Rococo Revery

I love shells.... both the real thing and the motif.


This Soane shell sconce has been on my wish list for years.



I have grotto chairs on my terrace. OK, so I'm not fooling anyone into thinking we're in a Venetian grotto, but they do beat basic patio furniture.



The Reed and Barton Double Shell Server, a popular registry item amongst Southern brides, is one of my favorite serving pieces. Believe me, it can hold a lot of ham biscuits.



I've got shell porcelain...



and shell hand towels.

But what I don't have is a shell bed.


It's so big, so bawdy, and so rococo. And yet, there's something kind of fascinating about it. You don't want to keep looking at it, but you just can't help it.

This is a bed with a history. (Not that kind of history.) The sculptor Bernini and Italian furniture maker Schor made a similar bed in 1661 for Princess Maria Mancini. It was from that bed that the Princess' first born son was presented to the Italian public. And So To Bed, the British bed maker, created this version seen here based on an antique engraving of the bed.

In what other bed could you serve yourself up on the half shell?