the living room: details

 Thank you so much for all of your comments on the living room!
In describing the details of the room I will attempt to answer the questions you have asked, but if I miss something let me know...

The living room paint color is Benjamin Moore's Ashwood OC-47 in Eggshell.  The trim is Benjamin Moore's White Dove in Latex Satin Impervo. 
(for reference you can find all paint colors for the farmhouse on my sidebar, under "my paint colors") 

This is the view of the living room as you first step inside the house from the front door.

 I designed the sofa, which was custom made, 19 years ago!  It was originally covered in a black and cream stripe, had a skirt and a lower back.   My (much-missed and very talented) upholsterer in Dallas re-worked it for me changing the back, the arms and the adding new legs.  So... if you have a good, well-built sofa that you love, consider seeking out someone who can modify it for you.  It's not necessarily any less expensive than a new sofa, but at least you know what you are getting and how it will sit. I think sofas are the most difficult design decision to make in a room (I am also known to have "sofa issues," but I'll discuss that in another post;)
We found the antique French iron cushion mirror at the Paris Flea Market.  The rug is a boucle sisal.  The cowhide is from Ikea, and besides loving the coloring of the hide it has my maiden initials branded on it... "JW"!

Pair of antique French chairs found at the Paris Flea Market.
I had the table skirt made over 10 years ago- it is fabric, but looks just like burlap.  Fabric on top of the table is a piece of cut-velvet.  The ottoman was made using an antique tapestry fragment.

View of the living room coming down the stairs.  Yes, the decision to not do window treatments was a conscious choice! I contemplated doing curtains for several months, but in the end loved the simplicity of the rooms without them.  The original rooms downstairs are also very small, so I didn't have much wall space to work with, and we have a lot of art and mirrors which, for me, took precedence over curtains.  I have added linen curtains in all of the bedrooms upstairs, which I love, but downstairs it almost felt like a luxury to not have to have curtains to block out neighbors... and the views aren't bad either!

Demi-John glass bottle turned into lamp using a "french wire" (the wire goes behind the object instead of through it, commonly found on French lamps.)  The silver tray is a vintage hotel silver piece from the Olympic Hotel in Seattle.  The orchid sits in an antique Russian brass jardiniere.  The blue and white dish is antique Chinese. 

 



Antique wooden santos bedecked in vintage rosaries.

I think the details on the French chairs are beautiful.  The chairs were recently recovered in a natural linen.  The pillow is mink, made from a vintage muff.

View towards the front door and the dining room.  The wall color in the entry and going up the stairs is the same Benjamin Moore Ashwood as in the living room.  The antique French wood-frame chair covered in antique tapestry was found at the Scott Show in Atlanta.

This painting is 18th century Dutch (double click the photo to enlarge the details of the painting as they are really wonderful).  The painting was recently "married" to this antique frame.  Table was found in the back of a shop at the Paris Flea Market- the dealer looked at us like we were crazy when we bypassed all his fabulous furniture and wanted to buy this simple, plain little table hidden in the back of the shop!  The antique green glazed terra-cotta baluster made into a lamp is from Singapore- removed from a building being taken down; I have a photo of the original building and the balustrade that the baluster was removed from.  As we make our way around the house you'll notice I have a penchant for old balusters made into lamps!  The marble urn was purchased from a dealer at Bunny William's country house during one of her charity Trade Secrets antique shows (here). 
Antique tortoiseshell box.





Tapestry cushions are made from 17th century Flemish verdure tapestry fragments!  And yes- Ella sits on the sofa!  These tapestries are my best antiques find ever, and after 22 years of antiquing that is saying a lot!  (story to follow)

Antique French mirror (missing a good deal of gesso) found in Fredericksburg, Texas many years ago.  The antique French coffee table was found at an antiques show outside of Paris.  A pair of 1750 vellum books with an iron bird, an earthenware ginger jar and an antique Chinese blue and white "crab" dish share the tabletop.

The framed art flanking the fireplace are actually not prints, but  Herbariums.  They are pressed plant leaves and flowers that were done by Anna E. Andrews in Scotland, South Dakota. The majority were done in 1898, but several are dated 1888. When I purchased these I was given a photograph of Anna.  I had the photograph copied and there is one on the back of each herbairum. As I am only the caretaker of these antiques I want the next person who owns them to also know what Anna looked like.
On them Anna states where she found each specimen- "by the railroad," "by the creek," "in the graveyard"... I especially love the fern that must have been brought to her by a friend, which reads- "Picked in Marion, Co, Ill. during the summer of 1888 by Mrs. E.A. Scott."

Antique iron urn to the left of the fireplace is filled with "forestwood" we gathered on our many trips to the mountains of Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming- all places very near and dear to our heart. 

Pair of antique Chinese blue and white double-happiness vases and pair of antique mercury glass candlesticks share the mantel with an antique English crystal and sterling matchstrike, an old basket with leather handle (one handle is missing) holding the orchid and a "conk" found in on a walk in the forest by the house.

I was asked if this piece was a photograph, which is exactly why I adore this painting... it looks just like a photograph!  It is one of my very favorite paintings (you'll will probably hear me say that about every painting I show you;)  We found the painting as young, poor newlyweds and bought it as our birthday gift to each other that year.  It is marked:  Cat Peak and Carrie Glacier, Olympic National Park.  The antique frame was recently added.

The fireplace and mantel are original to the house, but when we found the property the two small side walls off of the fireplace had been removed for some unknown reason.  The reading room sits behind this wall, so the fireplace just "floated" between the two rooms, which was a very odd sight in an antique house.  We added the walls back!  Antique andirons found on ebay.  Pair of antique marble urns with a large iron finial sit on the soapstone hearthstone.