A Vintage MCM Table Top for Easter

These Are A Few of My Favourite Things

No doubt this first holiday during a time of social distancing was celebrated in many unique ways. If you were already missing family and friends then this past weekend really heightened that sense of distance and separation and emphasized how much the holidays are about spending time with the people you love. This weekend I was inspired by a challenge on Instagram that was about creating a table scape from 10 of your favourite pieces. Even though its just the two of us at home I wanted to set an Easter table anyway, so I decided to apply the concept of using 10 favourite pieces for a table setting rather than a table scape in the round so to speak. I knew I had a lot of pieces still in storage and I decided this would be a good time to dig them out.

We’ve been taking our self-isolation pretty seriously and so the last time we did a grocery run was almost two weeks ago - we weren’t even thinking about Easter at that time and so of course this weekend we weren’t really prepared with anything special for the holiday but decided we could happily do without and wait until after the Easter weekend to do another shopping trip. So while we didn’t have any chocolates or fresh flowers, we had flowering branches of forced quince from our yard, plenty of food and wine (even some bubbles) and a beautiful shoreline to walk in the gorgeous sunshine. Our Easter table would be a celebration of hope that we’d all get through this, safe and healthy.

On Easter morning I starting layering the table with some of my favourite treasures, many which haven’t been out of storage since we moved to Nova Scotia 8 years ago. The white dishware is vintage #EvaZeisal , Classic Century series that I collected piece by piece many years ago and more recently while antiquing in Yarmouth I found the Johnson Bros. fish plate series of the same design.

Eva Zeisel’s Class Century dinner ware, originally designed in 1952, Available at Crate & Barrel.

The Classic Century dinnerware series was originally designed by Eva Zeisel in 1952. Its design is simple earthy and elegant and as the name suggests, its classic mid century modern in style. The line is reproduced today in the UK of cream coloured earthenware and is available at Crate & Barrell. *not sponsored*. I fell in love with Eva Zeisel’s work about 15 years ago and started collected pieces on e-bay from this Classic Century series and others. Her work is featured in MOMA and is renown for being beautifully sculptural and functional.

The quince branches were brought inside exactly two weeks ago, my first time attempting to force them and the buds happened to bloom right in time for Easter, not planned but a wonderful co-incidence. There are few things I find more beautiful than flowering branches and since the blooms had just burst to life, these were a must for the table top.

The stem glasses were hand painted by a beloved Aunt who was like a second mother to us, my Dads sister, who passed away from cancer just over a year ago. I’ve had these glasses for ages, but its the first time I’ve used them. The potted fern is one we grew over the winter from a cutting 🙌 (we don’t have much luck growing anything here so this is truly a sign of hope!) the shells are gifts from beach walks which we treasure and …

….the birds nest was found in a second hand shop (never know what you’ll find in those places!!) as was the cutlery and the rattan napkin ring holders which I tied shells to for my visiting family so we can identify who’s is who’s. 🐚 The silver butter dish is another second hand find with best friends in Naples FL.

It’s not a ‘table scape in the round’ but I think my Insta friend Rela will appreciate the joy this table setting brought me on this isolating Easter Sunday, it was a bit of scavenger hunt! For every post tagged #relachallenge @ggdesignpartners @relagleasondesign Rela donated catered meals to frontline hospital workers - supporting a local restaurant and health care providers. Thank you Rela for inspiring me to set the table!

I hope this inspires everyone reading this to set a table with your own favourite things. My table came together without any pre-planning, this was completely spontaneous round-up of random things that bring me joy. Happy Easter to all! Stay Home, Stay Safe!

Coastal Estate - Twin Guest Bedroom

A Twin Guest Bedroom with East Coast Charm

Continuing from the previous posts, I’m featuring some of the near completed spaces in a clients vacation home that I had the enormous job of furnishing and outfitting from top to bottom a few seasons ago - but never got around to posting. The new owners purchased the traditional shingle style house as a seasonal holiday home, located in a remote coastal setting on the South Shore of Nova Scotia. The project didn’t involve any renovation or remodelling design work on my part, not even paint colours (!) my job of furnishing and outfitting the home mandated working with the existing newly finished spaces as is, and to complete them as soon as possible so the home could be used without prolonged delay. I say these are near completed spaces because our photos were taken after all the main furniture pieces had been installed but not all the small accents or accessories were in place, the photos of this room were simply taken with a phone-cam during install days. This is a peak at one of the 6 guest bedrooms which was designed to be a single twin guest room.

The design intent like the rest of the house was to furnish the room with a mix of new and old pieces. Because there was an overall budget for furnishing the house we made the decision early on to prioritize the budget to the main living areas and the Master suite which meant the guest bedrooms were allocated the smallest piece of the budget pie, but also had the most flexibility. This is just kind of challenge that drives you to get really creative and resourceful - and there’s nothing I love more. A small budget doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice originality or style.

