Teasing is Cruel

Teasing? I'm not talking about taunting or bullying of young children here - no - that's not just cruel, it's unacceptable. I'm talking about flea market vendors who have things like this sitting around their booth, are nowhere to be found and when they do finally return (after I've circled 50-leven times), tell you it's not for sale . . .

What the what?? Are you kidding me??? It should be illegal. Yes, that is Sun Drop just sitting in the chair and a dish of dog food under the chair. If you're not from the South and thus unfamiliar with Sun Drop, I will liken it to Mountain Dew - full of caffeine and sugar. Which explains the state of the vendor's few remaining teeth, all of which I wanted to punch out when he told me the chair was not for sale. Sorry, that was unkind. But I did feel that way. I own it. I realize this chair is not to everyone's taste, but I've been secretly wanting a piece of gilt rope furniture ever since I saw Angela's guest room settee . . . 

Source: tphblog.com via My Interior Life on Pinterest

Then more recently, when I spied this rope bench in a nursery . . .

Source: apartmenttherapy.com via My Interior Life on Pinterest

Love. And truly, I was just looking for a little bench like this when I saw the chair, and my jaw dropped. Of course, I would have reupholstered the red chair to something more sedate like black or cream so it didn't look like I was living in a bordello. When the chair vendor finally decided to make an appearance (after I had left my card with the good-natured Mid-Century vendor across the way and asked him to share it with the guy if he ever returned as I was interested in the price), he told me that he had just purchased it that morning from another flea market vendor who had cleaned out the estate of a former decorator. Which made me even angrier . . . this time at myself for not having arrived earlier at the flea market. Oh well. The whole moral of this story is that there should be a code of ethics at flea markets, etc. If the chair wasn't for sale, don't leave it out for everyone to see and then leave your booth unattended. Rude. At least have the decency to put a sheet over it or simply put a sign that says NFS on it or something. Also, cliche but true, the early bird gets the worm. Or the rope chair.

What else did I see at the flea? These cool Kelly Wearstler-esque chairs . . .

I've never seen anything quite like them. The brass detail running down the middle was so unique. Of course, I have nowhere to put them, so I texted a photo of them to my friend Bri, and of course, she wanted them badly. So, she met up with me soon thereafter, and they were hers. I'm sure she'll be posting about their new home in her basement soon!

Other than that, I saw a couple of cool lamps, but didn't buy anything. However, remember Anastasia of the tortoise shell sconce fame? I actually got to meet her in person. She was so sweet, introduced me to her dad and then actually gifted me a very cute vintage ice bucket from her booth with . . . wait for it . . . Greek Key on it. 

How sweet is that? So, the flea wasn't a total loss after all, and Anastasia restored my faith in the goodness of flea market vendors. The end (well, until I find a rope bench/chair/settee, that is). 

Rope a Dope

Once again, my rut was broken by a find. It never fails to revive my spirit. I know, I'm easy. Well, not that kind of easy. But, I digress. Remember when I was pining over a piece of rope furniture in this post? Well, I found a side chair. Now, it's not the rope and tassel/Hollywood Regency style, but more of the 80's style, but I still am loving it. Without further ado, here it is . . .

The fabric is not even in bad condition, just a bit dirty. But, I would still love to reupholster it. Just have to find the right fabric. And the finish doesn't bother me either. At first, I thought I might paint it black or gold, but it's kind of nice to have a different wood tone in the mix. So, I'm still thinking on that as well. I actually found a similar chair at an estate sale recently, but it had a caned back and was much more expensive, so I passed.  

Oh, and I got some "emerald" earrings at Target that make me happy . . .

My birthstone is emerald, and I love all the jewel tones for fall, so for $12.99 they're the perfect pick-me-up. 

The weather here is gorgeous, so I'm excited to be out and about today. Hope everyone has a great Wednesday!

You Win Some . . .

you lose some. Such is life. It's all a cycle. Thanks for all those who supported my chair quandary yesterday. As you probably saw from the "update" at the bottom of yesterday's post, the chairs were indeed sold. Sigh. I just take this as a sign that there are even better chairs out there somewhere just waiting for me. But never fear, the winning in the title (hope I don't sound too much like Charlie Sheen) refers to a gilt rope and tassel bench I scored this morning!

Yay! My obsession with rope/tassel furniture is well documented here so you know I was thrilled to find this vintage "Made in Italy" gilt rope and tassel bench. I'm thinking it will go in my new office (which I swear I'm working on along with other projects). Now, it has a terrible faux needlepoint/tapestry fabric on it . . .

He's whispering, "Do you think this fabric is as hideous as I do?"

But, that's an easy fix. It has the type of seat you can just unscrew from the bottom and staple gun on something new. Cannot wait to look for some fabric or maybe comb through my remnants and use something I already have. Either way . . . project! Another one. 

Hope everyone has a great weekend. I'll be hitting a local event called the Porter Flea that promotes the indie craft movement and supports artists, small businesses, and nonprofits across Nashville and beyond. I'm very excited to partake in the local flava and expect to see some really cool stuff, including a lot of hipsters I suspect.

I'll be back next week with some creative projects I've been working on including a DIY faux shagreen tray. Don't laugh . . . I can be crafty (sorta) too.

Fiorentina

Remember way back in December when I was trying to pick a fabric for my little gilt rope bench?

I asked for opinions, and I got them. Even though La Fiorentina won the popular vote, Les Touches won the electoral vote. Okay, just kidding. Seriously, it was close though. In addition to comments, I received several emails from both friends and readers I never knew I had. I was still conflicted so I decided to buy both remnants, get them in the room and then make a decision. Well, the Etsy seller with the Les Touches was less than responsive when I asked questions about the fabric, so I went with the more helpful Arianna Belle who sold me a remnant of La Fiorentina at a very reasonable price in an expeditious manner. Sometimes customer service wins! So, here is my newly upholstered stool in La Fiorentina . . .

