Home is where the food is? For those of us who enjoy looking through home design blogs or flipping through decorating books and magazines for hours on end while we try to dream up our own perfect additions and creations, we have all seen the oriental rug in a kitchen look. It is one I am still not completely sold on because while I LOVE the aesthetic, a kitchen (at least say, my kitchen) is known for getting a bit well, gross. What happens in the sink should stay in the sink but that is a best laid plan and at least in my busy sink moments of trying to do things while my baby calls for something else from his high chair, I find that the floor in front of the sink can take quite a beating (hello spills, splatters, and breaks) and some rugs do not seem like good candidates for taking this kind of abuse. Okay, I am being a bit dramatic. But I love rugs. And again while I LOVE the look of the antique oriental rug being next to the sink in the kitchen, I think it should be a very well-thought out move. If you are not constantly cooking and cleaning after cooking, I think the situation is much less risky. Only you know all of your kitchen habits and behaviors and only you can know if having a nice rug down will be something that will be worth the aesthetic boost in a very comforting place of the home. If you are thinking the look and the lifestyle of having an oriental rug down in the kitchen is definitely for you, I highly recommend this montage on stylecarrot.com as it completely lends itself to the ultimate inspiration with a wide array of types displayed. Below are my top two favorite kitchens mentioned in the post and my ONH picks for sourcing rugs just like the ones featured!

 1. Runners for elongated kitchen. 

 

2. Area rug size in the middle of the kitchen. I am in love with the Elle photograph below of Ginnifer Goodwin in her kitchen with a lovely antique rug underneath her feet. Her kitchen looks modern and subdued, but most importantly   a mixture of stylish and cozy. I usually gravitate towards a bright, white type of kitchen but I love how sleek this one is and I feel like the rug is rather unexpected but adds the homey feel. Immediately reminded me of a couple pieces we have that I love and I had to share them!

 

That's it for this week -- hope everyone is enjoying the weekend in their rug-more or rug-less kitchens! xoxo, Melissa

Decorating a bathroom can definitely be a challenge because less is really more in most cases so items need to be very carefully picked and placed. One concept I absolutely love for a bathroom is use of a vintage rug. If you have a small bathroom, a cotton rag rug would be great instead of a bath mat because you can wash it and if you have a larger bathroom or a guest bathroom that lends itself to feeling more like an actual room, I highly recommend giving a vintage or antique Persian rug a consideration. The photo below from a Domino magazine featured a modern meets vintage bathroom is the perfect example of an airy, clean and dynamic bathroom that feels like somewhere you'd want to hang out after a long day's work, and guess what, you guessed it -- it has an antique Persian rug. Unique and interesting, love it! 

 1. Vintage or Antique Oriental Rug. Okay, so I can't completely tell from the super small portion of it in the frame if it is indeed my favorite type of Persian rug -- Kerman -- but it certainly reminds me of the type and we happen to have two very close matches in our shop. And my love affair with Kerman rugs will certainly live on -- now to hoping that one day we have a spacious enough bathroom to put one in because if it were up to me we would have one in every room!

2. Beveled Glass Mirror. Whether new or old, mirrors are pretty much the norm in a bathroom but having a round mirror that is beveled glass adds a little something special to the look if you ask me -- an old world charm. A lot of mirrors made today are not beveled and so that extra dimension that pretty much all old mirrors have is just lost. This mirror we have in the shop is one I have always thought would look fantastic hanging up instead of being used as a stand and check out that bevel....ooh la la!

 

3. A lovely plant in a vase. It seems a bit unlikely to find a plant in the bathroom but I love the concept. Nature is soothing and it is such a lovely way to spruce up any kind of room. And of course when you are sitting in your bubble bath, you can look over to see something else thriving. It has positive energy! While we don't carry plants in our shop, we do carry some vases. I always find milk glass to be incredibly timeless and think the ultra white vase would look just beautiful in a bathroom.

