You know when things speak to you? You look at something -- an interior, in my case -- and you 'get it'? You think, "well of course that looks good! And had I thought about my place just a little bit harder, I may have even arrived at the same solution!" Likely not, but that's the thought I entertained when I caught a glimpse of the freshly unveiled home of stylist, designer and trend reporter/blogger, Arren Williams, in this month's issue of Canadian House & Home.
He and partner David Pimentel rolled up their sleeves on a c.1965 Toronto rooming house, deploying in the process some very close-to-my-own-heart solutions: refurbished, affordable vintage finds.
I used my vintage radar (not yet on the market) to scour Arren's clever, dramatic-yet-unpretentious new abode and found the place rife! So I got him on the phone this morning to divulge a bit about his process... For more photos, check out Arren's blog, Design Lab.
Living Room
Photography by: Angus Fergusson
Elana Safronsky: Was the decision to go '60s/'70s a no-brainer considering the home's vintage?
Arren Williams: Yes, definitely. We were looking for a home with this aesthetic, but we also wanted to play with it a bit. I didn't want it to be too precious or take it too seriously. I think some of the choices show a sense of humour. My home actually makes me laugh. And what could be better than to really be amused by a space you're in everyday?
ES: Tell me about the sofa.
AW: It was originally gold corduroy and way too low. We raised it, and reupholstered it in a fuchsia tweed.
ES: How did you commit to that?
AW: We wanted something unusual -- the whole colour scheme is a bit off, intentionally -- and we just loved the shape of it and the size, it's almost 8 feet long. Refurbishing a vintage sofa is a great way to get something unique -- with the fuchsia, we really wanted to make a statement. We were originally going to do it in hot pink velvet!
ES: Those occasional chairs, I've seen them around. They're not exactly a high-brow design piece, but they look fabulous in the space...
AW: They were $15 a chair, the aluminum was stained and yellowed, and the seats were institutional green vinyl. Primarily, they were a great size -- nice and generous, and I knew they'd make great side chairs. We have three of them actually, and the third is awaiting a different transformation. Haven't decided on it yet.
ES: What's not vintage in this room?
AW: The metallic ottoman, the table lamp, the rug (Sears), the pillows and two of the three objects on the coffee table (the glass one is vintage.) Oh, and we had the fireplace put in. It's gas, vented directly out of the house. We clad it in stone and painted it as per the tendency back in the '60s.
ES: Where'd you get the wallpaper?
AW: It's "Manderley" Gold from Graham & Brown. We found it a while ago and said we have to use it somewhere. It has both gold and silver tones in it and the metallics were really vital to the look we were going for. It pretty much wraps around the entire first floor.
ES: Ceiling fixture? I've seen those too, and usually they make me laugh (cringe) but again, you've made it work perfectly...?
AW: It's late '70s and was a steal. Made of smoked plastic and chrome, and lights up like a spaceship. We wanted mood lighting, and also the metallic element. Works well with the wallpaper.
ES: Where's the TV?
AW: NO TV! We're fortunate because we had the room to put it downstairs, in an entertainment room. It's a 52-inch LED. I guess we have room on the first floor for a small screen, but don't forget, most people watch TV on their laptops these days... [Nothing makes me happier than to hear that!]
The Dining Room/Kitchen
Photography by: Angus Fergusson
Elana Safronsky: All those chairs...I love the chairs! Did you just accumulate them over time and think, hey, I can use them as my dining room chairs?
Arren Williams: Well, I am certainly a chair-a-holic, so yes, I had some to start, but we set out to do it. One of my favourite things to do is get a GPS map of all the Value Villages outside Toronto, and make a day of it. They're mostly all from Value Village, and I had them sprayed by Beresford Inc., and re-clad in grey linen.
ES: Table?
AW: Made it. We needed a narrow table, and I had been holding on to the X trestle table base for some time. I got it at Value Village and had it refinished. The planks are actually scaffolding. My father-in-law is in construction, so we got three planks of old scaffolding, sanded them down individually, and joined them together to make the table top.
ES: How about the floors? They don't look vintage.
AW: They're bamboo flooring from Home Depot. I like natural flooring, and these will gain a nice patina over time. I like dark floors, even if they require a bit more maintenance, but these are actually not as espresso as they look. They're more of a Brandy colour.
ES: Finally, the stools? They look like they could be vintage, but I've seen contemporary reproductions...
AW: Vintage. They were in really bad shape too. The base was brown, and the seat was hot pink. I had them sprayed and the seat reupholstered in the same grey linen as the dining chairs.
ES: Personally, I like working within (no) budget, how did you manage not to break the bank?
AW: Oh it was not all champagne and caviar, believe me. There were a lot of choices to be made. But that's totally the fun of it!
Got it? New-lease-on-life is the way of today. What are your favourite pieces?
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