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21st Century French bar Pewter Countertop - Champagne - Xavier Lavergne France

Name: 21st Century French bar Pewter Countertop - Champagne - Xavier Lavergne France
Brand: Xavier Lavergne
Price: 6919.72 USD

About the Item

Real and traditional handmade French pewter countertop. Size: 4.92' x 1.31' or custom shape and size. Culinary pewter hammered onto a wooden form, metalwork. Made to order. We can propose different mouldings or finish. The pewter countertops have been part of Parisian public life for centuries, bearing silent memories of a meeting between two lovers, a break-up, barroom banter, a stranger passing through, a newspaper boy rushing off, two smalltime gangsters and, a little way off, a writer immersed in his newspaper review. The French countertop bears the physical traces of endless comings and goings, the pounding of beer glasses, the tapping of coins to get the barkeep’s attention, the dent of cufflinks, and the hardboiled egg that shatters into a million pieces as it strikes the pewter surface. It develops a unique colored patina and a pitted surface that flickers and flashes like stars and lightning. The "comptoir" is an institution in France, an authentic relic of a bygone age. It is this fine tradition that we are working to preserve. The first cafés, bars and bistros sprang up in Paris following the rural exodus of the late 19th century. A step up from the bougnat, a bar that also sold wood and coal, these establishments served food and drink over a comptoir often simply made of wooden planks clad in sheets of lead pewter, and later pure pewter. As grand cafés came into their own on the boulevards of Paris, the race was on to decorate each comptoir with ever more sophisticated molding that attested to the caliber of the establishment and showcased the artistry of the pewter smith. In the workshop the manufacturing process runs like clockwork. Our carpenter builds the panel, and planes and assembles the moldings using rabbets. The piece is now ready to be coated. Our master pewter smith employs the tools he inherited from his father's business. He and his coworkers and apprentices use age-old pewter working techniques to Hammer the sheets into a snug fit for the wooden forms by heating, bracing, bending, winding, turning and punching the pewter. He deftly welds the sheets to one another with such skill that the procedure is undetectable. The final stages are sanding or hammering the piece to produce the desired finish. Decorative borders made of cast pewter may be added to the moldings at the end of the process for additional graphic relief. We may supplement these traditional techniques with other original, proprietary methods to allow the pewter to take on more complex contemporary forms. Patina, care and maintenance Our pewter countertops, tables and worktops are made in France in keeping with traditional techniques that artisans have been using for generations. Pewter is fashioned by hand and hammered onto a wooden form. This technique produces an irregular appearance and a number of imperfections in the final piece, such as crimping, rippling or pitting. These traits are to be expected: they add to the handcrafted charm of the piece and are the signature of our workshop. These irregular features lend the piece a unique poetry and charm. Pewter is not naturally dark gray in color. Heirloom coffee pots, teapots and other dishware were rinsed in acid to produce the dark patina that was fashionable at the time. Pewter is a soft, light-colored metal that develops a slight patina over time. This patina is natural and non-toxic. It lends the piece a unique character and protects the metal from harm. Pewter is also known for its antibacterial properties. Our countertops, tables, and worktops are 97% pewter and lead free. All our products are made of food grade pewter and comply with European ISO 9001 standards. Unlike stainless steel and composite materials, pewter is not an inert material. It naturally ages over time like wood, developing a patina, pitting and scuffing that add to the charm of the product. If you examine a comptoir in a traditional French café you will find pitting from customers tapping coins on the bar to call the barista. These marks are proof of a living material. They gleam in the light like a digital fingerprint. While these signs of aging add to the charm of the piece, we do not recommend cutting food directly on the countertop. Treat your countertop with care and protect it from knocks. Pewter is corrosion resistant thanks to a nontoxic protective oxide coating that forms on the surface. However highly acidic food items such as lemon, vinegar, tomatoes or wine may cause spotting and tarnish the patina. If your pewter is tarnished, we recommend wiping it down and rinsing with water. To prevent staining avoid placing hot coffee pots and dishware directly on your pewter surface. Cleaning your countertop: Clean with dish detergent only. Rinse off then polish with glass cleaner. Dry with a soft microfiber cloth. Do not use abrasive or acidic products. Do not use ammonia. Restoring your countertop: If you want your pewter to look like new it can be restored with steel wool #000. Wet with glass cleaner and gently sweep over the entire piece in regular motions. Rinse and dry with a soft dry cloth. This process will remove scuffs and stains, restore the patina and give the pewter a satiny sheen. We recommend you have your pewter restored by a professional.

Creator:

Xavier Lavergne (Designer)

Dimensions:

Height: 2.81 in (7.12 cm)Width: 59.06 in (150 cm)Depth: 15.75 in (40 cm)

Materials and Techniques:

Pewter,Hand-Crafted,Metalwork

Place of Origin:

France

Period:

21st Century

Date of Manufacture:

2020