Archive for the ‘vintage’ Category

DEN

Monday, March 28th, 2011

That’s a new coffee table and a new chair. Let’s just get that out of the way.

Well, technically it’s a pair of new chairs, but I can only fit one in the tiny oddly laid out den. Everyone made it quite clear (and I concurred) that the new chesterfield destroyed the Eames lounger and mushed its face into the cement. This I knew when I brought in the chester amd I really wanted something to replace Mr. 670 with something like a Milo Baughman rocker (which surprisingly Emily just used on SFAS for Joy’s place and I was CRAZY JEALOUS). Since I don’t have a gazillion dollars to buy a Baughman, I went the old ebay route to look for something loosely “inspired by” and stumbled on this pair of cantilevered chrome tubular sling chairs. It had the wide 1970’s loungy vibe I was hoping for, so I made a ‘best offer’ which totally low balled the seller therefore I assumed it’d get rejected – but then they surprisingly accepted. Suddenly sh*t got real and I was obligated to arrange for local pick-up in Los Angeles, which turned into a bit of a disaster, but that’s another dumb story and blah blah blah.

Here’s the other half of the chair pair. Look at that nasty and ugly brown town upholstery. Blech.

But…I’m getting this thing redone. Navy. Leather. Sling. Or perhaps heavy duty canvas?

No cushions, no fussy crap, just a simple sling attached to the cantilever frame. Modern it up and make it super duper sex-a-fied.

Then there’s this beast. It’s new, it’s driftwood, it came from a stuffy antique store and was cheap-o until I discovered it was also an additional 40% off which means super SOLD to me. Even though, I have an army of these type of tables, none are driftwood or lightweight or have an awesome shaped top.

I love the shape of the glass but I HATE glass coffee table tops in high use areas. My big plan is to have a piece of marble cut in the same shape and size as the glass and make a crazy Saarinen tulip coffee table driftwood hybrid that I assure you, will rock your entire head off once it’s all done. At least, that’s the plan, but we all know that sometimes plans go awry.

We finally hung the Bumling lamp that I bought a long while ago off Stephanie. It totally still needs a diffuser, but those crazy Euro mm are freaking me out. I’m not quite sure what size I need.

I also need a new floating media unit to  mount under our TV. Been thinking a lot about Anna’s fauxdenza and modifying the idea to be longer and leaner and have sliding media doors. Check back in a few years, because that project is like at the bottom of my huge list.

Ines Colmorgen + André Wyst. So moody. So cool. I bet they eat fancy cheese plates and smell exquisite.

Completely still in love with the Prouvé Potence Lamp. Going to have some sweet stuff to show you soon. Let’s just say, I would like something like this to add to the den as I continue to shift and change things up and I may actually be able to…

BTW:

This is my little quick mock-up of the changes I’d like to make for DEN 2011.

+ Larger Gray/White cowhide rug. Good lord I’ve been searching for an affordable one for forever.
+ Marble coffee table top.
+ Navy leather and chrome sling chair.
+ Smallish Danish cabinet instead of the tension rod shelving unit
+ Potence-ish light
+ Horizontal modernist stain painting? Frankenthaler or Rothko? HA! YEAH RIGHT – but I do know how to oil paint.
+ BM Bear Creek paint? Maybe stop fighting the wainscoting and just go for it? Still considering…
+ The elusive fiddle leaf fig tree or a giant cactus?
+ Accessories, but dudes, that can wait.

Still a long ways to go with the den, but I see where it wants to be. More sophisticated for sure, but also a place to be comfy and eat dinner – yeah, we are coffee table eaters most of the time – so classy. I also spend about 80% of my day hanging out in here, either working at the computer or watching Deadwood so it needs to stop making my brain ache with what I don’t like.

Thrifty!

Tuesday, March 22nd, 2011

I headed out with Laure, Abby and Beth to Palm Springs last week to shop, eat and do girl crap.

We scuttled around to all our favorite vintage haunts and they found things here and there, but ultimately, I was the greediest girl when it came down to buying some stuff and then mushing it into Laure’s poor car.

First to be shown off (of my recently attained loot) is this brass lotus lamp from the 1960’s. I’m not sure what designer or manufacturer it can be attributed to, but one of my favorite expensive vintage ateliers has a bunch that I can’t afford – you know, if I wanted a pair or something. I found it at the Revival’s Thrift and selfishly yelled “DIBS” when I saw it hanging from the ceiling by all the bric-a-brac.

The Boy and I installed it in the hallway. Once again, we had to resort to weird ceiling covers and lots of finagling to figure out how to properly mount this bad boy. With vintage lighting its always such a hassle to get all the mounting stuff right. The nipples and hex nuts and other titillating pieces are like a puzzle of sexy despair.

I need to patina that bright brass ceiling canopy. Yikes. It didn’t even bother me till I sat and really looked at these pictures…

Getting a really good shot of our main hallway is impossible. There are five entrances in the space of like 100sqft and the combination of all the walls, angles and doors create a labyrinth of impractical camera blocking horror.

The lotus lamp is the perfect scale and more interesting to look at than the boring ol’ Ikea Fado lamp that had been installed in the hallway for the past three years. I think I’m in love and I think I’m keeping it forever and ever and always. I don’t say that all that often, seeing as I love switching stuff up, but this time I think I may actually mean it. Maybe.

Not Thrifty!

Thursday, March 17th, 2011

This is an ode, an ode to the things we left behind…because our rental car was a Chevy Impala and was not good for transporting sofas.

Not everyone’s cup of tea, but that upholstery was in PERFECT condition and the base was amazing, but weirdly, it was also on wheels. Take the wheels off and you have this incredibly perfect vintage sofa with so much style and flair that your boring room is suddenly made resplendent. I loved this thing, even if it is all brown town.

This is like my chesterfield sofa, you know, if it had been a long time drug user and was down on its luck and eating way to much sodium. It needed a little love to get cleaned up, get it off the streets and reintegrated it into society. Ok, maybe a lot of love.

This is the one that got away. I know you’re thinking, “Morgan, girl, you are crazy. Look at that crazy floral fugly mess happening all over that sofa.”

Yeah? Huh? What?

BOOM. This thing was $55. Fifty Five Dollars. FIFTY FIVE DOLLARS.

I was dying. Dying to take it home, but every which way we tried to swing it, we just couldn’t get it back to California. All I could think was that reupholstery doesn’t cost a whole lot for something this simple and the frame is in perfect shape. And it’s fifty. five. dollars.

Have you guys been watching Secrets From a Stylist with Emily on the HGTV? Guess what – this same sofa was in the most recent episode with that couples loft. I know! Crazy right? What a weirdo coincidence. As soon as I saw it on her show I got all pissed again that we had to leave it in Arizona. Next time I bring a van. Next time I will not fail.

Then I saw a coffee table that was cute and some man sized geode things…

…and rows and rows of turquoise…and got yelled at for taking pictures and had to get all sneaky with my iPhone…

…and more rock things…

…and all kinds of petrified wood.

Have you been to Quartzsite, AZ? That place is insane. A little scary…and totally insane.

Ugh, still beating myself up for not renting a van or something, but those things are annoyingly expensive. Next time, oh you silly willy next time, I need to bite the bullet and just come up with a better plan. I miss you sofas…