Home and Garden Chat

Decorating with antiques will give your home  a sophisticated touch. Whether you add antiques to every room, or to just a small area such as a your living room or kitchen, the vintage items will enhance the space. If you have an assortment of potentially functional antiques, be open and creative about possible new uses for them. If they are beautiful items, and objects d’art, consider new and unusual places to display them. Mix antiques with modern items to create a fresh look. If you can’t find the original items, buy replicas of antique items, such as furniture and kitchen items. Antiques and collectibles will add beauty and individuality to any one’s interiors.

It’s no secret that old furniture appreciates in value, while contemporary pieces tend to decline. But most importantly, buy quality pieces. When you buy pieces to decorate your home, make sure they are made of good quality. Pieces that are not of will show, they will look cheap and lack detail. Quality pieces, however, will stand out as show pieces. They can be true works of art. Even though they may be more expensive, these quality pieces will appreciate more in time.  The most important aspect of having antiques for me is their connection with history. It is fascinating to think about others who used it and what their lives were like.

So how does one decorate with antiques and collectibles? Here are some things that I have learned from looking inside my mother’s home, as well as other homes that use antiques in decorating. My mother’s house looked like an antique store. It was so over crowded with her antiques and collectibles that you were so overwhelmed you couldn’t really see anything. My mother had a lot of very unique pieces too.

If you are decorating with collectibles, make sure that they will work with the overall theme of the room you are designing. If you are designing with period pieces from the Victorian era, make sure that everything else in the room speaks Victorian. I am not saying avoid mixing and matching, for you can do so beautifully. Just make sure that majority of the pieces will speak of your overall design theme

What you collect most, is very likely what you’d like to see in your home. If you collect antique blue and white China and other oriental or Asian pieces, make sure that they fit the theme of your room. Mixing Asian collectibles in a French country style room could be tricky, so be careful. A contemporary home with minimalist style is a great backdrop for an Asian inspired design. Valuable items that have been handed down through the family for generations are often the first things that spark collections. These furnishings can be given the place of pride in your home, or seamlessly integrated into more contemporary design schemes.

Make sure to group like items together. Grouping the items in threes or odd numbers creates interest without the cluttered look. Grouping like objects together make your collections stand out more too. Also don’t overcrowd one area with collectibles and avoid scattering each kind all over the room. When you group them they will have more impact. To give your room a more balanced look, make sure to scatter your groups evenly.

Using a display cabinet such as curio or china cabinet is a safe and space saving way to enjoy your collectibles, be they antiques or treasures. You can also place the smaller items in shadow boxes or display cases which can be hung on the wall. One solution is to rotate collections so that some pieces are in storage while others are enjoyed. This is more relevant if the art and colors of the collection match seasonal themes.

Display architectural salvage or wall-mount an old textile for it’s beautiful texture. I hung some very old Persian rugs on a large wall.  Display an oil lamp collection on a side-board or light tapers in antique silver or brass candlesticks. Consider converting a treasured object into a table or floor lamp and using it as part of your decor. Place sculptures and vases on a stand, making sure that they are sturdy and placed away from the flow of traffic flow. Use gallery putty or sticky clay to hold the pieces in place. For those rare pieces you can place Lucite glass dome over it, like those used in art museums.

A crystal chandelier can add drama to your collections. Highlight your antiques and collectible with proper lighting. If your collectible is a painting, put a picture light on top to highlight the work of art. Use a spotlight at the bottom of the display stand to highlight your sculpture. Use track lighting to highlight a row of shadow boxes on the wall. Turn on the China cabinet and curio lights to show your antique china and figurines.

A painted accent wall is a very dramatic backdrop for a plate collection.

Add paint to accent and highlight your collectible. If you have a collection of antique wall art or iron grills, you can paint an accent wall with a dark color such as burgundy or midnight blue, which will make your collections look even more impressive, especially if it is spotlighted. Or you can use a light bright color on the walls and that will make your dark art pieces pop.

