panton chair

Born in 1960 by designer Verner Panton, the Panton chair is as fresh today as it was 50 years ago…its curvaceous form lends a graceful touch to any style decor…fun, versatile, comfortable, stackable and extremely durable, the Panton chair is a timeless piece worthy of a closer look!

Wishing you a wonderful weekend!

photos from Vicente Wolf, The Brooklyn Home Company, Elle Decor, Veranda and Flickr

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a familiar form

Yesterday, while researching J. Randall Powers, I came across an interior he designed for his mother…much to my delight, I recognized a familiar form in the living room, two Jansen armchairs from the 1940s…the shape and caning reminded me of the two 1940s fireside chairs I just refurbished…it’s quite a thrill to discover similar pieces, especially when they are highlighted in a stylish interior such as this one! Please enjoy this very chic apartment filled with inspiring furnishings and art!

above, my 1940s fireside chair; upholstered in a slubby white cotton with a natural wood frame ~ below, Houston living room designed by J. Randall Powers for his mother Laura Henson; Jansen armchairs are from the 1940s

photos by Joshua McHugh for Elle Decor, top photo by me

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from sidewalk find to bedroom chic

Last summer, my husband spotted a chair on the sidewalk wearing a FREE sign made out of cardboard and magic marker…being the thoughtful person he is, he called me on my cell phone thinking I might want to check it out, and I’m so glad I did! Cosmetically, it was in rough shape but the frame was structurally sound and the shape boasted some lovely feminine curves…we scooped it up on our way to dinner that night and happily, I had a new project to dream about…unfortunately, I don’t have any “before” shots but let me try to paint you a picture…the wood frame was stained a medium brown and upholstered in a brown and mustard plaid fabric, reminiscent of Archie Bunker’s infamous chair on “All in the Family”…very late 60’s early 70’s…I started by having it stripped and sanded which revealed a beautifully crafted frame…in fact I loved the frame so much, I lived with the skeleton for many months before moving forward…the images in todays’ post are the final product…a natural wood frame upholstered in white linen, trimmed with upholstery tacks…it now resides in the corner of our bedroom next to two windows dressed in layers of white linen…from sidewalk find to bedroom chic…how romantic!

photos by me, 4/14/11

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fireside chairs

Just back from a brief two day trip to NYC! Had a wonderful time with my high school girlfriends…lots of laughter and stories! Highlights include lunch at Bergdorf’s, browsing the 7th floor home store, dinner at Trattoria Dell’Arte, the incredible interiors at the Fendi store on 5th Avenue, the window display of cork “sculpture” at Anthropology’s Rockefeller center store, and of course, the always spectacular Manhattan skyline…I’m sorry I don’t have photos from the trip but I promise the next time I’m out and about I’ll bring my camera along for the blog!

What I do have photos of are my newly upholstered 1940s fireside chairs! I picked them up the day before I left so I was excited to get home and post about them…they are upholstered in a thick white cotton, similar to the texture of a french grain sack…originally painted, the wood was stripped and sanded to expose the natural knots, grain and caning…I loved the hue of the wood so much, I decided to leave them in their raw state…comfortable and simple, I’m thrilled with the results! I’d love to know what you think!

photos by me, 4/9/11

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dining room chairs

It is official! The four dining rooms chairs I purchased well over a year ago are finally finished! They hail from the 1940s and were in need of a COMPLETE overhaul…the original paint color was “avocado green” with matching vinyl upholstery, (not a good look!) but I loved the shape and the idea of giving them a new life…so here they are, a year later, stripped, sanded, painted and upholstered in a mohair fabric I chose to compliment the golden hue of the grasscloth…I couldn’t be happier with the results! Oh, and extremely comfortable! In fact, I’m sitting on one as I write this post…

I hope the next time you see a neglected piece of furniture, you’ll stop and think, I wonder what it could be…

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fabrics

Photographing fabric is a challenge. It’s close to impossible to capture the color and even more difficult to show the beauty of its texture. Today’s post is my attempt at sharing with you a few fabric samples I purchased the other day at Zimman’s. The photo above (my antique salad servers from Paris, purchased at Nesting on Main) is the inspiration for the color palette ~ a golden brown with hints of earthy green. I was so fortunate to find just enough mohair in the exact color I was searching for! This fabric will be used for one of my current projects, restoring four 1940s dining chairs for my house. I adore the chairs and was determined to find just the right fabric for durability, color, texture and longevity. Voila, a mohair in my inspirational color palette! Also, to update you on the other chairs I had posted about (the pair of 1940s bergeres), I found a gorgeous white cotton (similar to the texture of a french grain sack) that will be the perfect compliment to the unfinished wood. When they are complete, the two will grace either side of the fireplace. The other fabrics are just for fun! (possibly for accent pillows) I absolutely love the linear designed fabric! (it reminds me of the Fendi logo) I’m thinking I might order a few yards, perfect for pillows on the white bergeres. I’ll be sure to include photos when the chairs are complete! (ps – the chair in today’s post is a decorative chair I purchased at Nesting on Main ~ great for photo shoots!)

below, The mohair! C’est magnifique!

below, The linear designed fabric, perfect colors and beautiful texture! Reminds me of the classic Fendi logo!

below, photo from Fendi

below, An animal inspired textile can be the perfect pattern to enhance any decor!

below, photo from Charles Spada

photos of antique salad servers and fabrics by me, 12/10/10

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chair restoration part one

above, picture from my living room

The chair, pictured above, is one of many restoration projects I’m working on right now. It is from the 1940’s and was actually featured in the design book, Domino: The Book of Decorating. It is credited to the Statesville chair company and was originally sold with a painted finish. I have been fortunate enough to purchase six of these chairs over the past few years ~ three pairs, all from different sources! The pairs were painted in completely different colors, practically disguising the fact that they are the same chair! Currently all six have been striped and sanded to expose their natural wood and the original fabrics have been removed. I photographed one in my living room thinking it may have a home near the fireplace. If I choose to leave the wood exposed, a white, or off white, linen/cotton could be quite beautiful. Another idea is to paint the frame white but distress the finish so it has an aged patina (like the image below from James Huniford). This would open up a whole new world of possibilities for upholstery. I promise to keep you posted with my progress! (best of all ~ they are as comfortable as they are beautiful!) I’ve included a few inspiration photos ~ form, fabric, finish! Lot’s of wonderful possibilities!

above, picture from James Huniford (nice painted patina!)

above, picture from Steven Gambrel (similar shape, looks like an aged wood finish)

above, picture from Nate Berkus (very similar shape, especially the front of the arm)

above, 18th Century Swedish Gustavian Louis XVI Bergere from W. Gardner, Ltd. as photographed for 1st dibs.com

above, 19th Century French, Grey Painted Duchesse-brisee from Cote Jardin Antiques as photographed for 1st dibs.com

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