this arrival with an original teasing date of mid-February – the container FINALLY made it to us on a recent early Friday morning. With the quintessential team hands on unpacking and unwrapping all of amazing new finds, have yourself a peek into our exciting day of bringing the new shipment home to quintessential duckeggBLUE!
how long?
I think we have a club chair in there. Don’t you dare reverse!
a very full container
the packaging which keeps our finds in one piece!
Some of our customers made their way down the day of the delivery to have first pick on some very sought after items. Those still available are up on our website, so have a browse on the quintessential website, to see whats in store!
a very full house
don’t put all your eggs in one basket! Counting the egg moulds which have arrived just in time for Easter …
who’s that hiding between the timber church pews?
the quintessential new company ‘car’
The quintessential Magazine is looking for our next Instagram winner to be featured in edition 3!
Our question is very simple: What do you love collecting?
Be creative and share your answers with us via Instagram @quintessential_duckeggblue with the hash tag #quinthiddentreasures
The chosen winner’s image will be featured in our next edition, so get snapping for your chance to win!
THE quintessential MAGAZINE is very proud to have launched our second edition YESTERDAY – set out to inspire and tell our own story and share what we believe in.
This edition we introduced you to the personality of a chair with emotive and touching photography done by Sam McAdam Cooper and the very talented styling by John Mangila.
Racket has us inspired but very relaxed with this imagery and thought …
And we asked and you shared with us whether a sofa or chair is your answer at home. @brieannalee won us over with her sofa outdoors and cute dog to match!
We are inspiring even ourselves with the production of every edition and love to share that with all of our viewers. Make sure to subscribe to be the first to find out what’s happening with our 3rd edition, due out the 11th of April!
Busy working towards getting edition 2 ready for launch on February 7th, THE quintessential MAGAZINE has paused to share moments of what happens behind the scenes to make this magazine full of rich content and inspiring styling and photography!
industrial charm even from a computer screen
up close and personal to meet our makers
the muscles behind the making
props sitting quietly hoping to get chosen for the next shot!
Without giving too much away, we’ve got some interesting new features which are a must see and read in the next edition! Make sure you are subscribed to THE quintessential MAGAZINE to be the first to find out!
Take a peek into the world of our most recent quintessential ‘finds’ traveling from overseas to quintessential duckeggBLUE at this very moment!
Leanne has come across some amazing finds on her most recent trip overseas and we thought we’d share a few of our favourites that are headed this way! Like the original chocolate moulds just in time for Easter, to an original Belgian Carnival Mask for the more nostalgic seeker, and then there’s the collection of optical lenses from England in it’s original mahogany case…
Have a peek and let us know what’s on your wishlist!
Have a peek at quintessential duckeggBLUE’s new summer look! We love to arrange and display all of our great ‘finds’ in creative, and inspiring ways:
Pops of fresh colours coming from our original industrial metal chairs
An industrial dream fit with factory shades, mannequins, clocks and tophats!
Intrigued? Come by quintessential duckeggBLUE this weekend and treat yourself to a closer look…
We are feeling the LOVE here at quintessential duckeggBLUE as we patiently await the reveal of our first edition of ‘THE quintessential MAGAZINE.’ Have a peek at what Inside Out has to say about it on their blog:
http://blogs.homelife.com.au/insideout/article/the-quintessential-magazine/
What is ‘THE quintessential MAGAZINE?’ sign up here and be introduced into our creative world 15th of November.
A fresh batch of Edmonds handmade ceramics is fresh and on display at quintessential duckeggBLUE! You’ll be the first to know new pieces walked through the door yesterday! They are THE ingredient to a perfect setting.
Made local in his Sydney Studio and inspiration for these gorgeous one of a kind pieces comes from David’s love of food. Everything in life needs to be visually appealing – even what we choose to dine off of!
And the best part is they are dishwasher and microwavable safe – practical works of art…
For those who often wonder what to do with those quirky ‘finds’ or how to re-purpose that gorgeous original object here are a few of our favorite ‘quintessential’ applications.
An industrial trolley turned into a coffee table that definitely has a story to tell…
An original tolix table adding history to a washrooms vanity…
http://www.fromscandinaviawithlove.com/post/5892047760/photo-by-philip-karlberg
A Vaulting Horse gracefully standing out within Sir Terence Conran’s home as a sculpture – seen in his “Inspiration” Book
The Classic Jielde lamp sitting very well placed on this windowsill – A remodelista post about a Swedish Hotel
http://remodelista.com/posts/a-homecoming-hotel-stelor-in-sweden
There are so many ways to introduce our ‘found and industrial’ objects into your life – practically or even just visually! At quintessential duckeggBLUE we just LOVE having the story to tell in our homes or in any interior surroundings. Who knows what story we will come up with next…
2 days have been spent transforming our store to highlight new uses for our amazing finds! We love our styling days here as much as it is a lot of hard work moving all the items around we have an amazing stylist John who knows exactly how to bring life to every inch of our store along with our window displays! Have a peek at our store transformation, or better yet stop by to see what we have created!
