Entrez sans frapper is Bie Baert's motto when you walk through the front door of her charming house in Brecht (Sint Job in 't Goor), 20 km from the center of Antwerp, where Bie lives and works.

“I want people to feel comfortable when they come visit my house“ Bie says, it has to be a bit like coming home, where you can sit in easy chairs in front of the log fire, surrounded by unusual wooden objects and quirky furniture. Where the coffee and tea are always ready and where the atmosphere is warm.

As for Bie, she simply adores antiques. It is a way of living, a passion for her, which she loves to share with her customers who easily become friends. Having been an antique dealer for 28 years Bie has extensive knowledge of what she sells. She will lovingly explain how she chose an item. Why the particular object is superior to the five others she passed on purchasing. She will explain how her pieces are lovingly restored in her own workshop. How everything that comes from her shop is in perfect condition and ready to display in another local.

If you become a habitual visitor of her atelier and also visit the top antiques fairs in Europe and America, you will notice many pieces have come through her shop. You will notice how Bie Baert has influenced the antiques business through her warmth and unerring eye. She is "the secret source" of Belgium.

- written by the late Amy Perlin, dear friend and absolute soul mate of Bie -