the winter living room with tones of brown

Even though we are having unseasonably warm temperatures for this time of year in New Hampshire (highs in the 50's and only one night in the 10-day forecast to be below freezing- this is May weather for us:) it is still chilly outside and the trees are bare and the grass golden.

The living room with its simple mantel and the room with its many tones of brown feels calm and cozy to me; a feeling I love in these quiet winter months.

Walls are Benjamin Moore Ashwood OC-47 in eggshell.  Ceiling is Benjamin Moore White Dove in Pearl.  Trim is White Dove in Latex Satin Impervo.

(all paint and stain information can be found on my sidebar)

The living room from the entry.  

While I agree with the interior design adage that a room should always have a touch of black in it I, personally, am innately drawn to brown.  I think the naturistic quality of brown grounds a space and since all my rooms have so much "nature" in them it always works well, besides being pleasing to my eye.

The entry chest of drawers (circa 19th c.) is topped with 18th c. velum books and antique Chinese blue and white porcelains, vintage brass French Bouillotte-style lamp with a 70's brass and capiz shell lampshade (I'm obsessed with these lately:) and antique oil painting we found in Provence- "Aunt Minerva" -we name everything:) usually resides in the reading room.

The 23-year old ivy topiary shares the brass tray table with a little ceramic brown and off-white garlic-shaped holder that was a love gift (when my family gives gifts for no reason we call them love gifts!) from my sister Patti she found at Red Onion in Baton Rouge.  (If you live in the area it is a wonderful shop!)  I had just filled the room with browns when it arrived in a package a couple of months ago- perfect timing!  I love the color, texture and how it looks next to the leopard pillow.  It's the little details, yes?!   Thank you Patti...

I usually have two soft-blue velvet pillows on each back corner of the sofa, but I changed those out to brown velvet this year for the winter months.  I added another faux fur throw to this sofa, which the girls love :)

 I adore this brown silk lampshade on the antique Chinese green-glazed terracotta baluster made into a lamp.  When the light is off the shade is the color of the dark trim that you see in this photo- a dark chocolate brown.  You can see the brown velvet pillow in this photo. 

Antique:

  demi-john lamp, chinoiserie table, Santos, French gilt finial and Russian brass jardiniere.

 Leopard pillow on the left was made from a vintage muff.  The pillow on the right was originally two individual vintage hand-warmers that I found at an antique shop.  I sewed them back together and added a down-filled insert.

Old silver-plated doves/pigeons...columbidae!

Although "Mavis" is technically in the reading room, I thought she should be included in this post since she is donning the vintage leopard collar/headband (that was purchased with the muff pillow,) wearing it as a winter wrap:)

hope you're having a wonderful weekend!  

the reading room today

You might recall that the last time I showed you the reading room we had just found a free antique pedestal table on the side of the road!  HERE.  As much as I loved that table- especially for its story;) I knew it was always a "filler" until the perfect table came along.  

It finally did!

I found this antique, circa mid 1800's, iron table with black marble top in Vermont.  

I adore the table and love that it is around the same circa as the house.  The room is small, so it makes the space seem much more open.

I left the iron base in its current state which is an off-white painted finish with iron rust coming through the paint in the form of spots/speckles.  I'm guessing it spent years in an old barn/shed being semi-exposed to elements.  

I'm going through a "keep it clean" look at present (the kitchen island has absolutely nothing on it, which is unusual for me;) so the table is topped with two antique green glazed Chinese parrots (they are unusually tall and only part of our collection), a piece of white coral, and a demi-john bottle with a hydrangea branch from the garden.

Walls are painted Ashwood OC-47 by Benjamin Moore. Trim is White Dove by Benjamin Moore.  (All my paint and stain colors can be found on my sidebar for future reference.)

Antique brass chandelier purchased 23 years ago in Houston for our first house in Eastmoreland in Portland, Oregon, it was also used for a while in our home in Dallas.

I recently changed out the regular bent-tip frosted light bulbs for these silicone-tipped bulbs HERE from Lumiere Candles.  These have a regular/standard-size base (as opposed to a chandelier-size base) and are 15 watts each.  I just love their bulbish/squatty shape!  They look perfect in the antique brass chandelier. 

