Louisiana Life Travel: A Guide to Antiquing

Louisiana residents have long appreciated grand homes adorned with exquisite furnishings, silver, and china, a tradition that continues to this day. The state offers numerous cities and towns featuring streets lined with antique stores, many housed in historical storefronts. These locations range from world-renowned districts to quaint, out-of-the-way hamlets, all brimming with historical treasures awaiting new owners. The Greater New Orleans area, particularly Royal Street in the French Quarter, is a prime destination for high-quality antiques. A stroll through this historic district reveals museum-quality furnishings, chandeliers, jewelry, and art. New Orleans consistently ranks among the best cities globally for antique shopping. Merchants, such as those at Keil’s Antiques, often have generations of family history in the business. Royal Street shops like French Antique Shop, Waldhorn & Adler, Keil’s, Moss, and Royal specialize in French and English antiques, while M.S. Rau Antiques offers silver and unique collectibles. Chartres Street provides a diverse range from antique books to high-end European pieces, including Lucullus, known for its culinary antiques. Magazine Street, spanning six miles, is another antique hub, requiring prior research due to its vast selection. It features French antiques at Piranesi and Balzac, Swedish designs at Source. or Maison de Provence, and eclectic European pieces at Williamson Designs and Uptowner. As You Like It Silver Shop offers exquisite antique silver. Orient Expressed Imports specializes in Oriental furniture and porcelain, while Dunn & Sonnier provides European furniture and garden accessories. Vintage clothing and modern furniture can be found at Retro Active and Loisel Vintage Modern, respectively, with high-end consignment pieces available at Oops Décor. On the Northshore, Ponchatoula, known as “America’s Antique City,” boasts numerous antique shops along West Pine Street and Railroad Avenue. Stores like Mary’s Antiques offer Depression-era glassware and quilts, and Acquisitions of the Bygone houses multiple dealers. The town’s semiannual Antique Trade Days – Arts & Crafts Fair attracts thousands, offering a wide array of items from Victorian furniture to reclaimed barn wood. Covington’s Lee Lane features shops like The Copper Rooster and Cottage Antiques, offering vintage jewelry, architectural elements, and religious memorabilia. Walker House specializes in antique jewelry and Civil War artifacts, while Villa Vici mixes modern furnishings with sleek antiques. Baton Rouge and Plantation Country offer prominent antique destinations. Fireside Antiques in Baton Rouge, an 18,000-square-foot facility, is a major importer of European antiques, specializing in French styles. It also creates custom-made reproductions for those seeking modern dimensions with classic aesthetics. Inessa Stewart’s Antiques & Interiors, housed in a 25,000-square-foot French château-like building, showcases ornate European, country French, and primitive furniture, as well as Old World accessories. This store offers unique services like adapting antique pieces for modern use, such as converting buffets into media centers or armoires into wet bars, to enhance their value and functionality for contemporary living. Denham Springs has transformed its main streets into a vibrant antique district, with over two dozen shops in a three-block radius, preserving their original façades. This area is a Cultural District, offering tax-exempt purchases of original art. Merchants report a growing interest from younger buyers seeking quality items. The Rusty Rooster, a large mall with multiple dealers, notes a trend towards vintage industrial looks alongside shabby-chic and primitive pieces. Denham Springs has received accolades for its antique shopping. St. Francisville, known for its antebellum homes, offers quirky antique shops like Bohemianville Antiques, with items ranging from vintage kimonos to massive antique doors, and St. Francis Art and Antiques for linens and books. Bayou Pickers specializes in Civil War memorabilia, while Grandmother’s Buttons offers antique buttons crafted into jewelry. East of St. Francisville, Jackson hosts the annual Jackson Assembly Antiques Show and Sale, attracting dealers from across the South and offering period furniture, porcelain, and collectibles. In North West Monroe, the Cottonport Historic District, or Antique Alley, features over 40 stores, including independent shops and large antique malls, mainly along Trenton Street. These stores offer American and English antique furniture, china, and jewelry, with Trenton Street Antiques known for Newcomb pottery and Clementine Hunter paintings. Merchants observe a rise in younger clientele purchasing antiques for quality and value. Arcadia, north of Natchitoches, hosts Bonnie and Clyde Trade Days, featuring numerous vendors selling antiques and crafts. Its Main and Myrtle streets also have antique stores offering furniture, china, and old farm tools. Cajun Country’s Washington, despite some store closures, still draws buyers to the Old Schoolhouse Antiques Mall, a 40,000-square-foot former school housing over 100 vendors. Sunset, nearby, is gaining recognition among collectors. Antique Woods of Louisiana offers antique European doors, chandeliers, and olive jars, and provides custom-made antique wood pieces. Other shops like The Sunset Market and Auction House, Sunset Rail Stop Flea Market, and The Funky Flea offer a variety of vintage and antique items, often with unique local art. Central Louisiana, specifically Alexandria and Pineville, has specialized antique stores. Maison Pompeii Antiques and Interiors focuses on high-end, Old World pieces, with physician-owner Dr. Larry Menache curating unique lamps and rare furniture. Corner Antiques, owned by Janice Gravel and Tom Kennedy, boasts fine items like Tiffany desk sets and Newcomb pottery. Miss Lily’s Antiques provides rustic furniture and curiosities, while Elderberry House Antiques & Uniques in Pineville offers armoires, primitive art, and antique cotton baskets. Beaten Path Antiques, a spacious mall, displays sturdy oak furniture, pottery, and Czechoslovakian items. It is advisable for shoppers to verify operating hours online or by phone before visiting these diverse antique destinations. #AntiqueShopping #LouisianaTravel #HomeFurnishings #VintageDecor #FrenchQuarter #HistoricalTreasures #InteriorDesign #SouthernAntiques #Collectibles #AntiqueShopping #LouisianaTravel #HomeFurnishings #VintageDecor #FrenchQuarter #HistoricalTreasures #InteriorDesign #SouthernAntiques #Collectibles