But my Vuitton won't fit under the seat!

A friend asked me the other day, "What can I do with this luggage now that I can't take it on the plane?". Good question, with many good answers. One of which is pictured here, turn the item into useful home decor! We realized quite sometime ago that traveling with some of the older, larger and heavier pieces of Louis Vuitton that we owned can be tricky, expensive, and just plain inconvenient. That's when we discovered how useful many of these pieces are as home decor, display or even extra storage space. Large Louis Vuitton (or other maker) steamer trunks can be beautifully displayed at the foot of a bed, and double as storage for linen, or your extra sweaters. Smaller cube style trunks, such as hat boxes or linen trunks, have been used as end tables or night stands, to hold lamps, photos or your favorite piece of art glass, with more storage inside. Fitted with a custom base, with or without a glass top, large and medium sized suitcases become coffee tables, or accent tables, as shown here below. Stacks of 2 or 3 suitcases can also be used in the same manner, or as simple room accents. I have seen a large fitted piece with a shelf used in a entry way as a place for hats and keys. Fitted pieces, with jars and boxes, can be used as accents on the dresser in a bedroom for a lavish touch, and can hold small items such as jewelry. One or two pieces can be used as display to simply accent a room, and spark conversation of real or imagined travels!

For the well "heeled"

Louis Vuitton, the original luxury goods designer, has been in business as a luggage manufacturer since 1854. Prior to making his first trunk Louis had made his name as a dress-packer, packing the clothes of the wealthy into their trunks for their voyages, so he knew his way around the interior of a trunk. His first trunk was not of the type we know today, nor was it covered in the fabric we know today. The first trunk was a domed style covered in a grey canvas, called Gris-Trianon. Later Louis was to create a trunk with a flat top that revolutionized the trunk industry as it allowed them to now be stacked. He also invented the lock in use today on Vuitton trunks, which is virtually pick proof, and afforded unlimited variable combinations. He quickly moved from the grey canvas, to a striped fabric (1873), then to a checkerboard (1889), or Damier, covering in order to stay ahead of the counterfeiters, yes, you heard me correctly, Vuitton has been copied since the beginning, and he did everything he could to prevent it, including copyrighting the Damier fabric, which contains the trademark as part of the design. The canvas used today, the Monogramme canvas, was designed by George Vuitton (Louis' grandson) in 1896 to honor his grandfather, and which was properly patented to foil counterfeiters. The Louis Vuitton signature brand had been born! Originally the design was woven into the fabric, but today is stencilled onto the fabric. Trunks of all kinds, were and continue to be made, for clothes, for hats, linens, shoes (like that shown here), desks, dishes, picnics; the list is exhaustive. Custom orders for specialty trunks (or large sets of up to 80 trunks) were made and can still be made, and is only limited by imagination and the size of your pocketbook. Louis Vuitton was born in the days when the wealthy traveller went on "holiday" and took almost everything they owned onto the ship or train with them, as they would be travelling for weeks or months. People did not travel light, and Louis Vuitton catered very successfully to that need! There is so much more to tell about this fascinating brand, that I will continue this in a future blog entry (maybe two).

The shoe trunk shown below is a smaller hard sided case for six pairs of shoes, cases for up to 36 pairs are known to exist. The case is lined to protect the shoes from scuffs, and the accessory "pillows" keep the shoes from scuffing each other, as well as help keep them firmly held in the compartments. The lock will keep your shoes safe from thieves, and your sister whom may want to borrow your best pair!

Some Background, Please

The vase pictured was created by possibly the most well known glass designer ever to work for Kosta (and for Orrefors, too!), Vicke Lindstrand.

 

Vicke Lindstrand (1904 - 1983) was artistic director for Kosta from 1950 to 1973, and was reponsible for one of Kosta's most innovative and popular periods.

Kosta Glasbruck (now known as Kosta Boda), was founded in 1742 in Kosta, Sweden, and originally made window glass, chandeliers and drinking glasses.

The company has over the years changed it's output to include pressed glass ware in the 1840's, and cut glass in the 1880's, to the fine art glass made today by their many talented designers, but it is the period of the 1950's through the early 1970's, under direction of Lindstrand, that saw the creation of many popular designs that collectors currently seek out.

Lindstrand was a sculptor and a draftsman, newspaper editor and illustrator, he then turned his artistic talent to glass. His designs include figurative as well as abstract designs, unique studio pieces, domestic glassware and sculpture. He created designes of both large and small scale for private and public spaces. He also designed ceramic ware for the Uppsala Ekeby firm in 1943 to 1950 before joining Kosta, and was glassblower/engraver, then designer, at Orrefors from 1928-1943.

The design for the vase "Trees in the Fog" was part of the "UNICA" series of hand formed one of a kind studio pieces created by Lindstrand in 1955/56, each piece is unique with no two exactly alike, due in part to the nature of the material and the whim of the designer. The design features somber trees of black glass embedded in crystal glass surrounded with a background of fog.

Back for more!

Sorry, Followers, I've been away for awhile! Seems my work/life balance has been unbalanced and tilted way more to work (the 9 to 5, not my antiques). I do need to reconnect to my passions and move in new directions, hence a return to this blog, and passing along my thoughts and whatever knowledge I think you may want to glean from me. So I am back and will have a new entry available to you shortly.

Thank you for sticking with me,
Your host,
Tim