Living and Dining... a Before and After!

 The rug adds a huge impact. I pushed her a little and we recovered the camel back in a turquoise crocodile pattern. 

 Recently, I got the chance to redo a living room. The client had two chairs covered in a Chinoiserie fabric and we used that as a jumping off point. She had good pieces, but they needed updating. Plus... the paint color was killing it. Have a look at the before...it went from drab to fab! I spy a little white fretwork chair from The Coop! 

We kept her faux bamboo coffee table and end tables because they were perfect in the space. 

I love to use blue and white as decorative elements and she had quite the collection. 

 Her dining room needed to flow and she was up for wallpaper. I convinced her to do a zebra wallpaper with a pale blue ceiling. Love me some zebra. Oh and did I mention, it's metallic! It has a silver/gold tone to it which worked beautifully with her chandelier. 

 We kept her existing dining chairs and recovered the seats, added a pair of striking head chairs and a large Greek Key rug to ground the space. 

 I simply adore her chandelier. She wanted to get rid of it. It has amethyst and crystal drops and I loved the unexpected touch of plum. Once we changed out the bulbs, it got a new quick facelift and she was convinced it was right for the space. 

 The gold linen drapes are ready-made drapes and we added a band of fabric for major interest.  She painted the inside of her china cabinet a dark teal to make the china pop against the background. 

 The large band was an affordable way to add a nice detail and give the drapes extra impact. Quite the transformation from the before.... 

We made some major changes with walls and furniture, but the client was willing to take risks and that makes all of the difference in a transformed space. We even did a little makeover in her entry so it would flow with the rest of house. Welcome home! 

Bye bye birdie... -H

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AN Chinoiserie fabric, greek key rug

The Coop is Open TODAY!

We just had some fab finds fly into the Coop! Some of our loot from Florida is freshly lacquered and filling up the Coop. Stop by today (Tuesday, March 18) and see us from 9 am-2 pm. We will be there pricing our new items at fab prices and would love a visit! 

You need to see this pair of Asian chests. They are HUGE and absolutely stunning. 

This Greek Key mirror would be a show stopper over a dresser, buffet or in an entry. 

 This fretwork console is in perfect condition and with a brand new coat of white lacquer, it would gorgeous in your foyer or behind a sofa. You can style it with great pieces from The Coop 

 Imagine the possibilities with this chair. It's mate sold, but it would be ultra-fab lacquered in a fun color and reupholstered in a bold print! 

 We have a set of 6 of these brass vintage bamboo chairs. A set of 4 just sold on 1st Dibs for $2500! We can have our set recovered in the fabric of your choice and the price is a steal! Stop by today and visit us (oh and shop a little too)! 

1930 Oleander Drive (red "barn" just after the train tracks), Suite B (side right door). We will see you today!
                       bye bye birdie.... 

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AN bamboo chairs, brass, lacquered furniture, The Coop

Should I Go Naked?

Nothing like starting off a Monday with a provocative question, right? Sorry to disappoint you though if you were hoping for some talk of skin . . . today, I'm talking about my dining room floor. You see, I'm kind of going through some growing pains with my dining room, and one of the changes I've already made is ditching my rug. What? Oh yes, I went naked. But the question is should I stay that way? Let's back up. In case you can't remember, here's what my dining room looked like with a rug . . .

Just your basic jute rug from West Elm, nothing fancy. I have patterned Persian rugs in rooms that adjoin this one so I never wanted any distracting colors or patterns on the floor of the dining room. So, I've always had some version of a jute or natural fiber rug (prior to this one I had the diamond jute rug from West Elm). And while I've always liked the look of these neutral natural rugs, they do have their downsides. A. They shed (there is always a pile of sandy/dusty/gritty material under the edges of the rug), and B. I have two dogs and a cat, and let's just say they sometimes think the jute is grass, and well, you can guess the rest. Which leads to C. The natural fiber rugs are hard to clean. So, after a while, mine was looking pretty worse for the wear, so I took it the the recycling center. Now, my dining room looks like this . . . 

I actually don't mind the bare floor, but I don't like the clashing browns of my dining table and floor. It was way less noticeable when there was a buffer rug between the two. And if you follow me on Instagram, you've probably seen these . . . 

Yes, I bought some new dining chairs. I got them at the Habitat Re-Store . . . they were such a good deal and I absolutely love the shape and black color (which needs some serious touching up, etc.). And, of course, they need new fabric so I got a swatch of this just to play around with. 

Which led me to think about painting my walls a creamy color . . . 

One thing leads to another. It's inevitable. So, basically now I want to change my entire dining room (table, chairs, walls, possibly chandelier, etc.). No big deal. To me, our current dining room looks a little formal, and we're not really a formal dining kind of family. More of a casual group.

Which leads me back to the floors . . . for now, I'm keeping them naked. Once other decisions are made, I'm sure it will become clear. Until then, here are some dining rooms I've been drawn to with naked floors . . .

Sources: all via my Pinterest Dining Room Board

Now, if I could just convince my uncle to switch dining tables with me, I'd be set (he currently has my dearly departed Grandmother's oval Saarinen style table which I covet). 

