I have a love affair with anything vintage.
From, lamps to chairs to vases and more. I try to incorporate vintage pieces into my designs when I can.
I come from a long line of “collectors.” From my great, great grandmother down they treasured and kept furniture, decor and collectables from as early as the mid 1800’s. I selectively use some of these items in my home today. I see them as tactile relics of moments treasured. Something with history and energy that can’t be found in something new.
It was the summer of 2010 and I was two months into my business when I first discovered my favorite DC vintage shop Miss Pixies. It was w/out any exaggeration a dream come true! I couldn’t believe this had been here right under my nose for so many years! Her shop quickly became a weekly shopping excursion for me. Even though my business was young and I had few reasons to be shopping, the store always brought me inspiration. With each step I created vignettes in my mind using the various chairs, art and tables I was surrounded by.
After a while I found my will power waining and I simply couldn’t resist the urge to invest in some of these amazing finds. I had decided that instead of shopping the big box home and decor stores I would start using some of these vintage pieces in my staging inventory. I loved how it gave each home a feeling of realness. The spaces came alive and no longer looked like a generic hotel lobby.
Soon enough I began finding those design clients who were open to the concept of using vintage pieces in their homes. The first experience was w/ a couple on Capitol Hill who needed a combined living room and dining room. They were 30 somethings with no children living in a fabulous row house in one of the hottest neighborhoods.
As I got to know them I found that they were both artists and worked in creative fields. They loved to entertain and were known to have the best parties amongst their friends but their house did not reflect this one bit.
When I first entered their home it felt as though I entered one of their parents houses. Decorated with hand me downs from generations before and left over college furniture, it was time for a change.
We quickly got to work by donating the old sofa and armchair and replaced them with a sectional more in line with their lifestyle. We then used the other half of the room for the dining table and chairs. Right away I knew Pixies would have what we needed. I was able to find a farmhouse table and paired it with a mix of leather nail head end chairs and a set of metal industrial chairs giving it that urban feel we were trying to capture.
Pixies came through on some new barware and a few other goodies as well.
My clients still use this room today as happily as the day we first designed it 9 years ago. Vintage allows for a timeless design and my hope is that the happy feeling they get from this room lives on for many more.
