Pale Pink Prevails
The Belle Époque salons de thé used a pastel palette as a deliberate design choice. Light, airy tones maximized natural light, harmonizing beautifully with the couture Parisian silk and tulle tea gowns and evoking a sense of sweet, confectionary luxury. Celadon, pistachio green, powder pink, dragée rose, cream, butter yellow and alabaster colors created a romantic soft-lit environment.
The Antionette sugary-pink was way off base from the start. The étagère once repainted in the same pale pink as the walls brought the room together in more of a subtle chic à la Parisienne way. Once dry, the shelves were glued to the back wall and a niche area was tiled to allow for coffee service. In the Belle Époque tea rooms, niches were essential to maximize space.
Gasolier Lights
Before proceeding any further, the tedious process of electrifying the building needed to be tackled. Miniature “gasolier” lights with frosted tulip shades were selected to create a warm glow ambiance. The electrical wires for the miniature gasoliers are run behind the crown molding atop the shelves, as the molding creates a false front. The circuitry is housed behind this false front.
Late 19th century lighting was predominately gas-powered chandeliers, electro-gasolier combos and then electroliers in 1900. Upward facing shades are usually flamed gasoliers to allow heat and gas emissions to escape up. Thick “S-curve” arms carried hollow tubes piping the gas fuel to the individual burners by way of the big brass column/main gas valve. The light from the gasoliers was a soft honeyed glow with smoke until later inventions of fabric mesh allowed for brighter light, albeit with a pale greenish hue. Combination fixtures had both upward gas burners and downward electric lights and electroliers had downward shades.
To add to confusion, a historical home could modernize a gasolier. The original brass gas pipes would be hollowed out to act as conduits and modern electrical wiring threaded through the old gas arms to power sockets in the original upward-facing glass globes. The owners of this pâtisserie would have modernized gasoliers to maintain historical character.
A Secret Door
To add further intrigue, a glass-paned door was placed in between the cabinetry to be left open as if someone just walked in there.
Where does it lead?
The door theoretically leads to the arrière-boutique (the back of shop) to the underground kitchen and prep area. Interestingly, many Parisian buildings housed natural climate-controlled underground laboratoires (pastry labs) in the vast network of subterranean tunnels. The aromas would waft up into the shops.
The almost sheer linen curtain on the door was a French trick to allow light to pass through to the rooms behind the door. The area behind the door leading to the pastry labs is made as an optical illusion. A mirror is installed at an angle to change the actual view to what is behind the door—copper pots & pans, a ledger and a flour shaker. When you peek in the door from the left, it appears like another room lies to the right. The office paperwork on the wall helps create the depth of perception. The actual area is about an inch and a half. The door left ajar gives a sense of mystery in what is essentially a box.
I took notes on how the mirror illusions work in miniatures, yet neglected to save the source. It is trial-and-error to figure the angles even if you wrap your head around the concept. In this case, the barrier (the board I have behind the door with pots & pans) and the mirror are narrow. The mirror is straight and the barrier is angled about 45 degrees. Mirrors can be placed behind faux doors and faux windows with barriers angled in front to create an illusion of depth through the door or window. For example, the barrier image would be a staircase or a view out the window that one would “see in the distance.”