It’s hard to deny the enduring beauty of decorating with antiques. Their ability to enrich a home with enchanting character makes them eternally elegant, uplifting any corner they’re placed in. While their appeal lies in their timelessness, the festive season offers a particularly magical opportunity to showcase these cherished treasures.
When paired with elegant Christmas decorations, antiques can truly come to life. Whether it’s a dining table adorned with cosy candlesticks or a fireplace dressed with lush garlands, the Christmas season is all about celebrating the beauty of nostalgia.
Sourcing these distinctive pieces in time for the holidays may seem daunting – antique shopping can be delightfully unpredictable – but Westland London makes it effortless. With a curated collection of historic fireplaces, furniture, lighting, and decorative antiques, their fine period pieces promise to enhance your home with rich character and seasonal charm.
1. Fireplaces
Creating an eye-catching focal point and a warm, inviting space to sit around with family and friends, the fireplace has always been the true heart of the home – especially during the Christmas season.
An established supplier of rare pieces for almost sixty years, Westland London's curated collection of fireplaces is unparalleled. With styles dating back as far as the 15th century, each piece is refreshingly special and unique, all brought back to life through their experienced team of restorers. No matter your taste, whether it's a decadent red marble fireplace or a cast-iron style with ornate tiles, there will be options to suit.
Here, Westland London's director, Laura, has lovingly gathered wintry pine, holly, and spruce foraged deep in the Sussex countryside, to drape over the fireplace at Westland London's shop. She says, 'This is when I appreciate the evergreen landscape of the pine, gorse, and holly. Bringing some of this foliage to dress our fireplaces for Christmas is one of my favourite activities of the year.'
Rich in colour and texture, this Rouge Royale Fireplace is undeniably impressive. A unique, warm marble with bold white and grey veining, it'll shine in any room it's placed in – sitting proudly almost as a work of art.
2. Fireplace Accessories
Let’s not forget, no fireplace is complete without its tools. If you’re looking to uplift your home’s hearth this Christmas, it’s worth remembering that such a focal point needs accessories.
Laura says, 'Fire tools fly out the showroom door at Christmas, as do grates, as people prepare their home to entertain guests, making the fireplace a focus of their celebrations.' From firescreens to charming andirons, Westland London’s collection of fine antiques will transform any fireplace into an eye-catching display that entices guests to sit by the fire and revel in its beauty.
Enhance your fireplace with classic Christmas touches – stockings, twinkling candlesticks, and festive garlands – then elevate the display with a selection of historic fire tools, helping to transform your fireplace into even more of an inviting focal point.
One-of-a-kind in style and shape, this set of fire tools is of the highest quality. Designed in the manner of Christopher Dresser, these fire tools have shepherd's crook handles and turned and twisted stems. The shovel features a unique pierced decoration, and each handle and shaft is adorned with fine engraved decorations.
Antique copper and iron make up this unusual Arts and Crafts fire basket. Intricate in decoration and composition, the pagoda-shaped back is cast with floral swags and vines and centred by a sunburst. It is mounted with curved wrought iron bars over a copper apron, supported by twisted baluster andirons with copper ball and claw feet. It comes with an original copper ash pan.
Elevate your fireplace with even more grandeur with this early Victorian brass fender. Impressively ornate, the moulded front features two pierced bands of scrolling leaves and flowers. The design is mounted on three charming lion's paw feet.
3. Lighting
The power of lighting to transform a room’s mood and design is, of course, no secret. From scattering pockets of warmth through various lamps to creating a statement with a bold ceiling light, finding the right style for you is more than possible when you know where to look.
From a French chandelier casting a glow over your Christmas table to a simple bronze candlestick elevating your festive entryway, it’s these charmingly unique yet familiar treasures that can make a house feel like a home.
Whether you’re on the hunt for that perfect wall light or you’re simply in search of some antique inspiration, the beauty of antique shopping for period lighting is its unexpectedness – but sometimes sourcing a specific style is all you need.
A gilt bronze and cut glass chandelier, a style such as this is hard to resist. French in origin, its ornately cast corona leads to a slender central stem and some gilt brass beaded chains. Below this is the circular gallery, which is beautifully cast with swags and classical masks. The light is beautifully diffused through hanging glass rods and strings of beads.
A classic style that will bring decadence to any wall, this pair of Rococo twin-branch wall lights is timeless. Made from gilt brass, the surface of these lights has acquired a beautiful patina across the organic form of the sconces, which features organic foliate flourishes and c-scrolls, typical of the Rococo style.
Perfect for hanging in a hallway, this Regency lantern is impressive in its intricacy. Made from delicate cast brass, this hanging hall lantern is octagonal in form and features fine scroll and leafwork, arched windows and a hinged door.
4. Furniture
For a more impactful, lived-in look, beautiful collections of antique furniture can alter a room entirely – infusing a space with life and story.
Whether it’s a set of historic chairs to crown your dining table or a unique games table to place in a corner of a living room or study, these one-of-a-kind, statement furniture pieces can help to create a rich, layered, and truly eclectic feel in your home – no matter your style.
A rare metamorphic, George III mahogany triple-top table. This D-shaped Georgian table has multiple uses; it can fold out as a tea table as well as serve as a games table, featuring four counter wells. The elegant leaves rest on tapered legs, which terminate in pad feet.
Perfect for games by the fire, this rare mid-19th-century Italian beadwork circular wine table is unique. Featuring bright geometric foliate-patterned beadwork under a glass top, it has been executed using tiny glass and metal beads individually sewn onto a fabric backing. All of this is contained within a deeply moulded walnut frame, raised on a turned central column supported by three scrolled and carved legs.
This pair of walnut Art Deco side chairs would transition beautifully in a study or a library. Featuring a geometric back rail, a padded backrest and a seat pad over a scalloped apron and beautifully turned legs, they are intricate in design. Use them as desk chairs or gaze at their beauty propped against a bare wall.
5. Decorative Accessories
From handcrafted mirrors to stunning embroidered tapestries, vases, and urns, it’s not just beautiful Christmas decorations that can make your home feel more cosy and inviting during the festive season.
Whether you're looking for a beautiful new vase to place atop a mantel or a statement Candelabra to sit at the center of your dining table, it's these final flourishes and decorative accessories that help to bring an entire scheme together.
This 18th-century French Aubusson verdure tapestry has been woven with typical green-blue foliage and shows a beautiful woodland glade studded with flowers. This scene is enclosed by an original, wide floral border decorated with flowers and foliage. Featuring rich colours and generous proportions, the design has been lined in linen and is ready to hang.
A stunning, hand-painted Italian faience vase defined by an eye-catching sunburst design. Completed in the Renaissance manner and of baluster shape, the design can easily be converted to sit as a beautiful table lamp base.
A pair of 19th century French Empire style ormolu candelabras, featuring elegant tapered stems and lion's paw feet over triangular bases. Perfect for creating a statement on an entryway console table, or for sitting beautifully in the center of a dining table.
Westland London’s range of unique artefacts will make any home feel cosy and artfully curated this Christmas.
For more inspiration, head to the Westland London website or pay a visit to their wonderful showroom at 295 Willesden Lane, London, NW2 5HY.
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