Regency
Regency and Empire, in the US, sort of bleed in together. They define the period between about 1820 and 1865 right before the period known as Victorian. Here in the American South, we don't see much Regency because its heyday was just prior to and during the Civil War, (when the American south was being burned and slaughtered and all of their Regency pieces didn't survive). Regency pieces had a slant toward Roman and Greek motifs. Empire is a "chunkier" version of Regency. Predominant woods were mahogany and walnut. Empire style columns on the bureaus and sideboards and chests were heftier. There were thick, carved curves on table bases. The pulls on case pieces were wooden knobs as opposed to brass pulls or cut glass knobs from the prior periods. If you watch the movie "Gone With the Wind", that plantation called Tara and other houses in that movie are full of period Empire furniture.
There is a relatively new term in design called "Hollywood" Regency which has nothing to do with the real Regency period. I am going to post photos of a period Regency piece and then a typical Empire piece.
Mixin' it up
I'm with Spinario in liking to add a bit of the old with the new, but I can't stand anything ornate so I tend to pick very simple antiques. I grew up with real Shaker furniture that were family heirlooms. One of the pieces I loved best was a spinning wheel that belonged to my great great grandmother. My parents still have it in their dining room near the hearth. It has such cool geometric lines, I've always thought of it as an art piece.
Consider adding things like that to your space, Whitespike. If you start with a few cool old objects you might find you are happy with those. I stayed in a Japanese spa B&B that had old japanese garden tools hung on the wall. They were fabulous to look at so simple, yet so elegant in form. Benches are another place you can go with that will add a hit of old-ness while still keeping a clean line. A friend of mine has a church pews in her entrance way that are really cool. She painted them a high gloss white and they look really exceptional
I'd also advise what many of the other posters have mentioned. Victorian, Rococco and Regency are way way over the top and will be hard to blend well with really modern pieces. But Beidermeyer, colonial farmhouse styles and Shaker would all work rather nicely. Asian works well too as long as it's not too ornate or covered with gold leaf. And consider pieces that were obviously built by an amateur, they're kind of like outsider art and will be totally unique!
on a more serious note...
funny you bring this subject up, Jakob. i've really been struggling with it lately. for those obviously more knowledgeable(Riki), is there a good period or better yet genre to look to which melds well with MCM? looking for layman terms, i guess. aside from eastern.
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The firm McMillen uses the "simpler" Regency stools and chairs in many rooms...My Regency is around 1810,its true you see very little of it in the south, Im in Texas.I can quickly sell mid to late clunky victorian "ivory soap marble" top tables,ugh!My favorite is an ebonized beech(fancy word for painted) black trafalger type armchair all legs saber... very linear looks great with boxy Mccobb.The regency piece posted is very high end.
Writing desk
That last picture looks to be an Edwardian writing desk from the first decade of the 20th century--right after Victorian but just before Arts & Crafts. Edwardian furniture is where you see a heavy emphasis on "stick and ball" ornament and "faux bamboo" accents. Even real bamboo furniture was very popular during that period--a look that remained popular and evolved into Tiki. Some examples of stick-and-ball and faux bamboo ornamenture:
Styles don't stop abruptly
Woofwoof's picture is a washstand, something we don't need any more!
Styles run alongside one another, overlapping a great deal. Old styles continue to be made by country makers (there is a whole genre called "country-made" in UK)as well as different styles being in demand from different people, just the same as today. This is what makes dating stuff so difficult and why the trade adores marked pieces and pays accordingly for them.
Rococo Puffs
There's a lot of talk about old styles the blend ... arts and crafts, etc.
Must it blend? Is blending and the enjoyment of disparate objects just two different tendencies that are equally doable within the realms of good taste?
Or is my secret enjoyment of things that do not belong just another symptom of my chemical imbalances?
disclaimer: I don't like Rococo.
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