Don't  forget that Lumiere Candles offers a 10% discount coupon code for my readers HERE. I love their: real wax sleeves, large diameter solid candle covers (which are so difficult to find),   their silicone-dipped bulbs, and their large translucent candle covers (which are impossible to find ;)  They also have resin candle sleeves and covers when for the times when you need a higher wattage bulb than what is allowable for the real wax sleeves.

(No, I am not being paid to endorse this company!  I simply love their beautiful products and the owners are super nice and they have wonderful customer service.)

I've removed some things from the top of the antique Italian case piece and illuminated the antique oil painting.
The simple French fauteuil chair was found in Marseille, France.  I had it covered in natural linen with a vintage alligator back.  A better photo of the back  HERE.

I moved several of the antique mirrors from a guest bedroom HERE to the reading room.  I love a good stack of antique mirrors!  The antique large gilded mirror in the back is French as is the Louis Philippe mirror in the center.  The small iron cushion mirror in front was found in France. Antique Chinese blue and white temple jar made into lamp and large aged brass ball sits on antique English chest.  Vintage mink muff turned pillow sits on a vintage Louis XV fauteuil (one of a pair.) 

"Mavis" is donning a vintage leopard collar around her waist for the cold winter months:)  You can read a story about her HERE.

On top of the stack of books sitting next to the Martha Washington chair is a book (National Gallery of Art, Washington) that we received as a wedding present 27 years ago from a friend (thank you Sue!)   I have always adored the painting on the cover.  

I like how in this photo you can see what the lamp shade looks like with the light on (front) and the pattern on the shade (in the back)  The story of the bookcase door HERE.  The bookcase is filled with antique books/reference books, small paintings, coral, antique iron urn, part of our collection of antique tortiseshell boxes and more of our collection of antique Chinese glazed terracotta green birds.

The south wall.

We found this antique oil painting in Marseille, France.  We named her Aunt Minerva.  She resonates with me. I love that she is reading a book in the reading room :)

An antique country English Chippendale chair with 18th antique vellum books and a bronze mold of a "nude."

The vintage painting on the east wall by artist Jerry Wilkerson.

Antique English oil painting entitled "Cottage in Devonshire" by listed artist James Poole in original frame. Circa 1850.

To see the reading room over the years and to read more about items in the room...

HERE

HERE

Note:  photographs taken for this post where taken in the early evening with lamps and lights on which casts a different light over the space than the daytime lighting in previous posts.

a little project: an antique frame

As I continue to show you around the house (just waiting on some velvet pillows being made to show you the living room) you'll notice that we have a fondness for paintings.   We have been very fortunate to have found some fabulous antique and newer paintings over the years-  keep in mind we've been antiquing for 23 years! 
(for the record:  when I use the word antique I only mean that it is over 100 years old.  Just because something is antique doesn't mean it has to be precious, untouchable, unattainable, unaffordable, etc.  It can be, but doesn't have to be... )

I think original art is an extremely important element in a home.  I believe art gives a house a soul.   It should speak to you on an emotional level, whether it is art drawn by your child or an antique oil painting from a listed artist- the value is in the emotion is brings to you.  That's why art is so personal.

So, when I found this watercolor several weeks ago I had an immediate emotional attachment... it reminded me of our farmhouse and how the farmhouse sits on the property, and the amazing skies that we see here.  From the framing I would guess it was painted in the 1970/1980's?

 $10

Later that same week, we found this antique water-gilt frame at another antiques shop.  At first, I walked right by the frame only seeing the painting... wasn't interest.  Then, my eye saw the beautiful antique frame and I was smitten!  We bought it for $100.  Good antique frames are really difficult to find, so when we spy them we buy them!  The frame joined several other antique frames stacked in the closet awaiting its perfect mate.... until it dawned on me how perfectly this frame and that watercolor would go together!

I "married" them. 
I will use a piece of antique wavy glass (from our house renovation) instead of new glass to add some additional character.
So, for a mere $110 I have an original piece of art in an antique frame! 

Wishing you a very happy weekend filled with some great finds!