Monday, November 7, 2011

Florida Dining - A Compilation of Bits

When we sold our cottage, the buyers bought all the dining room furniture, so when we packed up the leftovers to bring to Florida, and since we had a half empty truck, I scrambled to throw in some old bits that we could use for the dining room.  About 15 years ago, I begged my mother in law for this old desk she owned from a Bell Canada office, likely from the 1940's.  It was in my dining room, but because I needed a table in that could extend to seat large numbers, I loaned this out for a bit.  I decided to use it as my dining table here as it is long and narrow.

The 2 arm chairs came from friend who sold them to me for $50 each when she moved to Dubai.  I wasn't sure about the velvet seats and back, given that this is Florida, however them seem to work well. They tie in with some of the bolder colours I am using here.

I needed some extra chairs and found the Tolix chairs at Pottery Barn and like them because it mixes up the look a bit and also they can be used on the patio.  I can also get 3 on one side which allows for the bench seat to be used for extra dining.

You can see the futon/sofa/dining bench behind the table here.  Because we have 2 bedrooms only we need guest space, so this futon serves double duty.  It folds out to a double bed quite comfortably.

I can move the chairs to the other side and pull the futon up to serve as a banquette....it sits a little high so it works really well.  I bought this grain sack pillow with the Fleur-de-Lys design in vintage buttons years ago from and Etsy seller (sorry forgot who) long before Grain and feed sacks became popular.  I thought from the listing it was about 20" wide, so imagine my surprise when I received it and it was almost 4' wide.  The thing is HUGE.  This is the only place it fits.  The blue actually ties in the blue on the velvet chairs.

That gorgeous piece of art came from my neighbors garage sale 20 years ago.  They used to own a restaurant and it was hung in there for years.  It never worked in our house...it needed a Florida house to look right. I think I paid about 10 bucks for it.

So there you have it...old bits mixed with new...modern and vintage.  I am linking up to Nita Mod Vintage Life today for her always fun Mod Mix Party.


17 comments:

  1. i love this mix of bits as you call it. love the blue velvet on those chairs. love the pillow mix and the chair mix. i love it all.
    xo janet

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  2. no doubts here. You nailed it!

    what is for dinner?
    I'll be right down, or ...over :D
    xx
    z

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  3. You can do no wrong. Our last two houses had huge dining rooms and we could seat 10. I miss those homes.
    m.

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  4. Love the blue of the velvet chairs! and the grain sack pillow is awesome!

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  5. The whole effect looks very dignified and inviting, a lovely complex mix.

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  6. I love that big pillow! So beautiful. And the look of your dining area is perfect for Florida since we are all usually from somewhere else. Ann

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  7. I love it all too. The blue on the chairs is such a wonderful colour!

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  8. Hi Chania,
    It's been a long time since I don't blog...but how lovely to see yours and just stopping by to say Hello! I am already in NZ and it is always wonderful to stop by to have a nice feeling from back home!
    I hope is all well and wishing you a lovely week!
    Cheers,
    Li :-)

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  9. i thought i called dibs on those chairs?

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  10. Everything looks like it was meant to be. I'd be begging for that table too - it's a beaut! I love your cushions on the futon. I've like the grain sack cushions and the NY travel souvenir cushion.

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  11. Argh, my comment disappeared...! Let's try again !! I think you have achieved dining room perfection, Chania! I love it all, especially your gorgeous blue velvet backed chairs....*swoon*!! ~ xx

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  12. Oh wow! What a beautiful blog!! Ive just found you from Happy Homemaker UK and what a lovely find! Now I need to check out the rest of this blog.

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  13. Looks wonderful Chania...I just dragged my teak garden table and chair into the basement for the winter. Not overly thrilled with how it's working there but not sure how to change it up either. I'm thinking of giving it that distressed-white-painted sort of shabby look...too trite?

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  14. I adore this look. You have done a fantastic job of mixing materials and styles. It could have gone very wrong but it is very right!!!

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  15. I would have loved to open a box and find that huge pillow. Love your chair mix.

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  16. You've got a charming mix of bits over there! I love how the velvet chairs look and your pillows tie everything together so well. Love the grain sack pillow and the fact that it's huge. :)

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  17. Your Florida home always makes me so jealous. It's evolving and coming together so quickly.

    Absolutely beautiful Chania. Lucky lucky girl. What I wouldn't give to raid your stuff.

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I love to read each and every comment and are thrilled that you take the time to send one. Thank you so much. Chania