Blog Spotlight: The Decorologist!

Today I'm going to do a spotlight on a blog I've been following for quite some time, The Decorologist. Her blog originally caught my attention because the writer, Kristie Barnett, is actually a colour consultant which is my dream job. Her website is easy to navigate with tabs at the top, but because her business website is also her blog she has more business-oriented tabs rather than blog tabs. I wish her blog had tabs that organized her posts by type since she has posts on choosing paint colours, profiling homes she's worked on and general decorating tips. I like that she has fairly large photos to grab your attention, and a “read more” link to continue reading about posts you're interested in. I also like that she has multiple other links at the bottom of the post to other related topics she's previously posted about. I find these links very helpful since it's generally difficult to find older posts on her blog. I would love to see Kristie add some blog organization to fully enjoy her wonderful posts!

 

I hope you have found another blog to indulge in!

Antique Emporium - Chemainus

A friend introduced me to the Antique Emporium earlier this year on a small road trip up-island, and it is a truly amazing place. With a full main floor, half a second floor and a perimeter of the whole building on the third floor, it is packed with great finds!

Antique stores are a great place to find retired china patterns, and Antique Emporium seems to have the largest collection I've come across. China pieces are a great addition to a room as decor on shelves or displayed as artwork on walls. They're a great place to grab colour inspiration for a room and perfect to tie in a collection of colours in one room.

This is definitely the largest piece of geode I have ever seen. Standing approximately 4 feet high it was pretty exceptional. With a price tag of $999, it would be a fantastic conversational piece displayed in a living room or front entry.

Old license plates are in abundance at antique stores and are a great way to add personality to a room. They are also great as wall coverings for a "man cave" or work-space garage. A fun challenge could be collecting as many different provinces/states as possible on road-trips and vacations, depicting your travels or fantastic looking license plates... I think Florida's is quite nice! Road trip?

This has to be someone's ideal chair. It was in such fantastic condition I could not just walk by without snapping a picture. In person the colour is much more of an orange-coral and quite striking. The wood is nicely maintained and smooth from many years of love. Would be truly fantastic in an otherwise dull office or for the adventurous type, could be the central inspiration for a living room!

Wow! Some pretty interesting finds at this one, hey? An original street lamp electrically converted to indoor lighting and given a fresh coat of paint. What a focal piece for an office, den or living room. Perfect for a "man cave"!

Stay tuned for more great contemporary (and sometimes interesting!) finds!

Victoria Trading Post: Part 2

As promised! Here is my second visit to Victoria Trading Post and the Salvage Yard!!! It was actually closed on my first visit so I knew I had to pop back in and explore.
The amount of salvaged house pieces, accessories, windows, doors, hinges... it was amazing to see. With Victoria being full of heritage homes and a population eager to restore them, a place that sells old hardware is key.

However, from a strictly designing/decorating point of view, there are also some great finds!

The first find nearly made my knees buckle! For years I've dreamt of having a re-purposed old window as a piece of artwork, but these are large enough to be used as headboards even! They had many different trellis designs on many different sized window frames. Would be a great DIY project to sand them down and paint or leave as the original wear and tear vintage look!

I have also dreamt for years of replacing the door hardware in my future house with vintage glass knobs. This collection of glass knobs are in the best condition I have seen in all my hunting, which I will have to remember when it comes time to buy a house! Replacing door handles can give any space a little extra detail to complete a room and the addition of glass knobs gives the space a touch of history in a very contemporary way. Simple elegance!

How fantastic are these reclaimed wardrobe pulls?! Amazingly detailed, they just don't make products like these anymore. The installation of these to an old, or even new, piece of furniture instantly jazzes it up to a whole new level. It will give a lot of pieces that extra conversational element.

Stay tuned for more fantastic contemporary finds!

Victoria Trading Post: Part 1

One of my favourite things to do on my free days is to peruse used furniture stores for great finds. There are usually some really great finds if you have the patience to commit to looking and possibly fixing pieces up. A lot of used furniture stores will actually do the hardest task of finding furniture with good "bones" and then restore and sell them. 

Recently I came across a tourism article about good spots to visit in Victoria and read about an antique store I had never heard of, Victoria Trading Post. Bonus! It was also a salvage yard! (see next week's post!)
I rushed over as soon as I could and found some pretty fantastic pieces that would be a great addition to many spaces!

How truly fantastic is this vintage Singer sewing machine?! Aside from being beautifully restored (or maintained!), the filigree detailing is truly amazing. This piece would look great displayed in a formal living room as a piece of art, as well as bringing some excitement and elegance to a personal sewing room.
I think it would also be a great piece to photograph in a studio from interesting angles to make a fantastic photography collage on a feature wall. The detailing was truly breathtaking. All yours for only $275!!

Used furniture and antique stores will always have a fantastic selection of old books. And the best thing about old books (aside from the smell!) is the great detail that was put into the covers. I would often peel back dust jackets on old books at the library and be pleasantly surprised to see the gold detailing.
Beautifully detailed books can bring a simplistic elegance to an otherwise drab bookcase. Sets of old encyclopedias are a great way to bring in artful repetition on a large bookcase by splitting it up and placing bunches on each shelf. A few beautiful spines are great on a small shelf in a kitchen or nook.

 

I believe I audibly gasped at the sight of this settee and wing chair. Both pieces have been beautifully restored with a gold damask stripe fabric and rich mahogany stain. Unfortunately, they were crammed into a corner which made them nearly impossible to photograph well. 

These pieces would complete the look of a formal, contemporary-styled living room perfectly. I can see them placed in front of a gorgeous fireplace flanked with a couple unique sconces and possibly an elegant chandelier overhead! Oh my!

 

Final amazing find... Is this not the most dreamy vanity mirror? Beautifully restored and an amazing amount of detail makes this mirror a must to complete any woman's dream vanity and dressing room!

Check back next week for my exciting finds from the salvage section of the store!