The styling process is not an easy task, as you can see. But the final result is SO worth it!
Have a peruse through our creative corners…
How lady-like is this corner! the original cotton spools have been carefully hung complimenting the delicate mannequins
This scene for sure is a studious example. We’ve got classic shoe lasts making their way up our American Library Ladder love love LOVE!
Industrial Appeal in this corner our blue tolix chairs are standing out amongst the French Workplace Posters
Going to the country on this Farmhouse Table where the French Pewter Tablespoons fit oh so PERFECTLY!
Another classic has been given new life here at quintessential duckeggBLUE! An original French leather club chair circa late 1930′s, early 40′s in amazing condition has been paired carefully with a new cushion upholstered in a quilted interior designers fabric of a beautiful quality. Going through a few options the quilted fabric stood out amongst the others as it balances it’s original comfort level and now provides an excellent contrast to the lovely patina it sits next to. For more images of this amazing transformation click here!
making a decision!
we LOVE the end result!
quilted comfort...
You may remember this original English Postal Bike from our recent window display? Well keep an eye out for it as it is riding the road to fame as we speak… Opera Australia recently purchased this great piece as a prop in upcoming Opera Don Pasquale to be performed in various locations across Japan.
The postal delivery bike as Leanne found it in the UK
Originating from England, this Postal delivery bike dates to the late 1930’s early 40’s. The seat is stamped with ‘Brooks’, it has the original basket and light attached and is an absolute find! The piece is in great condition and a quintessential prop for a classic opera.
We love tracking ‘finds’ from before Leanne obtains them, their interesting history, to their place in our Sydney store, and finally to their new (but usually not last) home – in this case, a traveling Opera!!
Leanne took the bike 'for a spin' through the English markets, although she wasn't entirely convinced with the break system...!
At quintessential duckeggBLUE we love technology and crafty apps, that’s why we were super-excited when our fabric specialist pulled out her iPad to help select fabric for an original leather club chair!! We wanted to replace the cushion of this gorgeous French club chair and ‘flipped through’ fabric swatches in a non-traditional way via iPad technology. The novelty hasn’t worn off and we look forward to Fiona’s next visit and some more e-swatches very soon! (*This fabric was not chosen for this French chair… We do love the patina on the leather though!!)
On her travels Leanne is constantly searching for that ‘quintessential club chair‘, so when she finds one, even in a not-so-perfect state , she claims it to bring back to quintessential duckeggBLUE! Sourced in Belguim, this original leather club chair of medium proportions dates to 1930′s and is in excellent condition. It has a new double-sided seat cushion and is extremely comfortable. We love this chair so much it is currently featuring in our autumnal window of falling leaves. Take a look at the before and after shots!
Sad, dry and cushion-less...
Let the fabric selection begin!!
The selection committee
Looking pretty fab back in the store!
After: The final product - we LOVE this chair
At quintessential duckeggBLUE, delivery of a new shipment rocks our world!! So much so, that we gather our team of stylists, photographers and design consultants and “beautify” the store! This involves 2 days of moving furniture, suspending chairs from the ceiling, hanging lights and clocks, carefully arranging all the small pieces and displaying them to perfection. (Not an easy feat!) We wanted to showcase the results of our creative team, oh and all of Leanne’s new ‘found industrial & antique objects‘ of course!
A fresh new outlook upon entering quintessential duckeggBLUE
Order in the house
Tactile and colour-infused loveliness
What's the time Mr Wolf?
The soulful patinas of aged leather and antique timber
Kitchenisms
If you liked these shots then stay tuned for our ‘details’ feature… a close-up look!
As you all know, our most recent shipment was delivered this week, and it was FULL of absolutely amazing ‘finds’! (Some of which need a little love and care – actually every piece deserves love and care but this one needed a careful restoration). Our expert timber restorer was called in and after a few hours of careful work, he restored former glory to this original ‘Cheshunt Dairy’ storage cupboard.
Take a look at the before and after process and the amazing end result!
As Leanne found the piece in the UK:
The careful work being done by Nik our restorer, attention to detail is a must!
Standing proudly in the store, the stunning ‘Cheshunt Dairy’ cupboard, circa 1940′s of Oregon timber construction. Might we say this piece has had ALOT of attention the last few days and we don’t think it will be here for very long… What do you think of the final result?
