Hidden beauty: Careful cleaning reveals beautiful color on this Chinese antique sideboard from Shanxi

Chinese-shifu-scholar Hidden beauty: Careful cleaning reveals beautiful color on this Chinese antique sideboard from Shanxi

You never really know what you will find when you start on restoration of an antique. Experience helps but its nevertheless often times more art then process. Since some customers, particularly those in the know, prefer to select antique pieces in un-restored form, which while exciting and educating, can present some tricky problems for the […]

A quick look at some beautiful antique Chinese painted furniture from Shanxi in un-restored form

shanxi_painted_lacquered_furniture_sdc14031 A quick look at some beautiful antique Chinese painted furniture from Shanxi in un-restored form

During a recent buying excursion, I stumbled across these beautiful lacquered / painted armoires, from Shanxi province in Northern China.  While not nearly as prized by Chinese buyers, who often prefer hardwoods like Hua li or Hong mu, the status of Shanxi painted furniture has nevertheless risen significantly over the years for its beauty and […]

Chinese reverse glass paintings

chinese_reverse_painting_on_glass Chinese reverse glass paintings

The Antiques Roadshow on PBS, has some great Chinese antique-relevant episodes, particularly this one on Chinese reverse glass paintings. Even cooler is the fact you can watch these episodes online!  The Chinese reverse painted glass mirror pictured above was recently sitting in our shop before it was purchased by someone who is now enjoying it […]