designs FOR LIVING PRODUCTS & PRACTICAL ADVICE

Rediscovering the Past

WHEN A TORNADO CUT A WIDE PATH of destruction through Lancaster on April 25, 1994, it swept away five of the small town’s seven antique stores and crippled the picturesque town square where browsers and buyers had spent many a pleasant weekend afternoon searching for treasures of the past.

But the vicious winds didn’t destroy antiquing in Lancaster for long. Although the square, still awaiting reconstruction efforts in about half of its buildings, looks rather forlorn without the old trees that once sheltered it, shoppers looking for bargains will no doubt hunt down relocated and new stores in Lancaster. Three individual stores, an antique mall with 35 deal-ers, and a weekly auction hold forth in various locations in town. Another shop, Square Treasures, razed by the tornado, has reopened, but in a new location where a city zoning change was needed before the owners could begin dealing in the antiques business (the change was expected to take place by the first of this month ).

Whether you’re looking for a drop-leaf dining table just like grandmas or just a little inspiration, you will almost immediately spot Lancaster’s main attraction: small-town prices. One dealer claims that in comparison with Dallas shops, Lancaster’s antique stores have “at least a 50 percent savings.” While that may be an exaggeration in most cases, the price tags are significantly lower.

Variety provides another lure, with the stores ranging from the new, clean mall–Antiques, etc., etc, etc-to dim and deliciously cluttered J & J Oldies. At the latter, cheerful owner Jean Cheshier specializes in American antiques “from any period.” Kathie and Travis Roberts have an enormous array of American and European furniture at ABC Depot, while former Dallasites Danielle Modisette and Brian Murphy specialize in American oak and pine primitives at Needful Things & Other Antiques. The Auction Block deals in American and European antiques, coins, glass, prints, dolls, and toys, with an auction scheduled every Thursday at 7 p.m.

ABC Depot, 103 N. Dallas Ave., 218-6738. Antiques, etc., etc., etc., 600 N. Beckley (at 1-35) 230-2226. J & J Oldies, 411E. 2nd, 227-6911. Needful Things & Other Antiques, 113 Old Red Oak Rd., 227-8085. Square Treasures, 745 W. Pleasant Run, 227-3460. The Auction Block, 914 N. Dallas Ave., 227-2500.

Counter Moves



TEN YEARS AGO, WHEN GlNNY HUBBARD remodeled her 1932 Oak Cliffresidence with an art deco motif in mind, pink Formica countertops seemed the perfect touch. As the years passed, so did Ginny’s fondness for the pink laminated plastic. But she didn’t want to incur major remodeling expenses again. So when she read in a magazine about do-it-yourself refinishing of kitchen counters, she jumped at the chance. Her results prove that, with courage, hard work, and some artistic flair, even pink Formica isn’t forever.

Ginny, an artist who owns an advertising design agency, began by using medium grade sandpaper to dull the shine and prepare the counter-tops to receive paint. Then, she applied a special primer for Formica, followed by a base coat of light gray latex paint. After she sketched a preliminary design of the irregular mosaic pattern she had in mind, she used potato rounds to imprint the decoration in shades of light gray, black, tomato red, and gold latex. Finally, she sealed the counters with multiple coats of clear polyure thane varnish.

“It’s durable, and I get lots of compliments on the way it looks ” Ginny says of the refinishing. “I’m thrilled with it.”

Cyber Painting

BENJAMIN MOORE BELIEVES IN COMPUT-er dating for paint colors. So, if your Navajo White just met Essex Green and the prospects of a long, happy marriage seem slim, don’t worry. With the click of a computer button you can easily arrange an introduction to Country Redwood-or Tudor Brown, Waterbury Green, or any number of other eligible suitors. You don’t have to pay for a messy divorce, waste a can of paint, or even clean a dirty brush.

Welcome to the world of the video color planner, found in a number of area paint stores carrying the Benjamin Moore brand. The computerized video system allows customers to experiment with paint colors on photographs of 76 exteriors and 20 interiors. Not only does the computer prove to be extremely user-friendly (even Forrest Gump could ace this one), the availability of 2,000 different colors in the Benjamin Moore repertoire presents many hours of possibilities. And it’s free.

“This really saves people time and effort,” says manager Jerry Hazelip at Texas Paint & Wallpaper’s Preston Valley store. “It’s sort of like painting your house before you even buy the paint.” But beware. With the approach of May, the most popular month in Dallas for exterior painting, lines may be forming.

Benjamin Moore color, video planners are found at Piano Paint Distributors, 2991W. 15th, Plano,214-6l2-2805;Texas Paint and Wallpaper, 217 Preston Valley, Dallas, 214-239-0177; Frontier Paint Co., 6722 Camp Bowie, Fort Worth, 817-738-0859; and 5438 Brentwood Stair, Fort Worth, 817-446-4008.

Linens with a British Accent



SOUTHERNERS IN GENERAL AND TEXANS to be specific have long adored (and perhaps even envied) the sedate, rather regal look of English interior design. Thus no one should be surprised that one major American manufacturer of designer fabrics, Waverly, has chosen to highlight its spring line with two collections based on solid-as-a-tock English names: Wimbledon and Mayfair.

You don’t need a title or even a stiff upper lip to savor the imported-from-England cottons, rayons, and silks of Mayfair, named for the elite residential section of London. These florals, checks, and subtle patterns in spring garden colors find theit roots in histotical designs. On the other hand, the Wimbledon fabrics, called the Matchpoint Collection, carry out a more traditional English country house look with Jacobean prints, garden designs, and stripes in many deep colors.

Unlike some of its competitors, Waverly gives its customers a break in both prices and availability. Most designer fabrics can only be purchased by interior designers buying at wholesale showrooms, and the prices can sometimes be stratospheric. Although the Wimbledon and Mayfair fabrics are available in Dallas to the trade only at the showrooms of Waverly’s parent company, F Schumacher & Co., the suggested retail prices of $35 per yard for Mayfair and $33 for Matchpoint classify them as bargains in their field. Too, Waverly permits some of its fabrics to be sold directly to retail customers-somewhat to the dismay of some of its haughty competitors. For example, the Cloth World stores throughout the Metroplex carry a selection of some of Waverly’s more established fabrics, such as the stripes and florals in the Four Seasons and Ivy Lane collections. And although the suggested retail price is $24 per yard. Cloth World prices them at a remarkable $12.98 per yard.

Waverly Fabrics at F. Schumacher & Co., 220 Decorative Center, 748-3331 (to the trade only), and at Cloth World (many locations in Dallas, Fort Worth, and the suburbs.)