There is nothing that beats the ‘I miss Lake Arrowhead’ blues on a rainy Oregon day more than vintage shopping in Portland. It’s good up here y’all and feels limitless. And while I’m still holding off on some major pieces of furniture to see how we live in the house, that doesn’t mean that I can’t buy things that I feel could likely work somewhere. I figure worst-case scenario, if they don’t work I’ll use them in other shoots + I’m supporting the local businesses. So the last two Fridays I’ve gone vintage shopping and here’s what I found…
Alright. I need to write a whole post about our powder room debate so you know properly what’s going on, but I’m debating this as the vanity base for the utility sink that we have to go into it. I was (and still might) have something custom-made based because I have the design already in my brain. But then I’m like, “just check the box, Emily, stop creating more work for yourself”. This would be more affordable but $600 + the cost of retrofitting would still add up. And this is a sweet pine piece but it’s not “freak-out worthy”. I would pop out the wood squares and do something more interesting there (metal grate and fabric maybe like I did in our old powder bath. Honestly, if it were $200 I think I would pull the trigger, but it’s just pretty expensive for how utilitarian and unimpressive it is. But at the same time, we have really cool things happening in the bath so this could just be a nicer calm moment! It’s a European pine “bar” with metal ice bins that pull out… I’ll do a post about it soon 🙂
Y’all know I didn’t NEED this trunk, but it checked a lot of boxes and I somehow have great ability to use trunks in multiple ways (nightstands, side tables, end of bed, etc). This one being the trifecta of warm finishes that I love – wood, leather, and brass, so it was an easy decision. Of course, later I realized that the “brass” was helped a bit with gold spray paint which is less ideal, but I’m thinking it’s a good nightstand in the guest room. So for $90 it felts like an ok enough risk.
I’m quilt hoarding hard right now. I now have two of these quilts that I’m not sure what to do with. They seem to be out of menswear fabric, and obviously have a more classic checkered pattern than a more decorative quilt. I keep fantasizing that I’ll upholster a headboard in it, but maybe it’s just an end of bed quilt. They are strangely “unhappy” for me and yet I love them – the colors are so good, in a grandpa sort of way.
GAH. Seeing this one again makes me want to go back and get it! Those colors are just so good but it is really busy which I’m trying to stay away from. Mmy ADHD brain wants me to get it, but my current healthier mental health state knows that I live better with less stimulus (less stuff, less clutter, less color, less pattern, etc – it’s quite the challenge). It’s a real struggle to keep this house “quiet” and “calm” because as you know there is a real maximalist inside of me, too. My quilt hoarding is getting out of control (and they aren’t cheap – that one was around $300) but looking at it again makes me wish I had snagged it.
The second I saw the quilt on the right I KNEW it was for me. It’s different calico blue fabrics, in triangles and squares. It has a LOT of age (I wish slightly less) but I know 100% that I’ll use it. It’s the most “Emily Henderson quilt” I’ve ever seen and is still relatively “quiet” in the blues and whites. Thank you, Annie (shop Wilma on Instagram) for your excellent picking skills.
I LOVE this blanket. It’s a vintage train blanket (thus the ‘Pullman’ on it). The color is perfect. The pattern is simple and great. But I didn’t get it because it was over $300 and it was 100% wool which means that it was scratchy. I knew that it would look good in a shot (end of a bed, over the back of a sofa, upholstered on an ottoman) but it just felt super expensive for the impact it would have. I just wish it were like $120, not $300. It was HUGE, big enough even for a king-sized bed …
Every time I see this portrait I want it, but it just feels weird to buy and own it has no connection to the featured gentlemen. I love portraits of strange men, don’t get me wrong, but this one feels more important because he’s in a uniform (also it is over $400). But the colors! The frame! The dignity! He’s so handsome – I just wish it were someone in my lineage. That would be incredible.
