Upcycling and Our English & French Antiques
Upcycling.......
Is a large part of Arundel Eccentrics.
The style began with our work on English Victorian bamboo.
We wondered..... if it worked on bamboo then why not chests of drawers?
The first chest we painted black and decorated with decoupage fish was bought by a NYC antique dealer.
She said it was crazy but she was happy to take a chance on it.
A few months later she sent us a copy of Architectural Digest.
And there it was.
Gracing the pages of one of the most prestigious interiors magazines in the world.
Since then our trademark look has found it's way onto beaten up items of 1930's and 40's pieces, vintage items, buckets and pots....
In 2016 Liberty London came upon our furniture and invited us to take our collection to the 4th floor of their
beautiful store.
Why black and gold?
It is reminiscent of chinoiserie, which is why we love it so much.
We have worked on other colours, but always return to the black.
My grandfather was an antique restorer in Brighton.
Chinoiserie was one of his specialities.
Maybe that's why I am so drawn to it.
We have a very stringent quality control department.....
Here she is in a rare off duty moment....
This old pine box was a joy to work on as it was totally transformed..
Probably the most dramatic change is to the pots and buckets
and this is how they leave.....
Occasionally we gild then decoupage.....
but occasionally we find an old book in a car boot or antique market, that will be an interesting change.
1930's and 40's street and road maps went onto this chest.
We worked on this cabinet for the Handel Society
I think it was to put all their tea and coffee in.
Fun to work on....and yes...all Handel music
Quirky and a little risque, particularly by 1915 standards.
We thought the images would be fun to use.
There were some beautiful drawings and quotations.
Our French soldier had the most lovely handwriting.
I wonder what became of him?
Of course we don't only sell decoupage we also have
a very large collection of English and French antique furniture.
Open by appointment or chance.
You can see more of what we do on
Message us on Instagram if you would like to visit.
and our collection on
Have a great day