Concept Board - Coastal Estate Twin Bedroom. Design Concept by: Carol Reed Interior Design Inc.

After reviewing all the requirements for the room with the client, I start the process of furnishing each room by creating a concept board. For this room it incorporates some vintage and antique pieces I had already accumulated for the project and a couple that I still hoped to find. Unlike concepts for construction projects which might illustrate all the exact fixtures and materials that’ll be used in a space, these furnishing concepts are loose and literally conceptual, this is what I’ll present to the clients to give them a visual of what kind of pieces we’ll have in mind when we’re out sourcing. With the logistics of being in a remote rural location, availability and budget effect a lot of decisions along the way. When we’re furnishing a room with one-of-a-kind finds the process requires a very trusting client designer relationship because its so organic you have to allow for lots of flexibility for unexpected finds to and spontaneous purchases be worked into your concept.

Antique Spool Bed in storage, sourced on the South Shore, Nova Scotia. Carol Reed Interior Design Inc.

One of the key pieces I had envisioned for the room was a vintage spool bed that we could set up day-bed style. The upside of this was three fold, an old piece would be ‘in stock’, would add unique character, and would be super inexpensive. Not to mention, the solid wood quality - that’s four unbeatable reasons why this piece was my jumping off point. I frequently see vintage spool beds for sale around Nova Scotia and after a short search I was able to find one that was in good shape and in its natural stained wood finish, it only needed new slats which were quick and easy to add. The rest of the room came together fairly easily around that.

Loading up the room before the install.

All of the new items for this room like the bedding and runner rug were in stock at local retailers or ordered online. Definitely the bulk of the budget for this room went to the bedding, ensuring sleeping comfort and quality were not overlooked. 100% Goose down duvet and 100% cotton sheets ( a combination of Ralph Lauren sheeting with an Ikea cotton plaid duvet cover) were completed with a white matalisse quilted coverlet and pillows for those warmer summer nights. A favourite unexpected find were the ticking stripe pillows with raffia trim, a rare Home Sense score (honestly that doesn’t happen to me too often!).

Vintage Fish Prints above bed in Guest Room. Room Design and Photo by: Carol Reed Interior Design Inc.

From the onset I had envisioned wall art that incorporated some type of sea life or nautical subject and set out to find something related to fish or ships. I quickly found a beautiful set of vintage fish prints on Etsy and selected 6 species that were native to our Atlantic coast - how perfect would these be for out of country guests (children or adults) to learn which fish are native to Nova Scotia! And how many people know what a halibut looks like?

Our European clients were beyond thrilled with these when they saw them and we chatted at length about all these fish and which ones they would commonly eat when they were here.

Aside from finding the spool bed, the next best find for this room were the frames for the fish prints. I had intended to find ready-made frames but I never imagined I’d find something as perfect as these simple wood frames I discovered at Walmart. Yes Walmart! One of the things about sourcing in rural areas is you have no choice but to look in every local store available, no matter how unlikely it might seem, and this was one of those instances. Not only were they the exact size needed, the unexpected detail of the galvanized metal mats couldn’t have been more perfect for these prints prints if I had had them custom made. The added bonus of them being in stock was almost too good to be true.

Vintage Fish Prints from Etsy, wood frames with galvanized metal mats from Walmart.

Like the bedroom in the previous post, the wall art has local relevance and so not only was it important to me that the pieces are pleasing to look at but also that they illustrate something of interest to learn about the local natural setting, culture or heritage - this theme is true of all the wall art we installed throughout the house, from the vintage plate collage in the kitchen to the black and white photos of Cape Breton in the Master to the line drawings of heritage Halifax buildings in the Twin-King guest bedroom, there’s a Nova Scotia story to all of it.

Vintage Fish Prints from Etsy, with wall mounted swing arm lamp from Restoration Hardware. Room design and photo by: Carol Reed Interior Design Inc.

Because we didn’t have room for large bedside tables we placed a wall hung swing arm lamp on the wall for which creates a cozy reading nook when the overhead light is off. We also added an antique candle stick lamp to the dresser top so there’s multiple levels of light in the room.

Although I don’t have photos of the rest of the space, all of the other pieces you see in the concept board were placed in the room and you can image what a welcoming and charming room it is for a solo guest or two. There’s actually an adjoining nook with a large sky-lite window that a second child could sleep in or is perfect spot for yoga or meditation (which is exactly how we set it up).

This room always reminds me why my love for spool beds will never subside and so I continue to search them out wherever I can.