9:30am Wednesday 2nd May 2012, enter container – full to the brim with all of Leanne’s most recent finds. At this stage we can’t wait to get them unpacked and into the store! This blog is a little insight into the process of unloading, unwrapping and sorting all the ‘industrial & antique found objects’. Stay tuned to see what we find…!
check out the container full to the brim (almost) with exciting new 'finds
All hands on deck!
Tables and cabinets carefully packed, awaiting unwrapping
The near-empty container! (A few hours later)...
Working bee out the back preparing and cleaning pieces for the store
A much-needed rest in the sun, take your pick!
Remember our blog post ‘A Perfect Club Chair in the Making‘? Well we have just received the chair back from our upholsterer and it looks stunning! Better than even WE expected! Take a look!
The choice of fabric is very much considered to compliment the age and patina of the original leather. Looking this good, this original club chair will not be in the store for long. For more info and images click here. Swoon……
See this leather club chair below? It is in the process of receiving a NEW LOOK! Originating from the South of France, circa 1940, this leather club chair of large proportions (86cm wide by 94cm deep) is an original piece currently with a velvet cushion which would have been replaced at some point in time. We LOVE the chair but the cushion is looking a little sad… So Leanne has called in her expert team to select and recover the cushion in a luxe fabric that perfectly suits the chair, preserving it’s origins and history. Take a look at it’s journey so far:
Original French tan-coloured leather club chair
It looks this good now, we can't wait for the end result!!
Let the fabric selection begin!
Ooh! We're liking this one...!
Consulting the design team for their thoughts
The shortlist
Comparing plush quilted suede for a future project
The winner - a beautifully soft plaid Mulberry fabric
We think this fabric matches back with the chair perfectly and definitely preserves it’s integrity. We cannot WAIT to see the end result! Stay tuned!
Step inside... a haven of 'found industrial and antique objects' awaits
After 2 days of styling we were just thrilled with the results as quintessential duckeggBLUE was transformed into a hive of perfectly-placed shoe lasts and carefully hung chairs. In our recent blog post ‘quintessential duckeggBLUE styling day’, we captured the ins and outs of the styling process. Now we want to take you on a virtual tour of the store so sit back, relax and enjoy the scenery!
John's fab chair feature wall
17 metal chairs, carefully hung and placed to perfection create a feature as you enter the store. A path was created by placing cabinets, chairs and ladders, leading to one of our absolute favourite ‘finds’, an Antique French Pharmacy Cabinet paired with original cotton spools and cascading fabrics. We love.
bobbins resting delicately
It’s hard not to play favourites in here, we spend alot of our time in an internal conflict on which area of the store/particular piece is THE FAVOURITE. A key choice of Leanne, is the 1920 English Bakers Bench and we adore how John has styled this piece. Mixing timber, metal and glass here is key to the look, definitely one of our fave shots of the day!
Arriving at the back wall we are a little disappointed that it doesn’t continue on until we stop and take note of the fab display in front of us. Storage boxes, red tolix chairs and faux bookshelf wallpaper complete the package. Voila!!
We're loving the industrial feel of this display
quintessential duckeggBLUE was honoured to be featured as a guest blogger on Natalie Hayllar’s Eat Red Love blog, we just love her blog so check it out!
Here at quintessential duckeggBLUE much care and attention goes into every aspect of the store, that’s why, when ‘styling’ the store we looked to our favourite creative genius, freelance stylist John. It was two days of madness as we moved, stacked, folded, hung and arranged all the industrial and antique pieces in store, and what fun was had!
Transformed from a sad and empty window to a dynamic and exciting one, filled with industrial lights, globes, print blocks and stools
Starting at the front of the shop, the store windows had to have that WOW factor – quirky and interesting whilst still representing the store to the outside world. Brief: spark curiosity in a dynamic and enticing window display. Acheived? Hell yes!
The second; French mannequin, English club-chair very luxe... just delicious! Curiosity sparked!
quintessential duckeggBLUE was a hub of activity, imaginations wandering as we created clusters of antique glass domes and perfectly placed pendant lights all with that thrown-together charm.
John carefully hanging each chair to create a stunning feature!
care taken placing each vase and shoe last
contrast between John's neatly placed bottles to the ordered mess of items yet to find homes
After a tiring two days, staff emerged exhausted but exhilarated, extremely proud of their efforts and how amazing quintessential duckeggBLUE looked post-styling! All worth the effort when the store looks THIS good! Now you need to visit us and see for yourself!
a sneak peek into our next blog - the end result!
Despite the dust and a few missing handles, Leanne was smitten by this 1900-1910 French Oak hardware store counter. It’s charm shone through and finally, with a little care and attention it has been transformed into one of the choice pieces in the store right now! Just look at the difference!