I'm loving it. The rest of the room still needs additional tweaking before revealing more, so stay tuned. Sorry for the pitiful iPhone photo. I snapped this a few days ago. Our weather here is beyond depressing and rainy so no good photos for a while, I'm afraid. Gray days and a nasty cold are making for a dreary January thus far, but I've hunkered down with some of these . . .

and they're helping me feel a little better. Okay, so they're not the healthiest cold remedy, but they make me happy and that's more than soup and tea have done. Any port in the storm.

Grasscloth Console & Malachite

You may remember my grasscloth sofa table/console DIY that I completed a while back. Well, Style at Home is featuring it on their website along with six other blogger's projects including my blog friend Heather from Love Your Space. You can check out all the budget-friendly DIY projects on their website here. They asked for the submission a while ago, so below is a photo with my reupholstered benches so you can see what it looks like now . . .

In other news, I got some fabric samples back from Spoonflower for my rope chair. 

Yes, it is malachite. I also got one from the same designer, Chrysocola, that's a slightly different color that actually matches more of the teal I have going on in the rest of my room/rug . . . 

The first (larger) sample is more of an emerald green which is probably more the true malachite color, but I'm leaning toward the second one. I got the samples in cotton poplin . . . Spoonflower gives you different options. I'm not in love with the quality or feel. Has anyone ordered from Spoonflower before? What type of fabric should I order if I decide to go this route?

Shopping Finds

My children are out this week for the coldest Spring Break in recent memory. So, while we're in town between our short little trips to visit grandparents, I thought I'd check in and dump my most recent shopping photos on you.

First up, a recent jaunt to Homegoods turned up some nice lamps.

I like the graphic punch of this chevron lamp. I know some people are over the whole chevron pattern thing, but I think this small amount is simple and classic.

I was drawn to this gray lacquer lamp in a modern interpretation of a pineapple/artichoke.

I'm a sucker for creamy pottery lamps in organic shapes. I've seen versions all over the place, but I really like this one. And the price is nice.

Still like a little gold tortoise shell action, especially if they're faux. The subdued black bases and linen shades make these a classic choice.

I spied this rope mirror there also . . .

This would look great in a variety of spaces (a boy's room, beach house, etc.), but what first popped to mind was this Nate Berkus designed bathroom . . . 

Source: architecturaldigest.com via My Interior Life on Pinterest

Then there were some vivid powder-coated Tolix stool knock-offs that would add some fun to any kitchen . . . 

If you don't like the red (ahem, Sissy), you can always paint them, I don't know . . . green. Like this:

Source: littlebluedeer.com via My Interior Life on Pinterest

And speaking of red, I saw this really pretty lacquered cabinet at an antique mall. 

While I'm not a huge red fan, sometimes, in moderation, it really works. The clean lines and hardware on this piece are great and reminded me of the beautiful blue cabinet in Kate Spade's apartment . . .

Source: theselby.com via My Interior Life on Pinterest

Next up, a great pair of vintage wicker chairs with a very Boho/John Robshaw-esque fabric . . .

These chairs could be just the unexpected touch a room could use to save it from predictability. 

Okay, so we've all seen recovered vintage chairs with ikat fabric but I found these so charming. Something about the warm wood and cool gray made them more interesting. 

A colorful, original abstract print signed and numbered always makes a room. 

And, some interesting accessories to bring some personality . . . 

I used restraint and didn't purchase any of the above pieces, just snapped them with my phone. But the next few pieces made it home with me from an estate sale on Friday . . . 

A vintage Panton chair knock-off. Pretty sure it's not real because there are no markings. But it's very sturdy and fun. It's going in the playroom too. 

And a couple of vintage lamps because I have an addiction . . . 

This one is getting its base spiffed up and going in Meg's room, I think. 

And this one I'm not sure about yet. It may go in the playroom or it may go up for sale. Stay tuned. 

Have you found any fun things lately?

Shopping for Inspiration

Sometimes you're looking for something specific, and sometimes you just want to be inspired. That was my goal this afternoon. I had some time in between fabric shopping for a client and another appointment, so I hit up an antique mall. Often I'm drawn to items specifically, but sometimes it's just the vignette or combination of textures and colors that gets me.

Here are some pretties that caught my eye today . . .

These lucite, brass-plated and glass shelves would look amazing anywhere.

 I love over-scaled sconces especially with palm fronds. I, of course, would gilt these.

My phone didn't capture the true vivid orange hue of these vintage barrel tub chairs with original fabric, but they were so arresting. The legs were painted to match and the brass casters finished them off.

Awesome mid-century lamp.

Great, graphic carnival lithograph. Who doesn't need a "Freaks" sign in their home??

Nice natural, masculine vignette with wood, leather and metal.

 Ornate needlepoint ottoman on casters.

The colors in the needlepoint were so rich.

 And speaking of colors, the orange, blues and citrus greens in this rug were amazing.

Loved this trio of abstracts in different metallic frames.

Traditional blue and white pottery with more modern art, layered with a gold mirror and marble lamp make for an interesting mix.

And just to show that anything can be art, these are chalice covers that have been framed. Having been raised Catholic, I think these might be really cool to have. So unique and graphic too. I could group them with the chalice I actually bought at an estate sale recently. I couldn't resist - I told my husband I found the holy grail. He was not amused.

Another piece of interesting art, I'll leave you with this oversized photograph of old rope mounted under acrylic. My husband might have a similar photo somewhere. Need to go look.

Did you find anything inspiring? I know I did.