Who & Where We Are

Art of Ages, a small New England based company located in the lovely hills of Corinth, Vermont, is run solely by the husband and wife team of Norm Collette and Consiglia Longo. It evolved from Norm's original restoration business, Northeast Restoration Company.

The Art of Ages shop and studio facility is a 5,000 square foot New England barn. This late 1700’s/early 1800’s barn was restored by us and houses our office, studio, frame shop, carpentry shop, machine room, shipping and receiving department, and storage.

From our home in Corinth we search New England auctions, flea markets, antique shops, yard sales and art stores looking for specialty items for our web site and a couple local stores that sell for us (See other places to find our merchandise.)

Location: 2283 Backway Road • Corinth VT 05039
Phone: 802-685-3812
E-mail: info@artagesvt.com
Art of Ages Shop and Studio open by appointment only

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History/Background

Northeast Restoration Company

Norm Collette, the owner of Art of Ages, has worked for himself and has mainly been in the building restoration business for 25 years. He also has experience in the restoration of furniture, musical instruments, and antique window sash.

As far back as Norm can remember, quality craftsmanship and art have evoked his interest. "Our mother taught us neatness and honesty, and our father was an organizer. In training us he would point out art and architectural details. He trained us to look for places where the craftsmanship was poor. He said that in most cases, the craftsman's errors pull your eye toward them, thus detracting from the art as a whole."

Around 1985 Norm began work on the old barn that stood on the Corinth VT property with the intent of developing a business that could be operated from home. In 1990 the name Northeast Restoration Company was registered with the State of Vermont and is still in use today in conjunction with Art of Ages. Restoration of the Barre Vermont Opera House & City Hall View Restoration Photo

Norm's wife Consiglia joined Northeast Restoration Company in 1993 to assist Norm in the restoration of the Barre Vermont Opera House and City Hall.

All the old windows, two entrances, the main entrance pediment and the buildings metal cornice were in need of restoration. These features had not seen proper maintenance for many years.

This project took several years and three contracts to complete. Every one of the building's old window sash (many with textured glass) were taken to their shop in Corinth to be restored. Restoration of the Bradford Library Reading Room View Restoration Photos

Our most recent and final large building project was the restoration of the Bradford Library Reading Room -— another situation where proper maintenance of the room was long overdue. This room is 30 feet across and is 12-sided with 15 foot high wood ceilings that were almost black from years of fireplace soot and kerosene lamp soot. A terra cotta fire place with two full-size lion heads takes up one of the 12 sides in the room. Over the years, it had been completely painted.

The plaster walls are decorated with ornate plaster designs applied with cake decorators and grooved trowels and were originally highlighted in paint. Much of the ornamentation was missing (one wall completely) due to water damage and the original painting was never reproduced since its first new paint job.

The wainscoting was almost as dirty as the ceiling and the windows sash, trim and jams were also in need of restoration. This took us four months and close to 500 hours to complete. Where We Are Today

In the year 2000 we decided to head in the direction of picture framing, picture frame repairs and the sale of art. Since then we have built a wholesome inventory of art, mirrors, and picture frames, and continue to search out and create interesting treasures to satisfy your senses and ours.

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Other Places to Find Our Merchandise

East Barre Antique Mall

Central Vermont’s largest & cleanest Antique Mall with 12,000 square feet of space in the old Town Hall. Ask to see Dealer Both #10 and look for our other items throughout the store! A great place to shop!

Located:
P.O. Box 308 133 Mill Street East Barre, Vermont 05649

Hours:
10 AM to 5 PM Tuesday through Sunday, closed Mondays

Phone:
1-802-479-5190
View our merchandise at the East Barre Antique Mall

Grakles

Marsha offers a wonderful collection of consignment items to include crafts, art, antiques, collectables & braided rugs, along with a large inventory of her hand made dolls. Another Great Place To Shop!

Located:
194 North Main Street in downtown Barre, Vermont

Hours:
10 AM – 4:30 PM Wednesday and Thursday
Saturday 10 AM – 2 PM

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