After showing you my prop room last week, I think we can all say that I don’t NEED more stuff. But when it comes to vintage I still snag things I think I can use or that will liven up a room or shot. Everything is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. But last weekend when I went to the Rose City Flea market in Portland I was seriously not planning on getting anything – I’m really trying to not keep accumulating for the sake of hoarding, but then as you can see below, I did. 🙂 It was no Rose Bowl but the serotonin flowed nevertheless and most of these pieces quickly found a place in our home and in a shot (NOT the prop room, I’m happy to report). A quick note about the prices – most of these pieces were on the spendy-er side, and if you are a big thrifter you are going to maybe think I overpaid – and probably I did. But after having my own online “flea” and having it end up not profitable at all, I have a lot of compassion for vintage dealers – it’s so much work for an unscalable business model. I think it’s safe to say that none of them went into it for the money – they all just love it and I want them to continue to do it!! I need them! I can’t really dedicate too much time to thrift shopping anymore, not because I’m over it but because it’s so much more work and time to find good stuff, especially when the antique malls in Portland are so good. There are more pickers competing than ever, and the thrift shops are mostly full of 5-year-old IKEA or Home Goods stuff (and I can’t believe what some thrift stores charge for home things – even more than they are new at the store!). So if I find something I love, that someone else spent hours sourcing, storing, transporting, wrapping, and unwrapping multiples times I really try to just pay for it without much haggling. But I also have a decent budget for home stuff (as it’s tied to work) and can write off anything that ends up in a reveal or on the blog – which yes, makes me very lucky. I’d just rather overpay on vintage than buy something new from a store that I might not keep forever. Again, I’m not saying that’s what you should do but if you are fortunate to have the extra money to spend – buying from local vintage dealers is the best way to go IMHO.
Sculpture (And Vase – Kinda)
This guy is so incredible, heavy, and oddly narrow – making it great to style on a mantel or even narrow bookshelves. It has a flower frog thing on top but I don’t think it’s meant to actually hold water (it doesn’t go all the way down). I’d more likely shove a weird sculptural branch into the frog. Excited about this on the mantel. It was spendy at $175 from @northwestmodern – a really awesome mid-century dealer. Zero regrets. It’s dope.
Drawer Box
As you know I have been collecting these store/apothecary drawer sets for a while now (mostly using them as side tables or nightstands). This guy was so cute but I couldn’t find a purpose for it…UNTIL I realized that I could use it in the pantry for all my teas!!!
It was expensive but I don’t remember how much because I got a lot from this dealer – I think it was between $150 – $250. Coming to a pantry near you soon – it looks SO SO CUTE.
Brass Floor Lamp
Now, this guy I got at the thrift store/consignment shop the next day (Hoot-n-Annie in Raleigh Hills for all you locals). It’s a Curtis Jere brass lamp from the ’70s and it was way too expensive (and yet not overpriced – these things run 2k + online). I passed on it the first day but then I kept thinking about it, picturing where it could go, and falling more in love. So I offered a much lower offer and got it (around $700. I KNOW I KNOW IT HURTS TO WRITE THAT).
Table Lamp
Oh, this little guy made their debut perfectly in the corner of the kitchen by the bar. We were even inspired by Chris Loves Julia and cut the cord to be shorter (yes this is a more permanent choice, but it looks perfect in the kitchen corner and if it doesn’t stay there it will go into the pantry, but I felt confident it didn’t need a long cord). This was a bit overpriced at $175, but I honestly didn’t have a tiny lamp for the bar which I wanted and we were shooting in a couple of days. And again – local, vintage, etc, so I talked myself into it quickly. Venmo is VERY DANGEROUS, FRIENDS.
Nautical Oil Lamp Sconces
A pair of nautical wall-mounted oil lanterns with little brass hats to block the smoke!!! How cute are these?!!! Ok, sadly these might have been the mistake – not because they aren’t awesome, but because I can’t seem to find a place for them. I was thinking they could flank the piece of art in the entrance, but the scale is pretty small in there.
Then I thought maybe flanking the entry into the pantry but I foresaw so many tragic accidents, bumping into them (and being glass, full of oil, etc). It’s weird to add more sconces into bathrooms that already have sconces, but then I thought maybe in the kid’s bath behind the tub or in the WC. That’s all to say that I’m still trying to find a spot for them but admittedly they are very specific and I probably should have skipped them until I knew for sure I could use them. Heck, since the other older house on the farm doesn’t have any electricity maybe I’ll install them on the walls of the prop room for nighttime searches (yes, they work but I’m also scared of fires so…. ). Maybe up the stairs mixed in with family photos/art? Stay tuned.
Cool Art Book By Local Artist
I met Purl, a local artist/maker who made these dope book covers for his art book that I thought could be used as art in Charlie’s room (which he LOVED – both kids loved them). Purl also makes custom furniture (like the table and bench below) which likely sold, but we might work together on a few pieces. You can follow in at @total_nonsequitur
The Most Perfect Seascape
I was immediately drawn to this painting for obvious reasons – the colors. The vibe. The beautifully perfect blue and gold frame. I skipped it at first because it was $485. But it was the same dealer as the brass lanterns and the short brass lamp, and the more time I spent in his booth the more I KNEW it would work in the house. I have this other seascape that I’ve had forever (this one that was in our main bath).
I put that painting in the kitchen, on one side of the range and it looked SO GOOD and just appropriate. But I needed something to balance it out on the other side. Once I remembered that (while still shopping) and realized I had the exact spot for it, I could justify the splurge. Since I was buying so much from him he sold it to me for $400. And honestly, after seeing it in the shots (coming soon) it was worth every penny.
Pink Glasses
Now these coupe glasses (or desert cups?) I was unsure about needing or working perfectly on the bar, but for $30 I figured they were worth the risk of not working, and if they did work it meant not needing to buy new. Either way, I knew that Elliot would love to eat ice cream out of them (happy to report they are on the bar and look great).
Vintage Canning Jars
If you know me at all you know that I love vintage jars. A lot. We canned a lot of tuna growing up (not a tradition I will continue) and I started collecting these vintage ones for our wedding 15 years ago for vases/candle holders. These three were just so lovely and even though I had just bought a ton of pantry jars for decanting, these have so much character. They were $10, $15, and $20 (I think, somewhere around that) and I styled them on my kitchen counter for the shoot which looked VERY VERY PRETTY.
A Vintage Blue Salad Bowl
Lastly, from the same vendor as the pink glasses, I found this bowl which I thought would look really pretty styled up in the pantry as well as used for salads on our island, in the sunroom – anywhere. Just a pretty blue color, nice texture, farm-y in the sweetest way.
Here’s the first pic again (sans copy) of them all for scale (and as you can see they all work so well together!).
Obviously, we took super quick iPhone shots for today’s post, which always pains me to publish but I’m sticking to my mantra these days that done is better than perfect! And fun is better than done. 🙂
THIS POST WAS ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED HERE.
