A recent vacation trip to Tybee Island, GA, allowed a visit to Savannah and one of my favorite stores- The Paris Market, a veritable feast for the eyes, photo ops everywhere you turn!
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| A working pulley-system ceiling fan alongside corset-shaped bent wood light fixtures |
In several areas of the store, there are signs telling the story or definition (or both) of design elements, products, or techniques. Pictured right is the story of TINTYPES, and below is an antique cabinet displaying the definition of DECOUPAGE alongside beautiful examples, like the glass plate decoupaged with a peacock paper.
I collect decorative papers, particularly vintage papers and do a fair amount of decoupaging on furniture and small accessories. This curio cabinet top is lined with an actual pressed tin top and bottom, but pressed tin-look wallpaper would give a very similar effect without having to find the right size tin, cutting a larger piece down, or putting together smaller pieces to fit.
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Carnival Masque Noses: These are casts from REAL noses that were used to make Carnival masks. Some of these things look mighty freakish to me. |
Displaying merchandise on antique and reproduction furniture is nothing new, but the scale and details of the pieces in The Paris Market are as striking as the merchandise and overall visual displays. It really grabs your eye, holds your attention, and spurs the imagination for how you can incorporate these things into your room, home, or store for future viewing (or shopping) pleasure.
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| My favorite French-milled soap, second from right. I buy mine at Anthropologie, although I did get one bar at The Paris Market, just because, well, I was there. :-) |
There is a basement annex as delicious as the main level. Just follow the HUGE lighted arrow...
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| I love that you can see the floor joists, the "guts" of the walls, and all the OLD architectural elements of this store. |
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| the reel deal (sorry, couldn't resist the pun) |
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| table full of typset letters and symbols, stamps, and more |
ooooooh, yes!! Yes, I say! HELLOOOOOOO GEEEOOORGEOUSNESS!
In the basement annex there is a dining area set with antiques and some new pieces. It is layer upon layer of beguiling beauty. An old church pew is seating for one side of the table, while the other is left open for admiration (and more convenient shopping!) purposes.
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| in case you were wondering, that's kraft paper used as table runners |
Inviting seating and romantic lighting are used liberally throughout the store. The juxtaposition (remember our lesson on juxtaposition? lol) of more contemporary pieces with the rustic, weathered woods, stone, and other textures captures even the most miniscule attention span. People linger here, and I saw no fewer than four other patrons snapping photos as they took in the sights.
Their offices are no less inviting. Relatively smooth and contemporary sliding doors cover yet more arched entries to offices on either side of a cafe cart vignette. I didn't snap a picture of the inside of the offices, as there were people working in there and I didn't want to disturb them. How would you like to work every day in a place as charming as this?!
Finally, here are just a few snapshots of items that caught my eye at 24e, just down the street from The Paris Market, and is another must-see when visiting the Savannah area.
I hope you enjoyed my pictorial tour of The Paris Market! Shopping fenêtre heureux, ya'll! (that's southern French for Happy Window Shopping, everybody!)
