I'm Looking For: Fully Upholstered Dining Chairs

Dining rooms can get pretty "heavy" pretty quickly.  The prominent pieces in the room--table, buffet or hutch--tend to be wood.  Throw in two dozen chair legs, and that's a lot of "hard" elements.

Slipcovers are an option, of course, but that look can be pretty casual and/or traditional, not to mention a bit heavy itself.  In order to minimize the number of wood finishes in a room, I have been drawn lately to fully-upholstered dining chairs.  You retain the leggy quality while keeping your elements to a minimum: one fabric, all over.

Here are some favorites, in several styles and a wide range of price points.

From top: leather, elegant, modern, and classic parsons.  something for everybody!

For sources, click here and click through.

New to Me: Babyletto

Have you seen the adorable nursery collection Babyletto at Target?
Like Oeuf or other modern nursery lines, only affordable.
I came across these while working on this nursery, and thought I would let you in on it.  (Also couldn't seem to resist making a quick board with the Madison collection.)


Madison:

3 drawer dresser $299

Crib $299

Hudson:

"See low price in cart"--don't you hate that?

dresser/ changer $399

Skip:

$389

Again, low price in cart.  I didn't take that step for you.

SO cute, right?

All available at Target.  Please note: I haven't seen these in person and can't cop to the quality.

Have a great weekend!

Teeny Nursery Schemes

Remember the plans for a built-in crib in the teeny tiny nursery?

Well, we're not doing that anymore.  But when we WERE, the floorplan looked like this:

Crib/ drawers in the nook, 60" dresser on the back wall, 4x6 rug, existing glider in the corner.
Teeny, right?

And the options looked like this:

Schumacher Zimba wallpaper, modern dressers, graphic rugs, fun art.

Well, the plan has changed and a stokke crib will go on that back wall and a dresser set up will go in the nook.  More to come on the look!

My kids are with their grandparents next week, and my list is a mile long....Hope to share project updates as I go.  Have a great weekend!

What I Got

Not long ago, I wrote, partially joking, about what I would like to inherit from my mother.  (Hint: she didn't own it yet.)  In all seriousness, I have been very lucky in the items that have been passed down to me.  The list is very long and very wonderful, and I am thrilled to have such personal items as my grandmother's gold leaf sconces and my husband's grandmother's quilts and cedar chest, not to mention a veritable treasure trove of my mother's castoffs.

There was one item I always adored as a child that actually went to my brother--the nerve!  It was a sweet little desk that was my mom's growing up.  I always loved it because of the small scale and eight little drawers atop the desk surface--perfect for stashing tiny treasures of all kinds.

Turns out, there were at least three of these desks, with the other two belonging to my mom's sister and cousin, and one just came home to roost.  I had been looking for a desk to put between the beds in my girl's room, (see the small-scale desk round up here).  and after almost buying two different options off craigslist, I am so much happier with this little heirloom!

The finish is pretty banged up so of course the question is, what to do?  The headboard need to be re-done, so I am thinking white desk and chair (chalk paint for that Swedish, not a glossy finish), with more orange and pink on the headboards.  OR neutral headboards and a limed finish, using this.  

And sure enough: the girls love those little drawers as much as I did at their age.  The 6 year old is stashing her glasses in one overnight, and the others are already stashed full of untold treasures.

Tell me: do you have pieces that have been handed down to you?

And more importantly: what would you do with this little desk?

Of course, it is STILL too cold here for painting and stripping and all those good projects, so I have some time to think on it.....

Fall 2013 looks hot for blu dot

I jut got my new catalog from local modern funriture maker blu dot, and I am loving the designs debuting this fall!

Upholstery top to bottom: Chip chair, grotto sofa, clutch dining chairs

Case goods top to bottom: Shale dresser, Dang console, modu-licious low dresser

Etc: Laika Pendant lamps, Turn Side Table, and Hitch Bookcase

Love these pieces!  Do you have a favorite?

Mixing sets

I'm not one for "sets" of things, any more than I am an "outfit" person.  I suppose it's that I don't like things too matchy-matchy, and I always want to keep my options open.

I have had several clients recently who tend to buy sets of the showroom floor because it is easy, or because they are not sure what they love or how to mix it.  My response?  I've never bought a set in my life.

While this is technically true, I do have some partial sets, and the truth is, put to the right use, they can be a great thing.  The key?  Separate them.  Counter-intuitive, I know, but breaking up a set to different corners of the house not only means that you cut down on a single room looking too much like a showroom, you also create continuity throughout your space.

My parents bought this bedroom set before I was born.  It moved in to my bedroom as a teenager, and I inherited the armoire when I bought my first apartment and the headboard when I bought my first house.  I love the visual relationship between the two now--in separate rooms, but sometimes visible together.

This works with bedding, too.  And china!  Anything that typically comes in a group, but two different sets and mix 'em together.

What do you think: are you a "set" person?  Or do you like more of a mix?

What's in a sofa?