That's it for this sourcing series but stay tuned for our next one which will focus on home offices! I hope everyone has a peaceful and wonderful weekend! xoxo, Melissa

Bedrooms are sometimes the hardest to decorate because we so often get stuck in a rut with them. In and out of bed we go, over and over again. Day in and day out. Even though they truly should be the most relaxing spaces of the home for us to cozy up with and into at the end of a long day's work, they often become the place where simply put: bed is. All the attention goes to the living room because well, we live there. At least this is what I have heard from other people and I can completely relate as Dave and I still have a bedroom filled with artless walls and well, a bed. We have the furniture and we have a couple of pieces that we are attached to (like our antique blanket chest) and while the walls certainly bear a peaceful shade of minty blue that we adore + chose together, there is nothing else in there that really ties the space together. It is waiting for it and I know that one day when we are ready to tackle it, it will become the oasis that we need it to be. For now, here's to serving up some bedroom inspiration straight from Apartment Therapy with some Old New House sourcing! 

1. Large vintage rug with unique and neutral color tones. This rug in the photo, while it may not be vintage itself, immediately reminded of me of the vintage Josan Sarouk in our shop because the colors are so serene and lovely and rather unique. I feel like you wouldn't expect to see a rug of this color or size in a bedroom but wow, how inviting and spacious it makes the room feel. I just love it!  

2. Unique lamp! Even if you have recessed lighting like we do, a unique lamp is a must in any kind of space if you ask me. It is like an art piece that has function. My pick is more feminine than what they have but to each their own! 

3. Subdued, minimalistic, and small wall art. My pick is this amazing 1930s etching by the acclaimed artist Morris Henry Hobbs -- I just adore how tiny the work of art is and could so see it at the edge of a room leading into another space like in this room. 

 

4. Seating in corner for getting ready, decorating on, or putting clothes on top of. My ONH pick is of course our out of this world amazing antique leather pouf. I have never seen one quite like this and it would be a perfect piece next to the dresser or side table. 

5. Hanging botanical chart. Theirs is small which I quite like but if you have the space for a larger one like ours, I say go for it! Nothing like a large wall art piece that is minimalistic but bold at the same time. 

6. Color pop on a white bedspread. Whether you go with a lightweight blanket or a quilt like I've picked out, a little pop of color slung over the white bedspread can really stand out as a lovely visual piece of bedroom styling. 

 

1. Light colored botanical art. Okay, okay, you got me -- botanical art is a big favorite around here these days and I keep referencing it but I can't help myself! It can be such a natural and lovely piece of wall decor that blends serenity and curiosity and it is just so nice to bring the outside in. 

2. Wall art with birds. In the pictured home, the print or drawing is very small and I love that but no matter the size, wall art with birds compliments botanical wonderfully and can once again, nicely bring the outdoors inside. 

3. Colorful floral wall art. Flowers, more flowers please! Flowers are so vastly featured in art (rugs, wall, etc.) because they are beautiful in shape and color. Want to bring red, blue, and yellow into a subtly-colored room? Find an art-work with flowers in it! 

4. Unique landscape wall art. The one featured immediately reminded me of our industrial man + machine drawing with the lower third being land and the upper third being sky. The light minimal use of colors is also very similar and I feel like a one-of-a-kind wall art piece blended with the more commonly seen botanical is a really nice combination in a gallery wall like this one. 

5. Visual vintage dress hanging on wall. This is something you would not quickly think to do but boy, does it look neat. The gold dress shown hear becomes a part of the gallery wall and adds a streak of color to the blue backdrop without having to be permanent. You can switch out the dress every week, month or year and the idea is well, genius. As I have really become obsessed with vintage clothing and we have added a bunch to the shop, this seemed very fitting! I could totally see our 60s crochet dress hanging well next to all of the botanical art because it has a floral look to its design as well. 

 

That's all for today!

 

xoxo,

Melissa