Seriously regretting not buying these two pieces (both in the mid $100s, so not cheap but not crazy expensive). But the problem is that we’ve designed this house with so many windows that there isn’t that much room for art. And I have SO MUCH ART. I also don’t want a cluttered house so I can’t keep hoarding pieces that I really don’t think will get a spot on my walls. At the same time, I can see a floor-to-ceiling gallery wall in the media room – of moodier pieces like these. I also feel like these are both of Oregon so I do have a connection to them… might go back…
Really not pleased with that photo of me… but that mirror was so pretty. I might go back and snag it for Birdie’s room, and then paint it one of the pinks or purples she’s obsessed with. Y’all, Birdie’s room is going to be NUTS. I’m embracing her love of all things pink/purple/unicorn/flower/fairy and while it might look like a totally different house, I promised myself and her that I won’t restrain her too much. She is absolutely my daughter and I remember needing and loving color the way she does – I’m SO EXCITED.
As I keep repeating, I’m trying not to hoard more “stuff” but the weird vessel on the left was hard not to buy for $19. I’m picturing it with an odd sculptural branch floating out of it… The dude on the right was $49 so I skipped him, but had he been under $20 I would have snagged. One of the only problems with the farm is the amount of garage space – it’s NUTS. They were originally carriage houses for back in the day, but it allows me to feel like I can create more of an inventory of thrifted stuff… very, very dangerous.
Those were three lovelies that I snagged. Both the little dish (for pistachios, obviously) and the large enamel bowl have handles that take them from cute to cool in my book. I keep picturing that bowl full of my vegetable harvest once I get the garden going. It’s huge and was $60 so I felt good about it. I also make pretty darn epic summer salads and felt that it was perfect for that.
Now this gentleman was AWESOME which those chunky chrome tubular legs and that black leather. I was shocked at how comfortable it was (historically our sling chairs have not been and I’m not allowed to buy them anymore). This one is the right height – easy to get in and out of and the seat and back were very well proportioned. It was $2400 which is about $1k less than they are on 1stDibs, but still expensive. But it wasn’t the right vibe for our farm (I could have made it work, but Brian was a hard no).
I found the chair on the left on FB marketplace for $100 and it’s really heavy and solid. I’m starting to collect what I’m calling “project chairs” for me to play with some reupholstering ideas. Obviously, I’d totally change the fabric and knock the shine off the wood. This might live in the corner of a guest room or even in our closet… not sure, but I liked the channel tufting and I can see it in the vintage plaid that I have been hoarding – lots of grandpa vibes. The chair on the right was good at first glance, but it was very patinated vinyl and I didn’t love the square legs. But the proportions are good (I like the scale of the arms). Once I sat on it I knew it was a hard no as the springs were so loose, you immediately sunk to the bottom. All fixable problems, but for $150 it was not right.
This little bench would have been a fun reupholstery/refinishing project, too and something I could easily do with the kids. I keep fantasizing about our life once we move there, gardening, house projects, etc – Here’s to hoping that all my homestead dreams can come true while still being able to run the business 🙂
I certainly don’t need this but was so drawn to it. Once I showed it to Birdie she FREAKED OUT (which she does often if something has a lot of pink and flowers on it) so I might go back and grab it. It is $185 which is a lot for something you don’t know what you are going to do with. Curious if I could hang it in the corner as a pendant? Rig it into a side table? It’s an expensive risk but we both love it so much (and we aren’t in agreement with a lot of her commercial unicorn desires – so I want to lean into the vintage stuff we both love).
Lastly, I found these at Urbanite that are upholstered by a local maker. I then found her stuff on Facebook Marketplace and have reached out to do a couple of custom quilted mushrooms… Stay tuned 🙂
Obviously, there is nothing I love more than vintage shopping, and it’s incredibly pleasant to do in Oregon versus LA. Sure there is more in LA but it’s very expensive and the traffic makes it less pleasant (as traffic does). I hope you are enjoying it, because I sure am 🙂
THIS POST WAS ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED HERE.
