Lucy’s dining room is like a little treasure trove of vintage furniture finds! We lucked out (big time) on some of these! As a reminder, her dining room had some darker pieces that she was excited to move or to donate during her big home refresh.
Here’s one of the first drawings we did while brainstorming ideas. A lot of these ideas ended up happening, but a few big things ended up changing, for sure! The scale of a few of the furniture pieces needed to be tweaked once we got the measurements of the space.
The dining table was our first score here in Phoenix. Check out those crazy legs!
The table top was not in great shape, but luckily I’ve had some experience with repairing cracked veneer with Bondo (here’s a little tutorial from another vintage table I fixed up that we still use in our studio).
Once the Bondo had cured and been sanded smooth, we primed and painted the table Simply White in Benjamin Moore’s Advance line paint – our favorite for painting cabinets and furniture! We used the same paint in Classic Gray (probably my favorite light gray color ever) on this Lane credenza we got off Craigslist. The wood was pretty before, but it was really chipped on the side panels and there wasn’t much to do to salvage it. I love how paint transforms old furniture!
Kayla scrubbed the hardware with Barkeeper’s Friend and it looks completely new! We tried Brasso first and it made the pulls all splotchy and weird but the BKF worked like magic! Usually one of the two works for me on different brass finishes – it just takes some experimenting!
Lucy wanted more storage in her dining room and a little desk area to work. We found this perfect little Danish secretary that has a pull-out top and lots of drawers at a local shop called Zinnia’s from a seller called Mathematica Modern (a FAVORITE place to check for affordable MCM pieces!)
We cleaned it up with a little Danish Oil and it looks brand new in Lucy’s dining room!
And how amazing are those maps hanging above the secretary?? Jordan Ferney texted me while we were driving the U-haul to California and was like “I wish you were coming to SF this week so I could take you to this amazing flea market that only happens once a year” and I was like “GIRL I AM DRIVING TO SF RIGHT NOW!!” We met her at the White Elephant sale in Oakland and we scored lots of cool accessories and art especially, though there were tons of furniture pieces I wish I had had more room for!
We got this amazing shipping map of the British Isles and we hung it next to one of Lucy’s favorite maps that we reframed in a vintage frame and mat we found at the White Elephant sale. I love how the colors work next to each other! It was like they were meant to be!
I also love how they play off the color of the Dash & Albert rug! How great is that grid pattern? I want this for my living room. It so soft and SO well-made (like all of the Annie Selke products!)
The dining chairs though – they take the cake for me!! The chairs we had originally ordered didn’t quite make it in time for the shoot. So we shopped around at local stores and tried to find a good replacement. We thought about these – a great size and quality for the price! We even bought four of them just to have on hand in case nothing else worked out.
We had been checking Craigslist like crazy during the week, and while SF has THE MOST AMAZING Craigslist I’ve ever seen, nothing was quite fitting the bill. Then at the last possible moment, these babies popped up. Clouds parted. Angels sang.
Kate quickly ran into the city to pick them up before the shoot and they were perfectly perfect for the room. What luck, right?
The last pieces of the room came together quickly. We picked up a fiddle leaf fig tree at Home Depot…
And we spray painted this IKEA chandelier white. It is SO great in that room. It hard to see in this photos, but I love the pattern it makes on the ceiling at night!
We hung the art last. The GIANT 40×60″ art print completely makes the whole room come together. We needed the warm color and texture in here, and Lucy loves natural themes in her art choices. This one jumped out to her immediately when we were sending her ideas and I’m so thrilled that Eventide Collective worked with us to print a custom size and Simply Framed did an amazing job with the clean, modern white frame! We also got the smaller leaning art print from Eventide Collective. I love the little hit of pink in here!
There were a lot of happy accidents that made this room come together! Pretty much every major piece in here ended up being different than what we planned for, but I think in the end, it works well with the living room design (which has a lot more going on). I like that the look in here is softer and a little more subtle!
SOURCES AT A GLANCE:
Fantastic!
GORGEOUS! I’m so excited to see you worked with Lucy. I heard her interview on NPR and ordered the book form Amazon just this week. What an amazing story and journey she has been on. You are both an inspiration. xoxo
So beautiful! I love how much character the space has
LOVE! This room is so perfect. I’m interested in that planter for that fiddle leaf tree. Where is it from?
