Not far from my workplace is a gorgeous furniture store. Of course, I’d never actually purchase anything from said store (lovely as everything is) and must confess I really just went there yesterday to dream, sigh, stroke the furniture, study the furniture, then, let’s just say ‘borrow’ any good ideas for myself, when I spied a gorgeous rococo style mirrored dresser.
Done right, mirrored furniture can add a lovely sense of glamour to a space, and whilst it wouldn’t necessarily work well in my own little cottagey home, I do kinda like the idea of it. So, I studied the dresser in the store and convinced myself that, yes, I could DIY that (one day).
I know, probably not to everyone’s taste (and certainly much too cool to fit in at my little cottage) though I love the eclectic edge and character items like this can bring to a space.
I left the patina in pretty much original condition – which, for pieces like this, really is the essence of their appeal, all that banged-up and rusted metal telling the proud story of a former life.
I stencilled the retro typographics for that little eye-catching point of distinction.
With no-where for this piece to live at my place it was recently sold by auction on eBay.
Eeek! Squeel! An absolutely adorable vintage card file cabinet. And now it’s mine!
At only 1.1 meters deep x 1.6 meters wide (3.5 x 5.2 feet) my tiny entryway doesn’t even rate a mention on the floor plan! An inch either side of the photo below and you’re straight into the living room or hallway.
Sorry, I don’t have a before pic though if you can imagine a little undressed space with worn beige berber carpet, timber toned trim and a dirty apple green wall that’s pretty much it!
I knew early on that I wanted wallpaper somewhere in my house and this space seemed the perfect candidate – its location is discreet enough not to dictate the tone for the entire house though perfectly positioned to create a nice first impression.
We painted the trim white and re-carpeted then waited for an appropriately priced and proportioned piece of furniture to come along. You see, when the front door is opened it leaves a clearance of only 30cm (12 inches) so whatever I chose needed to be accordingly narrow. Eventually, a lovely weathered cedar console showed up – perfect! I had envisioned all white against the wallpaper though the tone in this table seemed just right as is.
I must confess, I change the decor around in my home ALL THE TIME (much to hubby’s annoyance) though currently have the console adorned with clearance and thrift store finds, fresh lavendar and rosemary, some re-purposed knick-knacks and a few special pieces.
