Our Collected Home-Part One

People often ask me if I redecorate our home a lot. The answer is NEVER! Well, almost never... I love an eclectic, collected look, that comes from years of adding layers to create character and warmth. Although it's clear that I gravitate to neutrals, I also adore color, especially in pillows, art and accessories. It is a great way to add interest and change things up without breaking the bank!  Most of the pieces in our home are either family heirlooms, or were bought when we first started out together in Italy. Others have been collected through my antique business, handmade, or even found in nature or on the side of the road! Truthfully, budget has always been an issue, but with a little imagination and a lot of elbow grease, you don't need a ton of money to have a stylish, warm and welcoming home. I hope you agree. Enjoy the tour!

The Foyer

The antique urn came from my in-law's country home in Italy. I filled it with birch branches as a little memory of Minnesota, where I grew up. The walking stick with attached basket is also Italian, and inside it sits a bird with her nest and eggs.  I bought the vintage slip covered chair at the Queen of Hearts for $35.00, and the ticking fringe pillow is custom. The jute rug is from Ballard's Backroom. The massive mirror came from an antiques shop in Defuniak, FL on the way to the beach. The wall color is clay beige by Ben Moore...but don't go painting your house this color...it flip-flops on me, and in certain lights I see pink. :( 

Photo by Lauren Rubinstein

 Our chandelier is actually an antique Romanian chicken coop. I painted the front door on a whim one day in my favorite color.

Foyer Vignette

 Custom urn lamp and gingham shade made in Italy. Three vintage prints hang in the empty frames of our Italian farmhouse window. The stairs are a DIY project painted in Urbane Bronze by Sherwin Williams with runners and stair rods by Target.

The Office

This is truly a lifetime of collected art: from vintage maps of Venice (where my husband was born), and Florence (where he and the kids grew up), to sepia photos of the kids modelling my children's clothing line, to scenes of Paris (j'adore) and vintage shoe lasts from our days in the footwear industry. There's a bit of art by Rangoni and Dali', my grandmother's sconce, and clocks to keep time in the US and Italy. We've filled the wall, from floor to ceiling with meaningful objects. The tufted office chair was a Goodwill find for $8.00. I had it covered in ivory houndstooth and brass tacks for jazz. The old brass hardware got switched out with iron key latches from Hobby Lobby. Photo by Lauren Rubinstein.

The Living Room

Wall to wall seagrass gives this room warmth and texture. The daybed was rescued from my girlfriend's mini-storage, while the desk was rescued from my neighbor's backyard in Italy. I looked at it sitting there for a few years, and then got the courage to ask if they wanted it, or not, since it was rotting in the rain. Sweet Graziella gave it to me, along with an armoire to match!! What do you know? Under the red paint was my favorite shade of green! But the piece de resistance is the massive mural; a wedding gift from my parents depicting the Tuscan landscape. The pouf is a recovered thrift store find. The iron chairs were bought as a set at a garage sale and recovered in woven jute. All pillows are custom, and the mink draped over the chair was my grandmother's. Photo by Lauren Rubinstein.

Living Room Vignette

Recovered chair from my parents. We bought the European pine armoire with wedding money, and the Balinese panels, turned screen, on our honeymoon.

The Dining Room

A custom frame maker was having a moving sale, and I scored BIG. This baby is old and chippy, and huge...and it only cost $50.00. He also made the smaller ones with mirrors already in them. The buffet and French chairs are from Lorenzo's family. The shutters and jar are from my booth.  Lamps from Tuesday Morning.

Photo by Lauren Rubinstein. 

Dining Room

Here is the armoire/cupboard I told you about earlier.  It used to be fire engine red, with corrugated glass panes. The demijon was found in the trash in Italy.

Antique lace crown on Aidan Gray sconce.

The Powder Room

This teensy room recently got a facelift.  The Turkish basin sat in my garage for three years before biting the bullet to convert it to a sink. The marble topped chest also collected dust there for a few years. It is JUST the right size with little brass casters, and a new coat of Country Grey chalk paint and dark wax. The Venetian mirror is an antique from our Italian side of the family, while the rest are just things I collected along the way.

Photo by Lauren Rubinstein

I hope you enjoyed the tour. Your feedback is welcome and so much appreciated. It's not an easy decision to show your home to the world, but Lauren's photography was so beautiful that I wanted to share it. I will be doing two more posts to finish up this series over the next month, with little blogging in between. I am helping a friend/client with a big new house and we will be travelling for the better part of April. (Stay tuned for inspiring photos from Florida, Amsterdam, and Florence.) When it rains, it pours....and don't we know that well here in Atlanta!

Baci e abbracci-