Did you see this piece, analyzing the couch, from the Home and Garden section of the NYTimes?

The author asks the question: what is the difference (really) between a $1000 mass market sofa and a $13,000 designer breed?

The answer: quality.

The author concludes that under $1000, you are going low end and you will likely pay for it.  What I find interesting is the conclusion that there's not much difference in the mid-range, which, let's face it, is where most of us live.

Here's my two cents: when it comes to high-use upholstery, buy the best you can afford.  Have you ever read the reviews for an Urban Outfitters couch?  Go do it.  Complaints about everything from marked discomfort to quickly disintegrating product.  While I can't imagine buying a couch that costs more than my car, I have purchased couches twice in my life (and I am 38!) and both times I saved my pennies for a good one.  The first, (seen here at the end of its days) was from the ABC Carpet and Home outlet, so while I paid about $1000, the value was higher, and I certainly got my money's worth with 10+ years of hard use.

The second is the Bantam from DWR, the entry level price point for that often out-of-reach retailer. We have had it for 3.5 years and I imagine we will have it for many more.

Oh!  And our loveseat is from Lee, in a Kravet fabric, and I plan to have it forever.  The classic lines and small shape mean I can reupholster it and use it in various rooms and in any house, forever and ever, amen.

I often think about how weird it is that I am reluctant to buy "real" furniture--all my case goods are vintage or ikea, I made most of our headboards, curtains, and soft goods--but when it comes to upholstery, I firmly believe you just have to go with the real deal.

If you read the comments in the Time article, you will see that opinion on this point varies widely.  Where do you stand?

Printed Upholstery

I find myself pinning a lot of pretty printed upholstery these days.

Peter Dunham

Better Homes and Gardens via The Inspired Room

Julie Nightingale Design via Centsational Girl

I recently got the latest West Elm catalog, and, always on trend, I'm loving their new fabric prints collection.  Have you seen?

from top, Everett, Victor, Bliss, and Oliver chairs.  All available in all of the prints.  There are butterflies, too!    Shop them here.

And for a bolder floral, how about the World Market Victoria?

What about you: do you dig bold prints on upholstery?  I still want to do this, but maybe using this.

Woven leather seating

Do you ever have an obsession just sort of sneak up on you?

When I recently uploaded my phone pictures, I noticed that I had photographed these vintage woven leather chairs not once, but twice (H& B Gallery),

And then snapped a modern version with the leather strapped on a sexy chrome base (Francis King Showroom)

It's official: I am suddenly, inexplicably into woven-leather chairs.

Jens Risom is the classic, but there are a ton of options out there, new and old.

Fabulous, no?

Tell me: any surprise obsessions these days?

Also.  Someone local please hire me to do a room with those vintage chairs!

A Trend Reversal

Oh, the ubiquitous painted Furniture.  For the past few years, DIY painted furniture has been everywhere.  It makes perfect sense: new casegoods are expensive, vintage ones are often dingy, and painting them is much easier than stripping, sanding, staining and generally restoring the wood to full glory.

In Apartment Therapy's round up of best makeovers of the year, many of them were actually make-unders, where wood pieces were stripped of all embellishments and returned to their natural state.  Like this one.

Also this and this.

I have to admit, I think this is going in the right direction.

It has been interesting to watch all that trendy painted furniture turn up on craigslist.  Have you noticed?  Some people clearly understand that a bad paint job devalues a piece of furniture, but others are actually charging up for the time and materials, even using the makeover as a selling point.  "Annie Sloan Chalk Paint" now shows up in search terms and headlines.

While I think there is still (and always will be) a place for some painted furniture, I've been glad to see the natural warmth of wood return.

I'm curious: would you buy painted second hand furniture if the paint job was decent?  Or is that something you would only do yourself?

Indoor wicker: a makeover

There's really nothing better than giving old furniture new life, is there?
The lines of my client's vintage wicker set were gorgeous, but clearly it had seen better days.

A coat of black paint and some simple, sleek upholstery in a neutral outdoor fabric, and it is ready for its closeup.

Wicker paint by The Wicker Shop, upholstery genius by Union Place.
Kravet fabric, Robert Allen gimp.

Obviously, the room has not been styled.  At all.  So just for fun, what some other people have done with their vintage black wicker, inside, all eclectic.

here

here

here

Inspired?

25 Awesome (and affordable!) side tables in all shapes and sizes

Yesterday, 25 awesome and affordable side tables by vibe: Bohemian, Pop, Architectural, Industrial, and Cottage.

Today, let's look at some common side table shapes: Tray/folding, drum/garden seat, pedestal/accordian, U-shaped, and barrel.

Just goes to show you can get the shape or function you need in really different looks.
All tables are under $200 (with one naughty exception that I just couldn't resist.)  Many are under $100.

All sources are by column, left to right and then top to bottom

Tray tables: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
Drum/Garden seats: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
Pedestal/ Accordian: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
U-shaped: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
Barrel: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

So, between this round up and yesterday's, any favorites?