BEFORE
- the hardware counter at first sight
- a little dust…
- drawers looking sad
Salvaged from the mid-West of France, this solid French Oak hardware store counter has been restored to it’s former glory. All original fittings and 22 drawers available, the two shelves with missing drawers have been fully waxed and finished for storage use. An absolute find and spectacular piece! For more info click here
AFTER: looking mighty fine if we do say so ourselves!
On her sourcing journeys Leanne comes across some interesting pieces as you can see in the ‘Behind the Scenes’ blog post. Most of the items she brings back just need a dust and a wipe down, but the odd few need a little TLC. That’s where our experts come in. Take a look at the following transformations, it’s amazing!!
BEFORE:
French leather and velvet club chair, circa 1930′s. This chair is an interesting shape and the leather is in great condition. Unfortunately the velvet has deteriorated and the cushion is looking a little saggy… Never fear! A trusty source managed to find a stunning Ralph Lauren hunting print fabric and our expert upholsterer worked his magic on the seat back as well as creating a brand new cushion, soft yet firm and reversible too!
AFTER:
What a difference! The new cushion is reversible and the Ralph Lauren fabric is just gorgeous. The leather has even been moisturized. So comfortable, we could sit in this chair all day! Click here for more information and images on this item.
We love original typeface. So when this piece was found and looked a bit worse for wear, we all but ran the other way. Leanne saw it as an opportunity to revive a fantastic piece, a gym storage cabinet from the English Westmark Boarding School. Circa 1940, of English Oak construction the cabinet has been lovingly restored to it’s former glory and now stands proud as the feature of our window display at quintessential duckeggBLUE. Check out it’s fantastic transformation.
BEFORE:
Looking a little worse for wear… school papers included!
AFTER:
What a difference a little elbow grease and some TLC makes! Click here for further information and images on the piece.
October 2011: Leanne Carter-Taylor embarks on a 4-week journey to the UK, Belgium and France sourcing only the most covetable ‘finds’. These are then carefully packed and shipped across mutliple oceans, destination; Sydney’s leading ‘Found Industrial and Antiques’ store, quintessential duckeggBLUE. Take a look behind the scenes as we give you an insight into Leanne’s world.
"Purveyors of the Finest JUNK" indeed!
The British RAF practicing flight routines over the fields of markets...a pleasant distraction!
Obligatory tea break... she IS English don't forget!
Filming of the English BBC program 'Bargain Hunt' and host Tim Wonnacott conducting interviews in the English markets. Luckily Leanne's trips are much more successful than those of the 'Bargain Hunt' contestants!
Englishmen packing finds into containers heading to the docks. Thankfully OUR packers take a lot more care than these men!!!!
Now onto Belgium, she started in the South, and then to be honest she has no idea which direction she went in…..she wasn’t driving or navigating!! The factory reclamation was as interesting as ever and after looking far and wide, Belgium shaped up to be a great location for covetable finds!
The lengths Leanne goes to, finding that quintessential chair! Climb in!
Digging through the Belgian grove
An interesting character!!
Crossing the border into the Frenchman’s territory, Leanne’s translator provided a great source of assistance with the nuances of the romantic language. Scouring the country from top to bottom, France produced a fantastic array of quality pieces (not to mention pictureque scenery!!).
The condition of many pieces as they stand before Leanne's magic wand cleans them up
A rainy day off at Versailles
After a lovely day appreciating the decadent French palace, it was an early start for Leanne. 1.5 hours spent on a train, turning up at the dark French markets… an early start to a cold, wet day! Not happy Jan!
The trip continued to a lovely town in the South of France. The weather cleared and a sunny Sunday morning was spent wandering the idyllic marketplace, quite a treat compared to some markets!!
French townspeople enjoying a game of rugby. Here the French were playing New Zealand in the World Cup final 2011. Unfortunately the French lost. C'est la vie!
Tempted? I was! Just need the red wine to go with it
The things she comes across... it makes you wonder...
A lonely chair 'en route' to quintessential duckeggBLUE. Gorgeous French Walnut chair, dating to 1850 sits idly by the truck of our packers. We can't wait till it arrives!
Talk about picturesque!! The walls of Avignon and a quaint village street
A sad club chair begging to be taken home. Unlucky. It was splitting at the seams, no front feet and in terrible condition so it never made the cut. Club chairs are among Leanne's favourite items and are EXTREMELY hard to find!
On the last day in France before heading home to Sydney, Leanne lunched in Paris in wandered the Jardin de Tuileries. Literally about to get on a plane, turned the corner and walked straight into a mob of French supporters welcoming home their losing rugby team! A fitting farewell it may seem!
We can’t wait until all the fabulous finds from this trip arrive in store. The shipment is due very soon and all items will be available at quintessential duckeggBLUE from Friday 6th January 2012. Take a look at our new finds here.
