Friday, February 10, 2012

Campaign Furniture

Call me a little behind (I never claimed to be anything but an interested novice when it comes to design!), but I just found out the  name for the bedroom furniture I have used in my boys' bedroom since they were little bitty!



Here's a bit of background info from Apartment Therapy:




Campaign furniture, as implied by its name, is portable furniture that was designed for use in military campaigns. Its origins can be traced back to the Romans, but its use peaked during the Georgian and Victorian periods (1714-1901). Designed to be easily transported during military operations, campaign furniture included folding seats, small chests, and case furniture that could be dismantled and carried with ease. Often, it was built in separate parts so as to be more mobile, and the pieces were made of durable woods like mahogany and teak.
British officers of high social position did not want to compromise the quality of life and comfort to which they were accustomed in England, so function and form were thought to perfectly mesh in campaign furniture. The iconic recessed brass handles and brass angle pieces served an aesthetic function and allowed the furniture to be easily transported with no damage to fragile corners. Elegant, strong, and practical (well, as practical as carting around solid-wood furniture could be), campaign furniture was key to style and comfort while away from England.
Nowadays, owners and designers may not value the pieces for their inherent portability, but it should be noted that even in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, theses pieces were appreciated for their simple elegance and beauty. They popped up in lavish manor homes and London flats just as often as they were hauled through India and Egypt. What was born of necessity was quickly adopted for its style, and these solid, classic pieces have retained much of that same aesthetic allure.

Well who would have thought! Apparently this style is all the rage again. Which proves: Be out of style long enough and eventually you'll be back in!! 

Apartment Therapy

A Cup of Jo


Little Green Notebook
Little Green Notebook




O Happy Day
Apartment Therapy

Here's the only photo I could find of the furniture as it looked all the years my boys were growing up. The dresser at the left is the exact one in the picture that follows this one.

Milk in motion added bonus!

Heart Tree Home
See. Same exact dresser. The bottom two drawer pulls open one extra deep drawer. The makeover of this dresser for the featured blogger is pictured below.


Heart Tree Home


Here's the latest redo on my campaign pieces---a minor revamp of the boy's room after the youngest left for college in an attempt to make the room more user friendly when everyone's home from college:

The table over table arrangement does a better job of filling the space between the beds 

Large dresser centers space at the foot of the beds

Closer look at one of the headboards

No room for this anywhere but inside the walk in closet. It's appears to be an identical match for the Heart Tree Home redo above
 

Saturday, August 20, 2011

Designing with Zinc




Zinc adds a warmth and depth that leaves stainless steel cold. It has been used for centuries in French bistros, cafes, and bars but has recently made a big entrance into home design because of it's durability, beauty and versatility. It is the perfect metal for adding a touch of old world sophistication to a room. Yet, it is equally at home in a sleek, modern design. Hee are a few examples:

From Bastille Metal Works--check out their gorgeous work.

Sunday, August 14, 2011

Bistro Dining At Home

A beautiful bistro trio always enhances al fresco dining. (Traditional Home)
These small tables are great for creating an "eat in" kitchen when there is no room for a full size table. (Domino)




Cozy and convenient, a bistro table with unique seating easily becomes the focal point of a kitchen. (Style At Home).
This one is Silhouette Cafe Table by Brocade Home and is my absolute top pick. Here are some others I came across during my search.

Furnitureland South  


































The Butler and the Chef 
The Butler and the Chef

Crate and Barrel  





West Elm
 
Overstock
Online Amish

Saturday, July 23, 2011

Summer Saturday

I should have taken some photos of the work, because we had plenty to do: I was in the garden at 7:00 a.m., working much belated weed patrol. In the meantime, my son rode the mower for an hour. Front and back done!. When Lee returned home from a morning in the office he completed trim duty (a.k.a.weed eater) which literally takes twice as long as mowing for our big yard. After that we installed some old shutters around a back window that overlooks our patio (pictures later when the tacky window AC unit is gone--that will be when son number two returns to college in a few weeks:( Next hubby restrung some clothesline and then made his way to mom's house next door to help with installing a big drive-through gate. Here are a few shots of how the new puppy and my youngest spent the afternoon.

I'm soooo thirsty!
Both our Springers now  prefer flowing water to their water bowl, but until the oldest taught this one, she sputtered and spit more than she drank.

Sugar's favorite way to cool off and relax at the same time. She will stay there for a long time if I'm close by in the garden.
In fact, she NEVER misses a chance to get wet.

Which is why she always looks like this and keeps my deck looking like that! Notice her adopted "Big Momma" characteristically ignoring the "menace" as best she can.( By the way, that window barely showing in the upper left corner now has awesome shutters!!)
Meanwhile---blowing bubbles is always a great way to expend some six-year-old energy!
 


The overgrown mid-summer garden is apparent in the background.
Too big and tough for anything but next year's seed.
It doesn't look important. Uh, can't I have it?
Fading beauty.
What? Am I in trouble? Again?