Coastal Estate - Twin King Guest Bedroom

A Guest Bedroom in a Rural Coastal Vacation Home

Continuing from the previous posts, I’m featuring some of the near completed spaces in a clients vacation home that I had the enormous job of furnishing and outfitting from top to bottom a few seasons ago. The new owners purchased the traditional shingle style house as a seasonal holiday home, located in a remote coastal setting on the South Shore of Nova Scotia. The house is situated on gently sloping lot overlooking the coastal waterways and surrounded by many acres of woodland. The project didn’t involve any renovation or remodelling design work on my part, not even paint colours (!) my task of furnishing and outfitting the home mandated working with the existing spaces as is, and completing it all as quickly as possible so it could be used without prolonged delay. I say these are near completed spaces because our photos were taken after all the main furniture pieces had been installed but not all the small accents or accessories were in place, in fact the photos of this room were simply taken with a phone-cam during install days. This is a peak at one of the 6 guest bedrooms which was designed to be a Twin-King Bedroom.

As we had done throughout the house, this room was furnished with a mix of new and old. The lighting, bed and all the bedding were new, the rug is a new but one of a kind, the dresser, mirror and artwork are all antique or vintage finds I had collected along the South Shore over a couple of seasons.

The Nova Scotia antique pine dresser adds character and warmth and was in fantastic ready to use condition. I found the mirror at the same dealer and love that it still had the original glass with all its imperfections. There’s probably nothing more exciting than finding some great looking vintage wall art, and when the subject matter is also on point its a double score. I found a series of these vintage line drawings of renown historical buildings of Halifax which is the arrival destination city for all of their visiting family who come from over seas. Used as is, without needing any reframing or matting they were a steal. Im a huge fan of pairing black and white pieces with old wood case goods because the crisp black and white lightens them up and makes the arrangement look fresh and current. A leather tray with brass snaps sits atop the dresser as a handsome catchall for personal items or bug spray ; ).

Over the course of a year and a half I collected as many vintage and antique pieces I could find for the house, often not knowing exactly what room they’d be used in until everything was delivered en masse to the client’s house. Here’s a glimpse of this dresser and other antique finds stored in our barn shortly before they were all loaded up for delivery.

There are few indoor accessories that bring me more joy than foraged branches and wild flowers, and in reality there’s nothing more fitting to this location which is far removed from any flower shops or tended gardens. Cow’s parsley is one of my personal favourites for their large white heads and spindly extra long stems. I sometimes have a hard time telling it apart from Queen Anne’s lace but generally the cow’s parsley grows so much bigger and taller. It grows in abundance on the South Shore (like a weed!) and you can still find it growing, although more sparingly, right up until Thanksgiving. I can often be found on the side of the road picking it by the armful.

The single piece that anchors the entire room is the one-of-a-kind hand knotted wool rug in a deep dark red. It provides colour, pattern, texture, coziness and essentially enhances everything in the room - it compliments the ‘splurges’ and elevates the ‘saves.’ I’m typically a ‘never red’ person no matter what the space or occasion, except for traditional red rugs which I feel behave similar to a neutral with their all over colour and pattern which is very grounding in an all neutral room. The bedding is Brian Glukstein’s Home Collection and I love the casual but timeless hankerchief stitching detail, in navy.

If I could have found a king sized bedskirt in-stock in any other colour but white I would have considered other options but the white worked in a pinch and with 2 other King sized bedrooms this can easily be interchanged. The bed itself is a made up of a pair of Twin XL mattresses with twin headboards so the room can be set up as either a twin or king guestroom. When set up as a King its installed with a conversion kit that connects the two mattresses together and has a centre strip of foam to level out the middle joint, this all fits underneath the sheeting.

The woven rattan headboards evoke a coastal vibe with their weathered grey wash and tuck nicely under the sloped ceiling. The rattan bedside trunks were temporary at the time of this install (destined for another room) as the hunt for another pair of nightside tables continued. Pairs of anything are a challenge to find whether you’re looking for new in-stock, vintage or antique so whenever I come across pairs at the right price, right size, right style, I rarely hesitate. I have to say its equally challenging to find a twin size headboard that doesn’t look like it belongs in a children’s bedroom - there’s such a limited selection and sadly I did miss out on a couple of vintage beauties more than once. The Ralph Lauren tripod lamps in polished nickel and black leather are height adjustable which makes them so versatile regardless what style of table we ultimately use here, or how tall the guest might be if reading in bed. A bronze metal industrial style swing arm lamp lends a bit of modern edge to the antique dresser and makes an interesting use of what was an oddly placed light box.

The home is used during spring, summer and fall months so it was important that it wasn’t specifically outfitted for just a summertime look and I think the classic mix of white, navy, red and wood achieves a wonderful balance that’s fresh, inviting, and cozy for all seasons while creating a fantastic foundation for layering in accessories and vacation time keepsakes.

What truly completes the experience of this space though is what you can’t see, the smell of the salt air, the sound of water lapping and the leaves rustling outside the window…..