Brass Umbrella Stand with Removable Drip Tray

This handsome brass umbrella stand came from Chanteduc, Patricia and Walter Wells's farmhouse and cooking school in Vaison-la-Romaine. Built to hold six umbrellas, it has a satisfying architectural logic: four slender turned columns rise from a rectangular base to a divided top rail, each corner finished with a small acorn finial. The proportions are upright and orderly without being stiff, and the brass has deepened over time to a warm, muted gold, its patina settling into every joint and surface with the ease of genuine age. One of its most practical features is the removable drip tray that sits within the base — lift it out, empty the water, wipe it clean. Patricia explains, with characteristic good humour, that the stand was probably better suited to rainy Paris than to sunny Provence — a fair point, and one that makes its presence at Chanteduc all the more charming. Today it works beautifully in an entrance hall, mudroom or covered terrace, doing exactly what it was made to do. It would also make a striking display piece — holding walking sticks, garden canes or a collection of tall dried stems. Practical, well-made and full of character, it is the sort of thing that earns its place in a room without asking for any attention at all.