Gorgeous Gilt to call my own

I have long admired french gilded chairs and when

 I see them in magazines and decorator books, 

they always catch my eye. 

But where would I run into such a piece to call my own?

 I did see a gilt french baroque sofa upholstered in hot pink velvet 

once in the markdown section of the local Salvation Army.

Like a moth to flame I raced over towards 

it only to see a big red SOLD tag on it.

Then I knew, I just had to keep my eyes open for one to come along again.

In the meantime, I have been busy working 

on my living room adding floral fabric to line the backs of the bookcases,

 just like Annette Tatum has in her living room. 

It was recently featured in the latest Romantic Country magazine, 

and since I first saw this room in her book, 

she has added a gilded French wing chair, upholstered in cream linen.

Oh I loved this addition, and was both jealous 

and full of admiration at the same time. 

But today was a new day~and look what I came across

 at the most fabulous antique coop I discovered in my own backyard.

There she sat...

 Original upholstery in a cranberry pink and yellow tapestry

 with black and gold threads.

A scene of a couple in a garden out in front of a classical building.

The fabric looks like cut velvet . It is raised and 3 dimensional.

Very Marie Antoinette~but I am thinking I should reupholster in

something more sedate so you can focus on the chair, not the fabric.

I would love your opinions~would you change the original fabric?

 This is Annette's chair. It is in a cream linen.

I think it looks amazing in her space.

But back to MY chair!!

There it was sitting in an antique garage filled with wonderful things.

I was hoping I could afford it and take it home.

  I could and I did!

It has straw and horsehair stuffing.

Louis XVI furniture is marked by straight fluted legs

 and at the top of the leg is a box with a rosette inside.

This chair has to be 100 years old.

This Louis XVI chair is in Mary McDonald's new book which I just read

and highly recommend! Anyway, her chairs are painted white, which is not 

something I am going to do, but I wanted you to see the leg style with the rosette.

Her chairs are done in brown velvet.

Another gorgeous gilt chair in Mary's book.

I am loving a little gilt in a room.

Look what I didn't take home:

A French Baroque style settee, all gilded as well.

This beauty needed a little repair work, and at $125 I was sorely tempted.

Any takers?

My new Marie Antoinette chair is up in my office for now.

I would love to have it in my living room like Annette has hers,

but until it has different fabric, that is impossible.

Annette's is simple and timeless looking.

This tapestry is lovely, but bossy.

Would you change it out to linen?

I could do a pale pink or plain cream.

What would you recommend for my living room?

Or should it stay unharmed and live in my Marie Antoinette office?
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and

Now and

someone stole my bike

Last year I found an old bike at the

 swap shop at the New Hampshire dump. 

I took it home and spray painted it.....

I wrapped it all up in tape and paper 

and plastic and sprayed it Krylon Ocean Breeze.

We brought it home to our Boston home.

 It got a new basket with some flowers.

It looked so cute out there.

It spent its winter outside, keeping the pink swing company.

Spring came soon enough.

An American flag was in the

 basket for Memorial Day and the 4th of July.

I grew used to seeing this happy bike outside the house.

 Even though it had two flat tires, and was purely eye candy, 

I loved this bike. 

It was free, and cost me the price of a can of spray paint.

 Sometime they say the best things in life are free. 

This afternoon when I came down my steps, I saw that it was gone.

 Someone took my bike!

I mean, someone walked up onto my property and stole my bike. 

I was so bummed. Why anyone would take a bike with two flat tires is beyond me....

so the next time I have a bike out front because

 I like how it makes the house look~

I will chain it to the tree or the porch pole. Sad.

lavender hallway

Long skinny hallways with lots of doorways. Ugh.

It started off as a basic beige color and then 

I used some leftover Concord Ivory paint from BM.

That added some zip, but that was not the look I was after...

so finally I took the plunge and picked out a greyish lavender.

Lavender is a tricky color, but one I wanted in my home.

This old sheraton style table I bought years ago 

at an auction was about to get an

Annie Sloan Old White chalk paint job. 

The brown finish was pulling down the dusky lavender.

I added a little touch of gold to the edges.

The hallway was feeling almost ethereal with the changes.

Mirrors....my go to accessory for walls.

Stroheim-Roman fleur~de~lis linen panels blow in the breeze

A large painting got overpainted with the chalk paint.

I am planning to paint something myself~

but for now I pinned up a small toile framed print.

The french bench got an easy slipcover with a vintage cream colored bedspread.

I found three of these in an old barn, and two will go in my Etsy shop.

They are a tender seer sucker style spread made by an old 

California company called Sybil Shepard in Paramount.

I found this initial plate in lilac and gold with the initials of Rachel Ashwell.

I might hang this above the mirror.

This plate was custom made in NY probably for a hotel or a wedding.

I'd like to add a pair of mismatched crystal chandeliers.
What do you think?

It is a pretty greyed down lavender.

The lavender paint is a Ben Moore color called Portland Grey.

I had it made up in Valspar Signature~one coat coverage.

Now are you ready for the before picture?

Bold Gold!

Way more me!!
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Show and Tell Friday at My Romantic Home

pretty chintz fabric in bookcases

 Can you say Gorgeous? 

Well that is how I feel about how the bookcases came out after I 

lined them with vintage chintz drapery fabric on foam core boards.

 I measured each shelf and cut a piece of foam core slightly smaller than the size

and then wrapped it like a gift and secured it with special duct tape on the back.

I cut it right on the carpet with a box cutter type blade and a straight edge.

You can do this if your carpet isn't a million dollar type carpet and doesn't have a loop pile.

 It was a fun project, giving me a lot of bang for the buck!

I love those kinds of projects where they don't take too long

yet really change the mood of a room.

The nice thing about this, if you get tired of it, the panels can pop right out.

 The overall feeling is soft and romantic. 

This vintage chintz is a Mario Buatta fabric in the dreamiest of powder blue,

sprinkled with pinks, lilacs and creams and greens.

 Look what else I made~a pillow for the sofa.

 This pillow is in the same fabric and has a zipper back and pom-pom inserted trim.

It feels very cottage to me.

If I could marry a pillow, I would say "I do" to this baby.

 This is an old English tin in pretty pink that I found last week 

at the White Home Collections antique shop.

I really enjoyed putting things back on the shelf.

I was so inspired by the photo of Annette Tatum's living room bookcases, 

I knew eventually I would try it for myself, and I am so glad I did.

Oh, one last picture, since Dillon got in on a post solo recently,

 Tobey asked for his turn~

how could I say no?


linking to 
Freckled Laundry Air Your Laundry Textile Party
and
Miss Mustard Seed's Furniture Friday
and
Wow Us Wednesday
and
No Minimalist Here Open House Party

and
My Romantic Home Show and Tell Friday