styleNorth

I know a shop window is successful if it catches my eye as I bump along on a streetcar and then backtrack to take a closer look. That’s what happened Tuesday when I spied the pair of displays currently greeting the street at Patina Antiques (219 Queen Street East, 416.862.8880).

Two credenzas, two pairs of lamps — there’s nothing extraordinary about these windows but they work because they’re graphic and well-composed and they frame the entryway to create a pleasing symmetry.

I love shop windows that tell a story but in these displays the narrative is really a dialogue between the objects themselves. The window above relies on the simple relationship between the Hollywood Regency stool (1950s, $495) and the lamps (also 1950s, rewired with custom shades, $950 pair) — the blues are remarkably similar and the curves also relate. The white metal bases of the lamps work with the re-plated hardware on the beautiful ’50s lacquered credenza (one of a pair priced at $3,600).

In the white window, the story is about pattern; the 1960s cabinets ($1,450 pair) sport impressive fretwork that speaks to the black and white fabric backdrop; the lamp bases reference the tones of the trim on the chests and the ceramic bodies are glazed with a crackle finish that echoes the pattern behind them ($885 pair). There’s nothing earthshaking here but simple and striking can be very powerful, indeed.

Patina has a reputation for high-quality deco furnishings but at the moment the shop is featuring some stellar 1970s pieces including a trio of metal and glass cocktail tables that make my pulse race . . .

You could surround this angular brass beauty ($975) with IKEA couches and nobody would even notice, they’d be too busy cooing over the table.

The two-tiered, round piece, below, marries nickel, lucite and glass; the photo doesn’t do the complex design justice. It’s a lot of WOW but definitely a splurge at $2,600.

And finally, the nickel and brass table below has a distinct Moderne feel that could skew contemporary or deco depending on what it was paired with. The table is one of two priced at $1,100 each.