Downtown Loft Living

Many of you may remember that when we sold our little ranch house in Ojai 

we left the country life behind, at least for now 

and chose to live in the city 

while we begin a search for our next house project

(a little Spanish cottage in Santa Barbara)

For a variety of reasons, we chose Pasadena California 

and set our sights on finding a big open space (to rent)

right in the heart of Old Town 

 yes that is a big truck whirring by... and yes I cross a bridge over the freeway 

to get downtown, 

by foot 

and usually in my running shoes

because I rarely use my car 

if I can help it

and that my friends 

is one of the many perks of living right down town in a big city

another perk is fabulous food

....more on that later

 our city apartment is large and white with very tall ceilings and big windows

 and it was very fun to design the main living room

I started with inspiration colors from a small Plein Air Painting

 and a few pieces of Roseville pottery

 these are some of the original fabric ideas

For those of you that hate orange 

and I'm sure there are many, 

you won't believe how pretty these bright velvet pillows are!

the color is even more wonderful in person

mixed with the vintage faded blue batik 

the orange pillows are a color called Melon

it's yummy 

The sofa and chairs I designed to fit specifically in this space 

but they will be useable in any large living room or family area

They are slipcovered in a bright white twill 

and can be tossed in the washer 

There are a few more interesting textiles in the works for this space 

so I will share those when they are all finished

 I chose to purchase a few key pieces including a small 

Saarinen table 

for the dining area 

iconic modern pieces fit beautifully in this apartment 

and I took my Husband on a shopping trip to Design Within Reach

so he could sit in the iconic Herman Miller Eames chair

how do you say "chair love" in guy talk?

He owns this chair...I mean really owns it...as in "I will never give up this chair" kind of own

as in...no one else gets to sit in it...

we can look at it 

but it's his chair

what's not to like?

 beautiful white pebbled leather and rosewood 

 It is so comfortable too...I know, I got to sit in it once for about 2 minutes 

while no one was looking

I paired this with a small rustic side table

 some vintage items for color and texture

 the clear glass table lamps are from Arteriors

and the victorian bamboo tables came from an estate in Ojai

...it's a long story how I ended up with them but they are wonderful

 I still have my old sculptors stool and found a pretty antique 

guilded Trumeau mirror and huge French Tian pot to pair with it

 Millie finds all of this coming and going and moving around  really quite annoying so we won't bother her for the next few months

She of course prefers the new rug 

as opposed to her dog bed 

but who can blame her?

hope you 

have a great week !

xxoo

Kelley

Vintage Porch Swings: American Collectibles

 This post is about simple things that have an interesting history 

and can only be found in America....

in honor of the 4th of July 

and the spirit of our history!

 I came across these very old and beautifully painted porch swings 

via a dealer in Maine

Most of the things I have bought in the past were small and pretty insignificant....but when I saw these,

 I knew right away they were special

They are painted this amazing shade of aqua and have a bright pumpkin paint on the arched tops of the seats 

and the cross bar that supports the arms.

The paint appears to be original and other than a good scrubbing and a light coat of wax, I left them as is!

 As I was cleaning them up I noticed a brass lable on the rear of one of the seats:

It says:

MADE BY

PARIS MANUFACTURING

PARIS, ME  USA

So here is the story behind Paris Manufacturing:

 Joan Palicia’s Flexible Flyer and other Great Sleds for Collectors, contains the following information about the Paris Manufacturing Company which operated between 1862 and 1989: “The Paris Manufacturing Company had modest beginnings.  In 1861 a man named Henry Franklin Morton, starting with a hobby, began what would become the largest and longest operating sled company in American history…Early on he was plagued with a serious eye condition…Living in West Sumner, Maine with his wife Lucilla in 1861, he started making rakes and non-steerable sleds as a hobby to make extra money.  He assembled fifty sleds that his wife Lucilla hand painted in the family kitchen and they were successful in selling them.  The following year, Mr. Morton formed a stock company and hired four employees….he was invited to move his company to Paris Hill where he set up production under the name of Paris Hill Manufacturing Company.  As business grew, so did the line of products.  Go-carts, wagons, wheelbarrows, step ladders, ironing boards, children’s desks, furniture and more were added to keep the factory running all year long.”  Eventually the company moved to South Paris, Maine, to be closer to the local railroad freight depot and was renamed the Paris Manufacturing Company.

So...these swings probably date from the 1920's or 30's 

but maybe even earlier.

I read a few more articles related to Paris Manufacturing and the sleds are highly sought after by serious Folk Art collectors....keep your eyes open if you ever see one!

It took us about 4 trips to the hardware store to finally get these to hang right and swing correctly...but they are so fun to sit on!

By the way the dealer told me that in 30 years of buying and selling stuff from all over Maine...he has never come across a pair of swings quite this pretty and in such good shape,

which was another reason I had to buy them...

 The porch is all decked out in 

Red White and Blue...

 I feel very lucky to have a set of 

Henry Mortons swings 

to sit on this year!

Have a wonderful, 

fun and happy 4th of July!

Kelley