A little something special for house...

As you can imagine, it sometimes so happens that while looking for pretty somethings for clients, we come across pretty somethings we want for ourselves.  ( = Why this job is dangerous!! ;)

That's what happened when my design assistant, Meghan, was doing a little shopping on 1st Dibs a few weeks ago...  I know when I get her emails saying she loves something that I might be in trouble.  She sent me a link to this:

     It's a 1950s capiz shell & brass lantern from David Bell Antiques (who happens to be local!!) and I fell in loooooove with it.   I'd been waiting for just the right piece to come along for my dining room and had decided I'd be fine with the hole in my ceiling for a year or more, if needed.  I'd been making so many decisions on my house so quickly and really wanted something really special for my dining room, which I think is really the toughest room in my house because it's also a pass-through to other rooms... 

{My dining room "before..."  Even though the carpet and pictured chandelier are gone, it's still a sort of awkward space...  We've made it even more awkward by shifting the back wall two more feet into our dining room to make our kitchen larger and so the wall now hits the window directly.  waa waa waa.} But I had decided I wasn't going to settle for any sort of instant gratification.  I wanted something vintage with a great patina yet still modern-feeling... so I was willing to wait however long.   ....... But I didn't have to!!  (only a few months really)

As soon as I saw the fixture Meghan found, I was done & knew I had the perfect spot for it.   (I.e. excuse for it at my house.) (You know how they talk about wedding dresses and "knowing" that you've found the right one immediately when you try it on?  That's kind of how I am with furnishings/ lighting/ house stuff and so I just "knew" like a bride;) ;) David & Tom from David Bell Antiques cut the fixture to the size I needed & hand-delivered it to us this afternoon.  (They are soooo nice and I've found myself drooling over their things on 1st Dibs since we found them on a couple of occasions... I love their eye.  They've done a sale on One King's Lane too.) Here are a few of my favorite things they have:

 {Ahhh love!!!  B. Koschmider Expressionist Painting on Paper, 1998}

{Vintage 1970's Yves Saint Laurent Gilt Bronze Cuff Bracelet... I've got a thing for cuff bracelets.}

and...

{Intrigued by this photograph & would love it on my wall: A" gorgeous and mysterious silver gelatin print by 20th century master Japanese photographer Eikoh Hosoe (b. 1933), entitled "Bee and Woman".}

And now another close-up of my beauty which I'm sure you're sick of seeing:

 

{I love the mottled brass cage and the fine hinges where it opens) ..Anyway, this baby's going up this afternoon & I can't wait!!  I'll keep you posted!! Also, I've gotten lots of emails asking why I haven't been showing many pictures of my house...  I am DYING to share more with you but it's also really important for our business that we get our home published, so I'm not able to post photos.  It's KILLING me, trust me, but the reality is that many design magazines won't publish homes that have been on blogs/online and I can't risk it.  As soon as I can, I'll share, promise!! Hope you have a great weekend!!
To view more of David Bell's pieces, check out 1st Dibs here.  
If you'd like help creating a home you absolutely love, contact me about our design services.