Finding an identity in a home
One of my recent clients had an identity crisis with the interior of his home.
When asked what style he wanted to achieve in his beautiful new home in Provenance, he would simply reply, “I really don’t know.”
He did know, however, what he didn’t want a contemporary look. His new home has a personality, a feel and a setting which required something more personal. I like to attribute a style to each of my clients based on what they tell me they like or want in this case, we went with “global rustic.” Something of a play on the restoration hardware look, but way less expensive.
I wanted his home to have a “traveled” feel, as if he picked up an item here and there from his trips abroad, etc., but still retain a certain rustic vibe, nothing too polished.
I try to purchase locally, as much as possible, which we did, aside from some bar stools and metal dining chairs.
It all started with finding a perfectly distressed Chesterfield-style leather sofa from Dillards. It is always better to find bigger pieces first and build a look around those.
A perfectly weathered leather chair from SE Salvage sits opposite a pair of burnt orange “wing backs” picked up at Paul Michael/Monroe. I am in love with these chairs. They are covered in a velour-like fabric and are equally masculine (color)/feminine (shape). They soften the overall masculinity of the leather pieces perfectly.
The burnt orange instantly became our pop color and is repeated in pillows, accessories and one of my all time favorite finds, a huge kalamkari. This is a hand-drawn and painted on fabric work of art from India discovered at, The Attic, an upscale consignment shop. It is rumored to have previously been owned by a local, world-renowned neurosurgeon. This one-of-a-kind piece rests over a distressed metal console from Ashley Furniture with a modern metal lamp from Briggs & Co. The perfectly square, hammered bronze/ wood coffee table from La-Z-Boy nestles into an amazingly soft and deeply piled rug from Haverty’s.
No room is completely pulled together without accent tables, lamps and art. I found a beautiful metal/ mirrored piece at Eclectic Villa, which works as a semi “functional” piece of art. I also love the mottled gold lamp and gargoyle both from Uniquely Yours. These sit on a simple rubbed bronze console from Pier One. The adorable little gold chain linked table, from Ashley, between the chairs is the perfect size to hold a faded Chevron pattern vase.
The dining room is an amalgamation of seemingly disparaging items which work together harmoniously. The table is a single slab of wood resting on stainless steel legs, another find from Paul Michaels, it is a simple but, powerful piece. It is capped with linen nail head chairs from SE Salvage while guests dine on aluminum chairs from Overstock. com. Above the table is a simple iron sphere chandelier, there is a strikingly similar one at Restoration Hardware for $800 but, this one from Paul Michael’s in Monroe only cost $80.
Three simple woven balls from SE Salvage serve as the centerpiece. A beautiful hand-painted antique Chinese hutch from The Attic flanks one side of the table while a custom made shelving unit from Muddy Water Resurrection (based inside Timeline Antiques) sits on the other. An industrial chandelier, on a pulley system from SE Salvage makes a unique, albeit elegant, statement above the island.
The master suite is a relaxed combination of industrial sophistication. The king-sized nail head bed from Dillards is flanked by two industrial steel carts from Eclectic Villa, both with a beautifully worn patina.
Two modern, silvery gold lamps from Briggs & Co add a nice contrast to the raw steel tables. The cathedral window piece is from Timeline Antiques and the stained glass is actually painted metal, the frames are original, but, the glass had long been broken out.
We captured an essence with these rooms, a feeling or vibe that my client has been collecting items from far flung areas of the globe, but, in reality, we barely left Shreveport.
