Why I love vintage

Vintage has many obvious benefits: the unique factor, the story associated with an interesting piece (real or made up!), and, often but not always, the price point.  But the best thing of all?  The element of surprise.

I have been looking for a mirror for the powder room for a couple of months now, but when it came down to it, a) I was not in a hurry, since there is a perfectly functional, if plain, mirror in there already, and b) I was not willing to spend anywhere near three digits on it.

So imagine my utter delight when, after piano practice on Tuesday, the girls and I wandered in to an occasional sale at Urban Cottage and stumbled upon the most perfect mirror for that space!  Perfectly unique, reminiscent of a high-end model or two, but under $50.  I could not have planned it, I just had to stop looking and let it come to me.  The find is a thrill.

That, my friends, is why I love vintage.  And I'm off to all my favorite haunts this afternoon with a client.

Have a great weekend!

Mirror Madness from an unexpected source

You know who is killing it with interesting yet reasonably priced mirrors in all styles?

Pier 1.

After falling for the black and white octagonal(ish) mirror from One Kings Lane in my powder room design, I thought, what else is out there at or below this price point ($200)?  Folks, I only needed to make one retail stop to round up a dozen mirrors under $200 (many under $150).  I threw in lucky number 13--the peacock mirror--even though it clocks in at $234 on sale.

Check 'em all out here.  There are 109 to choose from--these were just my favorites.

Sun. Burst.

Amber over at Amber Interior Design has a fun blog series called Trends I Aint Mad At.  I put sunbursts squarely in that category.  Yes, they are "trending now," but they are so classic, and for good reason.  They are available in all shapes, sizes, styles, and price points (or you can make your own), work in any room of the house, and bring an often much-needed round shape to a room that can easily get filled with rectangles.

Witness.

Bedrooms:

Living Spaces:

Lonny

House Beautiful

Lonny

Jamie Meares

Eating spaces:

Bathrooms:

And entryways!

Design Dump

I rest my case.

All hail the might sunburst!

Dunzo. Teeny tiny sunburst mirrors.

I shared a sneak peek of a bedroom lo these many years ago.

Since then, the draperies were installed (dusty lavender silk dupioni!)  and the custom throw pillows were made (Schumacher makes everything better!), but it was still missing just one little thing.

To balance the high ceilings and the wish-it-were-slightly-bigger painting over the bed, I wanted a pair of small gilded sunbursts on either side, but I didn't want to pay a mint.

Ask, and HomeGoods shall deliver.

Someday I will photograph the whole room, with a real camera.

More proof that sunbursts belong anywhere!

Here are a couple of other spaces with tiny sunbursts:

Get your tiny sunbursts here.  Or if you're cheap like me, here.

Don't ask me why they all come in sets of three!

Someone Please Buy This For Me

Serena and Lily Tramp Art Mirror, Small

I'll take two, please.

The girls' bathroom is just calling out for them!