Small scale pieces are best displayed in multiples. For example, a collection of vintage kitchen utensils hung from a peg board or a set of blue and yellow china propped in a row on open shelving. Another option is to arrange them in a vignette with objects that share something in common with them. The common element could be colour, texture or even theme. The connection can be as loose as a painting in burnt umber tones pared with antique books whose weathered covers show the same soft colors.

Vintage textiles such as scarves, tiles and door handles can add a quaint touch to your home. Use antique crochet doilies as place mats for candles and plant pots, or hang old lace curtains in your bedroom. Retro scarves featuring sweet embroidery details such as hearts and flowers add a romantic flair to the tops of dressers and night stands. Throw a warm vintage quilt on your bed, and replace modern doorknobs with opulent crystal antique versions. Replace boring vinyl bathroom flooring with old-fashioned porcelain tiles. Antique replicas of bathroom fixtures and hardware can be found on line at the Victorian Shoppe, where you will find a large selection a vintage items for your home at terrific prices and no sales tax. Many companies ship free. Don’t forget about using pressed tin ceilings and Franklin stoves to complete your authentic vintage look.

Furniture and art are larger items and directly contribute to the decor and functionality of a room. These bigger pieces often work best as focal points or key accents in a room. Think, for example, of how lovely and unexpected a large scale print framed in antique gold and hung in an otherwise minimalist bathroom could be! A small living room done in neutral colours with slip-covered sofa and chairs could benefit from the warmth of an antique chest of drawers. Using antique pieces can provide ingenious storage options as well. An architectural piece of salvage, or a framed antique map could make a unique work of art in the hallway.

Place a hook or two in a minimal decor scheme. Choose a stunning antique dress or kimono and hang it as a work of art. Create simple curtains or cushions from vintage floral fabric for a romantic, shabby chic feel. Fasten antique jewelry to a lampshade, affix to a fabric covered board or frame in a shadow box. Install shelving over door frames, around the perimeter of a room at ceiling height or under stairs. Create an artistic stack and use as a side table. Consider arranging shelves according to the size or colour of books.

A second consideration when displaying antiques and collectibles is the style of your space. A formal interior in a more traditional style can benefit from symmetrical arrangements. In this case, for example, a mantel-scape with two candelabras on either side of a turn-of-the-century clock could work comfortably. A pairing of more then one piece from the same time period works best in a formal environment. For example, a hall table, chair & mirror from the art deco period.

In a casual environment, single, unusual pieces used in unexpected ways can be lovely. For example, an old mill wheel used as a coffee table. Consider re-finishing or re-furbishing old pieces and putting them to new uses. An old washstand could house a new sink and make a character-filled addition to a bathroom.

At the other extreme, a maximality casual environment chock-full and overflowing with collections can be striking. For example, a license plate collection covering an accent wall or a floor strewn with colourful rag rugs. The key here is that the objects must relate to each other in some major way.

The shapes could be similar, the colours could repeat, textures and materials could be similar (smooth or rough) or a clear theme, such as hand-made or pop-art could unite them. Even in a stripped-down condo environment, a collection displayed in mass, for example, a colourful assortment of road-signs, could be just the ticket to a unique and beautiful space.

In the kitchen use a mix of open and closed shelving. Art in the kitchen, especially images depicting domestic chores, people enjoying food or the outdoors, can make this room fun. Install an old shelf or place a chimney cupboard in the corner to add interest to a standard kitchen.

Smaller collectibles can be displayed in vignettes or groupings on bedside, vanity or dresser. Perfumes bottles look great on a mirrored tray. Painted furniture in wood, wicker or metal can add charm and work especially well with a country style. In the bedroom, a large piece, such as a wardrobe or four-poster bed, can make a grand impression.

As you can see there is no limit to decorating with antiques.  We are only limited by our imaginations.  Have fun, happy collecting and decorating.