Today feels like a bright and happy Friday inside despite the stormy weather outside. And I’m guessing it’s got something to do with the recent addition of pretty vintage artwork in my apartment.
My kitchen is *approximately* a thousand times more cheerful and warm (not to mention cluttered with green, vintagey goodness) than it was just a few days ago.
I’m quite in love with it now.
Well, I’m as in love with it as I can be considering all of the contempo vibes and stainless steel. I know I’m a bit weird for hating the modern look (stark white cabinets, dark grey countertops, stainless steel—barf!). I just want a kitchen that smacks of an 1880’s rural farmhouse (like a real, working victorian farmhouse guys, not that Pinterest/HGTV/faketiques crap)—is that too much to ask?
For a rental apartment in Roanoke, VA, it obviously is too much to ask, so I will stop complaining about it now and move on to more important subjects like my gorgeous VINTAGE FLORAL PRINTS!
I’ve finally finished framing and hanging these beauties after building up my collection over the last two years. The kitchen was already feeling a bit busy and full, so it’s hard to believe that hanging some artwork could make such a big impact—but these prints surly pack a punch!
I really can’t decide what’s my favorite—the vibrant florals, green frames, or the cluttered shelf of vintage pottery?! I love it ALL!
The tops of cabinets are a notoriously difficult and frustrating place to decorate—in fact, I’d prefer not to have upper cabinets at all. But somehow, in this apartment it seems to work—the wide open space above the cabinets make them a feature. I used a 1″x12″ pine board on top to function as a shelf and to build cohesion with the other wood elements in the kitchen (like my antique breakfast tray and English plate rack).
My vintage vase collection (mostly McCoy) stands out against the warm tones of the wood shelf and the bright white walls and cabinets. The mirrored shades of green between the pottery and prints create a layered look that adds enormous charm to the entire space. The prints also help to draw attention to the enormously high ceilings.
I delayed hanging these prints for a while because I was a bit worried it would be too busy—would it look too flea market-ish? But, the flea market look has really been growing on me lately, and I think I am learning to embrace the clutter. I am really, really thrilled with the way this project turned out. The kitchen isn’t such a modern monstrosity anymore, huh?
Now that the project is complete, I can admit: a bit of madness was involved in the hanging of these prints. They’re hung about 12 feet high on that wall, so it took some acrobatic work to get them up there by myself on a Wednesday afternoon. I worked crazily and used a truly scary telescoping ladder (ten out of ten, do not recommend) to get the prints hung so that I could surprise Sam before he got home (you know how deeply he cares about these things…)
I did also surprise him with a homemade-from-scratch banana cream pie that same day. It was pure torture for me to bake this pie because—having just embarked on another round of Whole30—I was unable to taste test the vanilla pudding as I whisked away at it for a solid 25 minutes straight. Luckily Sam does care deeply about pie, especially the banana cream variety.
Back to my vintage floral prints, how pretty do all those flowers look?!
(Also, did you see my rolling pin wall? Ohhh it’s SO GOOD!)
More kitchen goodness is to come, as I recently purchased a gorgeous wood antique piece that will be replacing that little purple side table—I can’t wait to show you!