by Sally Falk Nancrede

     Is Indiana's infatuation with antiques waning? The closing of one of my favorite antique malls - Allisonville Road Antique Mall - seems to indicate that this may be a possibility.

     It makes me sad that this quiet oasis of past gentility has succumbed to the bling-bling world of McMansion furnishings. Big Lots, the Nirvana of made-in-China miscellany, still is open for business right across the street, while all the finery of Castleton Square draws crowds of people just to the north.

     But not this antique mall.

     It's obvious that home fashions have changed. Country style has quacked off over the horizon, replaced by Hollywood glam and Tuscan inspirations, Louis Philippe and fine reproductions.

     Shabby chic has given way to cleaner Swedish country. Indiana antiques may seem a tad old-fashioned to the text-messaging

     generation.

     Still, traditional furnishings, especially antiques, bring a certain stability to home life. Last year's Indianapolis Art & Antiques Sale & Show, sponsored by the Methodist Hospital Task Core, was among its most successful in its 18 years. The 19th annual show March 10-12 at the Indiana State Fairgrounds promises to be a hit, with some 100 dealers from across the United States and Canada expected to display their fine furnishings.

     Ties to the past

     Antiques evoke memories. Perhaps they are memories of your childhood, perhaps memories of where you acquired the piece. Just ask Kathy Thomas of Zionsville who has decorated her family's home in a wonderful collection of country antiques and primitives.

     Thomas admits that the children beg, "Can't we have anything new?"

     "I don't buy anything new - except electronics," Thomas says.

     "I do buy new upholstered furniture," adds Thomas, who is a nurse and a self-described antiques lover. "But I just love primitives and I use them." She has not one but two Hoosier cabinets - one used for cooking in the kitchen and the other used as a server in the dining room.

     Many of the items are family antiques. They include everything from the lightning rod off the family's old farmhouse in Columbus, Ind., to her grandfather's desk in her walk-in closet that holds her socks and lingerie.

     "Antiques have character and you never see two that are alike," Thomas says. "What I love about antiques is you can tell a story about each piece, how you managed to get it home, why you had to have it."

     About a year ago, Thomas' favorite antique store closed - Lazy Acres Antiques on S.R. 32 between Westfield and Noblesville.

     "It was a three-story old barn and it had quality furniture, lots of primitives and very little glassware, no cabinets full of glassware and trinkets because I don't look at that stuff."

     It closed within the last year, she laments.

     However, that could have some benefits, says Thomas, whose house is overflowing with antiques.

     "I miss not being able to spend a couple of hours of quiet time at Lazy Acres," Thomas says. But "if I bring anything else home, my husband would kill me! I want to save my marriage."

     Fresh attitude

     While sales have faltered at some antique outlets, they are going strong at others, according to Patsy Cram, designer/sales for Midland Arts and Antiques Market.

     The antiques market has been tough, she says. "I don't think anybody's done as well since 9/11, but we've been able to sustain" business, she adds.

     Midland operates more like a retail store, with new items as well as antiques, Cram points out. "Most antique malls work on the basis of keeping the booths full. Our goal is different. We have broadened our customer base. We have a better mix of people and we try to keep it interesting," Cram says. "We go to New York to buy and we are getting ready to develop our own line."

     These new items are mixed with antiques to create a fresh attitude.

     "We like to show how to use a good, basic contemporary piece with more traditional things and get a good eclectic look," she says. "I think people move more frequently and change styles more frequently. When they move, they keep their best pieces. So people are coming up with a much more eclectic look and mixing more different looks.

     "Another thing, and I think this is important, is scale. If you go to a furniture store, the scale has gotten so large. Furniture is made for big Carmel-Fishers-Geist-type homes and, for the average person, that scale doesn't fit their house," Cram says. Many homeowners would be better off finding an old piece and having it recovered or painted, she adds.

     Noteworthy trends

     Antiques go through design cycles just like other furnishings, Cram says.

     "A look gains popularity, then it wears out. Shabby chic has given way to Swedish country painted furniture with straighter lines and a cleaned-up version of shabby.

     "Mirrored furniture is hot right now," she adds. "It's that Hollywood glamour look. That's very popular. ... mid-century modern is still going strong, especially with younger people."

     Several furniture designers are producing antiques-inspired designs for younger consumers. Two come to mind right off: Martha Stewart for Bernhardt Furniture Industries (bernhardt.com) and Mitchell Gold + Bob Williams (mitchellgold.com), the company that manufactures much of the furniture sold by Pottery Barn and Restoration Hardware. Stewart, for instance, offers everything from a childproof metal Windsor chair to fabulous make-a-statement armoires. Mitchell Gold showcased Victorian-style button-tufted chairs and Chesterfield sofas upholstered in spa blue at the latest International Home Furnishings Market at High Point, N.C.

     Plus, several major furniture makers reinterpreted antique reproductions for younger buyers at High Point. Pulaski's Antiques Roadshow collection (pulaskifurniture.com) continues its long run, inspired by

     significant discoveries from PBS's popular Antiques Roadshow.

     L. & J.G. Stickley Inc. (stickley.com) introduced a definitely younger attitude in October - the Pasadena Bungalow. Inspired by the works of renowned California architects Charles and Henry Greene, this collection incorporates Art Nouveau, Craftsman as well as Asian influences. Rounded edges, pegged joints and intricate inlays were hallmarks of Greene and Greene, who brought the Arts and Crafts movement to the American West.

     Hickory Chair (hickorychair.com), the purveyor of classic and expensive American furnishings, has made Winterthur reproductions for years, but in 2005 the company freshened the collection, lightened it up and made it more appealing to younger buyers.

     Following a similar logic, Baker Furniture (bakerfurniture.com) reinterpreted its Historic Charleston for younger clientele with a lot of stone, marble and wrought iron.

     Baker has been working with Historic Charleston since 1976, so this update

     was major. Baker set out to show how authentic antiques can be upholstered in a combination of leather and nubby neutrals or in wool plaid or khaki and white. The city of Charleston historically was cosmopolitan and had Asian influences, so this update is both sophisticated and Asian for the 21st century.

     The collection now displays a lighter mahogany finish that's slightly distressed and not so shiny. It's a little less formal, a little more casual, and more liveable for younger buyers or for retiring boomers who prefer a more casual attitude.

     Upholstery fabrics tend to be neutral and light or white. Floors tend toward simple sisal or wool instead of busy Orientals. Walls are neutral as well. Accessories include such 21st-century gems as overscaled topiaries and fur throws plus retro, modern sunburst mirrors. No crocheted doilies here.

     To complete the look, search for accent pieces finished in red, such as chairs, tables and chests. Or opt for hand-made tabletops that undulate with human imprecision and beg to be touched.

     It is these personal traits, indicative

     of a bygone era, prior to the advent of machine-automated manufacturing lines, that antiques offer. It's one-of-a-kind charm for personal decorating.

     Nancrede is an award-winning Indianapolis reporter who tracks home furnishings and style around the globe.

Article appears as published in the IW issue.