Carrocel Restorations Blog

Settee Restoration Story

jkalogiannides — Thu, 03 May 2012 16:45:41 +0000

About a year or so ago, we did a restoration project on an old settee. It needed a lot of work but it was nothing we couldn’t handle. The customer decided to share her story its transformation on her awesome blog. It’s a good read!

http://lovingalbany.blogspot.ca/2012/05/home-is-where-settee-is.html

Are You Getting What You Pay For?

jkalogiannides — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 17:24:53 +0000

I came across this video of an episode of Good Morning American (d. 2006) that was quite fascinating although unfortunately, not surprising. They did some research into what some of the furniture in today’s market is made from and how the labels/manufacturer tags can be misleading to the consumer. While this doesn’t typically apply to higher end/antique furniture, it was still interesting and worth a quick watch.

If you have any questions about any pieces you are interested in buying, we would be more than happy to lend you our expertise to make sure you’re making a smart buy.

Furniture Buying Tips and Secrets – G.M.A

New Shipments!

jkalogiannides — Thu, 29 Sep 2011 20:10:25 +0000

Over the last week or two, we’ve been receiving beautiful pieces from France and America. We are expecting more pieces this week. We are tirelessly working to upload each and every piece to the site but it does take some time. Here’s a sneak peek at some of the gems:

New Photography Studio

jkalogiannides — Tue, 06 Sep 2011 19:41:38 +0000

A few weeks ago, the Carrocel web team and I moved our headquarters into a showroom converted into our new office. Then, we gutted a neighbouring showroom and converted into our much-needed studio! Equipped with professional cameras, expert photographers, lights, and backdrops, this new studio has allowed our photography to really take off. We are now able to post more items to the website as well as make each piece radiantly glow! It also helps our photographers achieve the true colours of the piece they’re shooting in each photo.

How to Choose the Right Dining Set for You

jkalogiannides — Thu, 14 Jul 2011 20:38:12 +0000

Whether you’ve just renovated your house, purchased a new home, or simply looking for a fresh look, how to decorate your dining room is an important consideration. It is the place where you invite your friends and loved ones to share a lovely dinner and where you enjoy the company of your guests in comfort and style. It is one of most used rooms in the house where your guests spend a lot of their time and a place that should reflect your own style & personality. Here are some tips that I hope will help make your decision easier!

Dining Table Size:

The very first step to take is to assess how much space you have in your dining room to determine the right size table. You want your dining set to take up the middle of the room with equal space on each side so the set looks symmetrical from all angles. Measure your room from wall to wall (assuming you are beginning with an empty room) to get an accurate idea of how much space you have to work with. Then, keep in mind a few pointers:

Each person needs roughly 3 FT of space to pull out the chair and get up and sit down comfortably
Each person uses about 2 FT to enjoy their dinner without brushing elbows with the person next to them
Make sure that you factor in extra space on 1 or 2 sides of the room for a sideboard and/or china cabinet
At one point or another, you will always have unexpected guests…so plan ahead by getting a slightly bigger table that you might normally get (1-2 FT larger), along with perhaps 2 extra chairs that can always be put to the side as accent pieces when not in use

Practicality

You have to ask yourself what do you want or dining room to be. Do you want it to a purely formal setting only to be used when guests arrive or something that your family enjoys everyday? Do you anticipate large gatherings often? By answering these questions you will able narrow down the right table for you. For instance, if you have anticipate having large gatherings often then perhaps you need a table that will have 1 or 2 leaves always in use. If you intend on having your kids do their homework on the table or what have you then perhaps a distressed finish is right for you as any scratches or blemishes will look as if they are supposed to be there. Also, a satin finish as oppose to a higher gloss sheen is more suited for a table that gets a lot of use as scratches and dust are not as visible. Consequently, a satin sheen table requires much less maintenance than a high gloss sheen.

Style

The style of your table should be a reflection of your personality and tastes. From sheen to colour choice to wood type, a dining table can be custom finished to meet your specific requests. If you have a very formal style in your dining room then perhaps a high gloss finish is for you combined with a table that has beautifully figured wood, such as flamed mahogany. Various combinations of banding with exotic woods like satinwood or rosewood also are traditionally quite formal.

In contrast, if your decor suggests a more subtle looking table that doesn’t need to be an instant ‘wow’ factor, then you may be leaning towards a grain of wood that is less busy, such as plain mahogany or cherry along with a less fussy banding combination.

Of course, the most important thing to consider when purchasing a table is to make sure YOU love it!

Facebook ‘Like’ Giveaway

jkalogiannides — Thu, 16 Jun 2011 16:40:26 +0000

Here’s the deal: Once we hit 100 ‘LIKES’ on our Facebook page, we are going to give away 5 free bottles of polish to 5 randomly selected people who have ‘liked’ the page. We’re getting close…only 26 more.

And then once we hit 500 ‘LIKES’, we are going to give away a free piece of furniture to one lucky winner! And then after 1,000 ‘LIKES…who knows!

So start clicking that ‘like’ button folks!

Free piece of furniture to be chosen by Carrocel and in existing condition

Carrocel E-Newsletter

jkalogiannides — Thu, 19 May 2011 14:11:42 +0000

Folks, we have recently launched an email campaign to help us stay connected with our customers. Once or twice a month we will send out a newsletter to our subscribers detailing:

- latest industry news

- awesome videos of furniture restoration and upholstery

- product updates and arrival of new shipments of beautiful pieces

- promotions and contests

We would love it if you signed up. Just simply click below

For Email Marketing you can trust

Collaboration with Style at Home Magzine

jkalogiannides — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 20:37:58 +0000

A few weeks ago, Lauren McPhillips (a web editor and blog author for Style At Home ) gave us a refinishing project that we would document for her readership. She gave us a chair she purchased for $30 at a small consignment store and asked us to completely restore it and bring it back to life. Well, we did that and have many pictures and videos (to come later this week) that detailed the process.

Tomorrow, check back for the Part 1 of our three part video set!

Silver Leafing Video

jkalogiannides — Fri, 01 Apr 2011 16:25:44 +0000

This is a video of our resident fine detail artist Al working on silver leafing this Empire style console for a client.

We’re on YouTube!

jkalogiannides — Fri, 01 Apr 2011 15:30:00 +0000

Hi gang! (at least I hope my readership has grown into the humble numbers to form a ‘gang’…lol)

quick and easy post:

CARROCEL IS ON YOUTUBE AND IT IS AWESOME!