What about you, do you like the bare/naked dining room floor look?

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AN

Weekend Recap and Happy St. Paddy's Day!

Crazy, wonderful, wild weekend. To start... my cousin got married! It was a beautiful wedding and the kids had a blast! 

They pranced around at all of the festivities in their wedding clothes. I couldn't get over how grown up they looked! The bride was stunning and so happy -- Graham and I spent Saturday morning with the bride making bouquets out of daffodils - a personal fave. 

 The bride owns Margaret Turner Designs and makes beautiful scarves (and evidently bow ties) out of custom fabrics designed with shells she finds at the beach. I love the bow ties she made for the groomsmen --- So sweet and the perfect personal touch! 

In other news... a many of our fab Florida finds are coming back to the Coop tomorrow! They have been at the lacquer shop and here's a sneak peek.... 

This pagoda china cabinet is SOLD! A lucky girl scored this beauty for her dining room. 

 This pair of Asian chests are quite large and would make a big impact in a living room, bedroom or pushed together in a dining room. They are in excellent condition and FOR SALE!!! 

 I spy a very HOT pink desk and bamboo chair -- yes, SOLD...To a daring client for her little girl's room. The Greek key mirror and the coral pagoda are still available and stunning. 

 We are loving how this mid-century buffet looks lacquered in white. What a statement it will make -- SOLD! Stay tuned for more fab finds and our next big sale at the Coop, coming soon. 

Oh, and Happy St. Paddy's Day. While I was making bouquets, Read was making a leprechaun trap. Yes, either we are going to catch the world's largest leprechaun OR a whole slew of them. Parts of my garage are now green and gold, so we can celebrate all year. Never. Let. Kids. Spray. Paint. 

Have a lucky Monday! -H

Bye bye birdie...

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AN asian cabinet, brutalist credenza, greek key mirror, kelly green, lacquered, mid-century, pagoda cabinet

bird gone wild...

Hmmm.... It's been one of those weeks. (and I have been saying this since Monday!) SO... I need your help. I need a get outta the house hobby. Here's the deal, My kids (all 4) play soccer. That's 6 practices a week (Jeff coaches 3 teams so he does take them), 4 games- I'm not bad at math but 2 of them practice twice a week. My husband plays soccer on two different teams. I am glad they are all outside playing soccer ...even Jeff. My hubby looks good and I am thankful he has a sport he can still play that keeps him fit. I, however,  Do. Not. Play. Soccer. But I need something ...  
I need 1 practice a week for an hour. And I need a 2 hour game on the weekends. So I need 3 hours to myself! But here's the kicker- I don't need a sport. I don't really like to sweat. What can I do???
I'm not even sure I need to interact with other people.  I'm also pretty sure I do not need to be counted on. I need the freedom to blow off my hobby  if I feel like it. 
In summary... tennis is out, art classes are out, yoga...noga. All I can come up with is reading (solo at the library) or bird watching. I'm not sure my ADD self would excel at either. 
What's a girl to do? Any suggestions? And Jeff, please do not call me later with a suggestion. I can just hear ya now.. "Oh, I know something you can do twice a week"... CLEANING -( get your mind out of the gutter!)
Or if my people all left at the same time I could do something solo at my house... like say finish one of the million DIY projects sitting in my garage. 
Ah ha... I could take up gardening.... (Molly "helped" her Uncle John til our garden on Sunday) But... That would require a green thumb...hmmm...

Any suggestions? ...-A
Bye, bye birdie,

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AN

Score!

This weekend I just happened upon an estate sale. Of course I  u-turned only to hear a groan from my 11 year old in the back seat. (She was hoping I wouldn't see the sign) But I did and after wondering through the mostly empty house I came across this  tucked away in a back bedroom...

(here she is once I got her safely back to the Coop... gorgeous, right?)

You know I am a bit of a geek so I had to do a little research. I knew campaign furniture had something to do with the military but that's about all I knew. Soooo.... campaign furniture dates waaay back like 18th century way back. It was first designed and used for the British Military. It was furniture that could easily be taken apart and put back together when the officers moved from camp to camp. By the 19th century (and I am assuming after realizing moving with a load of furniture tended to slow one down especially when facing enemies) the actual take apart furniture began to fade. However, the style has stayed around and made comebacks through out the years. 

The piece I found is a vintage Henredon Officers Chest. We all know Henredon means exceptional quality as a high end furniture maker. Campaign pieces are often found in less then desirable condition and then lacquered in fun colors. This really makes the hardware pop and is a great look. However the piece I found is in insane in the membrane good shape and gorgeous as is! 

(This little beauty is $1295 on Etsy... before shipping)

If you find them in good shape they are very sought after. You can buy this one now on Ebay for $1349.99 (before the $250 shipping)...

 There was also the whole ikea hack where with a good coat of paint and some brass hardware you could create your own campaign piece from their inexpensive Rast line.

Not a bad look for a good on trend option just not a forever one...
So my little find is now in The Coop and at $750 for the dresser and another $175 for the mirror a steal! We also can price out having it lacquered for you in the color of your choice. (But come see the amazing finish as is first!)...-A
Happy Monday,Bye, bye birdie, 

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