Oct 2 2007
Stone Age Designs has been selected to Showcase its new Fireplace Design - The Pewter Vendôme Fireplace Mantel to Celebrate the 20th Anniversary of Veranda Magazine. Stone Age Designs, the Company created by Award Winning Designer Thierry Francois is known worldwide for its Hand-Carved Limestone Fireplace Mantelsas well as its Hand-Crafted Scagliola Stone™ Fireplace Mantels, Kitchen Hoods, and Architectural Accents.
The Pewter Vendôme Fireplace Mantel is part of the new Heritage Collection unveiled earlier this year by Thierry François. Thierry Francois created the first Scagliola Stone™ fireplace mantels and kitchen hoods in 1997. Today, the Stone Age Designs' Showcase, features Fireplace Designs and Fireplace Mantels in the Heritage, Inspiration, Metal, and Moderne Collections.
Each of these are extensive Collections featuring Fireplace Mantels and Custom Fireplace Designs both in Hand-carved Limestone and Scagliola Stone™. The Company also markets Stone Kitchen Hoods and Architectural Accents including moldings, columns and wall cladding.
The Vendôme Fireplace Mantel is just one of the many designs of the Heritage Collection which is comprised of exceptional antique fireplace mantels purchased in France. Each of these masterpieces has a history of its own. The fine artisans of François & Co. then bring each piece to vibrant life by meticulously carving a mirror image, perfect down to the tiniest detail. Each resulting replica is available in Hand-Carved Limestone or in Scagliola Stone™. The Heritage Collection Fireplace Designs emulate the appearance and preserve the legacy of original masterpieces, thus providing a true sense of history and timeless beauty to any modern home.
The original Vendôme Fireplace Mantel is a Louis XVI mantel, circa 1800, which was rescued from a dilapidated Paris townhouse. Impeccably executed with its lovely "Tablette en Ressaut," (bas relief panel) this petite stone mantel features delicate "Pieds en demi lune" (half moon legs). The Scagliola Stone™ reproduction that will be on display in New York City has an added touch of luxury thanks to its fine pewter finish. This one-of-a-kind metal patina is achieved by actually adding fragments of metal into the Scagliola blend.
As rich in texture as it is in history, Scagliola is a technique developed by impoverished Italian monks in the 17th Century to restore a monastery lost in the mountains of central Italy. It is the art of mixing together chips of stone (Scaglia in Italian), and layering the mixture by hand to achieve a natural stone texture of amazing clarity and depth. Today, the Scagliola Stone™ Fireplace Mantels, Kitchen Hoods and Architectural Accents from Stone Age Designs, and Francois & Co. are well known and respected among homeowners, as well as the design, architectural and builder communities as authentic alternatives to lesser cast stone and concrete products.