Today we’d like to introduce you to Courtenay Philbrick.
Courtenay, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I fell into the world of still life and set styling on accident back in 2011 when I was living in NYC. I was coming off a bout of unemployment when a friend of a friend told me about a tabletop prop rental house that was hiring. I didn’t know exactly what a prop rental house was, but I figured I’d try anything at that point! The next week I was hired and began working in an industry that I had no idea existed! I worked at the prop house for about three years before making the next logical step into the role of a stylist’s assistant.
I worked with a number of stylists in New York and continued that work once I moved to LA. Immediately I became frustrated sourcing props and photo surfaces since there were very few places that actually specialized in tabletop prop rentals. A stylist I was working with at the time gave me the idea to open my own prop house. I’d had enough experience in the industry, and I knew there was demand in LA, so I figured hey, why not! Shortly after, Plate & Patina was born, I was lucky enough to find a warehouse space in the Burbank/North Hollywood “Prop Loop” of LA and I promptly dove in.
I began sourcing props and hired an assistant who has proven to be the most amazing woman I could have asked for and truly has been my backbone through this whole process. Over the past year and a half, I’ve had the chance to work with very talented artists to amass a collection of gorgeous bespoke ceramics and surfaces. I’ve also been sourcing antique and vintage items at flea markets across the country. Recently, I acquired a long established collection off of over 9,000 props and surfaces from a former prop house in New York.
The collection was curated over a period of fifteen years by Michele Michael, the artist behind Elephant Ceramics and a former magazine editor, art director, and prop stylist. At this point, we have over 14,000 items, and we’re still growing. The warehouse is at the tail end of a year-long renovation, and we are set to open this summer! I’m still in disbelief that I was able to pull this off and I owe it to a team of amazing people behind me and a group of extremely talented artists from all over the world.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
I’ve been very lucky in that things have fallen into place just at the right time and I’ve found the most incredible people to work with. That being said, it has been exhausting building a business from scratch. I never went to business school, so I had no idea what I was getting into. Throwing all my eggs into one unfamiliar basket was definitely a scary thing to do, but it’s a good way to light a fire under your ass!
The biggest setback has definitely been getting the warehouse ready for opening. I knew from the get-go it was going to be a big project to undertake, but I had not anticipated how long it would take to get various work permits and how long the actual construction process would be. I must say it has actually been a blessing in disguise because it gave me more time to pull together a massive collection of beautiful surfaces and props.
So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the Plate & Patina story. Tell us more about the business.
We provide weekly rentals of tabletop props and surfaces for the still life and set styling community. The props include anything from tableware, bakeware, cookware, barware, flatware, kitchenware, glassware (basically all the “wares”) to decorative objects, artwork, toys, vases, books, trays, clocks, ephemera, office accessories, bathroom accessories, vintage electronics and more. Surfaces are flat, handmade, well… surfaces. They’re usually about 3’x4′ made from plaster, wood, marble or metal and they serve as the background for a photo.
You know that picture of the mouth-watering, perfectly cooked brunch scattered artistically across a textured green table on page four of your favorite cookbook? Well, that table is a piece of plaster laying on a set of apple boxes in a studio, and the plates, glasses, forks, and napkins have all been meticulously selected and arranged to capture that perfect shot. A ton of work goes into creating such a seemingly effortless moment, and we supply the building blocks for the artists behind the image.
As we all know, traffic is insane around here, so we also aim to serve as a one-stop-shop for stylists searching for props in and around LA. Fantastic customer service and open communication are foundations of our business, so we like to keep an ongoing dialog with our customers in order to provide any and all specific needs. It is also very important to me to showcase the artists behind our handmade items.
These are the people that have the power to push the boundaries of this visual industry. The art not only exists in the photographs and films themselves but also in the life of each piece that contributes to the whole.
Has luck played a meaningful role in your life and business?
Hard work and long (and weird) hours aside, I believe luck has played a huge role for me throughout this process. I was lucky enough to find the perfect location, the perfect space, the perfect assistant (on craigslist no less) and the perfect employees!
Not to mention, after the most bizarre search for a steady income (including many, many ridiculous temp jobs) I accidentally landed a career in which my job is to search and find pretty things! Does it get any luckier than that??
Contact Info:
- Address: 2940 N Naomi St Burbank, CA 91504
- Website: plateandpatina.com
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: @plateandpatina
Image Credit:
Kearney Thompson. Michele Michael.
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