Hi Kathy,
The planter was vintage, though IKEA has some great minimalist planters right now. So does Target actually! Good luck!
Beautiful work (as always). Are the various branches real or faux? Thanks!
Real!! The Magnolia trees were blossoming everywhere while we were in town! Kendra clipped a few branches herself and the pink Quince on the tv console was from the flower market. :)
Jenny & team, amazing work AS ALWAYS! As a recent cross-country transplant from Brooklyn to SF, I’m hoping you might share…what possible Home Depot did you go to in the Bay Area with that amazing selection of fiddle-leaf figs? This is gorgeous, and…the two I had to leave behind are still crying out to me!
We went to SO many! I think this photo was taken at the Redwood City Home Depot though? Or whatever city IKEA is in? Hope that helps!
There is a Home Depot across from IKEA in East Palo Alto, as well as another in Redwood City that usually has decent plant selections. There’s also an Orchard Supply Hardware in Redwood City that often has great indoor plants.
Devouring every word of these posts!
Thank you!
These rooms are gorgeous! I love how light and bright and personal they are. Well done team!
Such an incredible transformation! Well done. And the White elephant sale and SF craigslist are the absolute best, one of my best friends is furnishing her new house in SF and everything she has found so far is absolute gold. Great work team!
Beautiful! That little desk is just so sweet there, especially with the bench. I wish I lived on that side of the country – the SF flea market sounds amazing!
http://danielleandco.com/blog/2016/design-around-banana-leaf-wallpaper
This is such a special room, great to see. What finish did you use in the Benjamin Moore Advance paint on the furniture? Satin, semi gloss, high gloss? I’m guessing high gloss would be the most challenging to paint, as a DIYer? Thanks
I’ve used all the finishes and they are all great. The high gloss is easier to use than oil-based paint. It gets glossier as it dries somehow! We used semi-gloss for these paint projects though! Good luck!
Thank you
The vase on the secretary, where is that from?
It’s from Target!! I bought one for Lucy and one for me! :)
First time reading your blog…absolutly love everything you did here!
Jenny — smitten with the heel height on your sandals. Would you mind sharing who makes them? Thanks!
Hi Erin,
They’re from Steve Madden! I think you can get them at Nordstrom. I have them in natural and black. They’re really comfortable and the leather is super soft. :)
I absolutely love her home, and the reveal over on Cup of Jo brought tears to my eyes! Such a happy bright space for a person so deserving of the light. Also, I’m sure you’re going to do a post dedicated to her bedroom (that bed – SWOON), but all the same, I’m wondering where the white/off-white rug you used in there is from? I’ve searched high and low but don’t see any source mentioned. Thank you!
Hi Erika!
The rug is from World Market! It’s an AWESOME price and seems like great quality for a natural fiber rug. Hope that helps!
I saw the post on Cup of Jo and am dying for the instructions / tutorial / behind the scenes on the entryway – the shelf you made for the wall is exactly what I have been looking for to put up in my entryway. When will that post come up on the site? Thanks!
I’m reading a book right now called “The Map that Changed the World” about the first ever geological map of England. I’m guessing the map on Lucy’s wall is based on William Smith’s original hand-colored map done in 1815. He walked much of the countryside taking rock samples to come up with all of those boundaries and reveal how the English landscape was formed over millennia. It’s a fascinating story and so funny to see that map turn up on her wall as I’m reading the book! Great find…
What a difference! Amazing design. space is bright, airy and welcoming. I want it!
Agnes
findinglifebalancewithagnes.blogspot.com
Just found your blog and I am in love! This space is amazing! Can I ask where the pink glass vase is from on the table? Thanks so much!
Thanks for your information, I also have some information for you, click/Copy url bellow
http://st3telkom.ac.id
I’ll bookmark this one. Thanks for sharing this!
Wow, superb from you! Glad that i found your site today. I’ll bookmark your website and come back soon. Btw, how do i get more information about this? vien danke! Wow, superb from you! Glad that i found your site today. I’ll bookmark your website and come back soon. Btw, how do i get more information about this? vien danke!
Can I ask where you guys got the pendant part (to hang the IKEA light)? I have the same light and love it but I can’t get the cord shorter and think my only option is to buy a different part for it.
Hi, i want to know more about this
So beautiful! I love how much character the space has..
http://www.fashiontrends.pk/pakistani/latest-women-shoes-trend-2019/