DIY Nakashima Table Inspiration..

OK, so most of you design-obsessed out there (like us!) have heard of the design world icon George Nakashima, designer and craftsman of beautiful free-formed, hand made wood furniture.  Where most furniture and design is created by the designer, their approach is to allow the beauty of the grain and form and shape of the wood pieces available dictate the design of the piece... truly revolutionary.  And creates a beautiful relationship between designer and material in a time of mass production when everything looks the same.  The result is a piece of furniture that is equal parts form and function - art and everyday usable furniture, aaahmazing.  His studios are still up and running to this day, headed up by his daughter, Mira, in New Hope, PA..it's a must-visit-before-i-die kind of place, truly inspiring just to walk around the grounds and explore the studios. 

Original Nakashima Trestle Table, 1965, via here

Orig Minguren III Dining Table from '78..via here

 

Now, if you've heard of Nakashima, you must also be familiar with the price of his pieces...crazy and wayyyyyyyy out of our budget!  And now that we're hopefully moving to a bigger place, I dream of my own Nakashima-esque dining table in our apartment, and there's some great stuff out there..but we want it to be unique! and hand made! and CHEAP!!!  CB2's Dylan Dining table is a great option just sooo.. CB2...so...that said, here's our inspiration combining Nakashimaness + CB2ness..and a fun idea we're psyched to try out soon and let you know how it turns out...

TheLumberShack on Etsy is an amazing shop with gorgeous free-form wood pieces sold as a matched pair as a "DIY Table Top", finished or unfinished, assembled or unassembled, ready for you to do with them what you please!  They offer coffee table top sizes, bench sizes, dining table sizes, and custom as well!  the possibilities are endless!  This pair is giving me heart palpitations as we speak...and what about legs you say?  We're loving hairpin, and they're so inexpensive!!  Just a quick google search and we came up with a few good options...namely Ian MacLean, but there are etsy shops out there who sell them as well, among other online retailers.  So...

highly figured walnut dining table top

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Raw Steel 3-leg hairpin legs (28"H!!)..only $35/leg!

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a little hard work 

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 my new dining table at a fraction of the cost of the real thing!  we'll keep you posted with pics!!

xxoxoxo

a+a

solid gold baby...

so, totally obvious to everyone who's ever read this blog previously or met us or spent time near and/or around us or anyone we knowww, a + I loooove all things brass and gold and shiny.  the shinier the better.  we love!

During a little eBay shopping trip for vintage modern brass anything last night I somehow managed to contain myself and not bid on eeeverything, but instead thought i'd share with you some fun finds we thought might inspire...

And bear in mind, whatever's hanging around your house and isn't gold already can always (inexpensively) become gold...

gold + antlers...my dream.  such a cool wall hanging, would look amazing over a bed or sofa..kiinda pricey for eBay but it's so unique!  via here

gorgeous.  a vintage brass + patina ashtray/bowl from israel with hammered interior, via here

love vintage hardware!!  there's so much of it out there to choose from too, and at a good price!  Slap these on a plain old ikea set of drawers (This is perfect!  and such a fun new color, especially with the brass hardware!) and for around $100 you have a beautiful and unique piece of furniture!  via here

an iconic piece of mid-century modern design, set of ben seibel for raymor bookends.  no reserve so they can possibly sell for way under value!  6 days left on the auction, keep an eye on them here 

beautiful mosaic porcelain lamp with brass base, lots of warm tones with texture to spare.  would make a great addition to a modern space, or add a modern touch to a more traditional space.  put on a tailored linen drum shade and you're good to go!  via here

you can't have brass without a hint of modern regency, now can you?  these mid-century sconces are gorgeous and unique, and scream modern hollywood glamour.  I'm sure they give off the perfect amount of romantic ambient light too..made of solid bronze the finish needs a little tlc as you can see from the pics, but otherwise they're gorgeous..auction is for one so keep an eye on the pair! via here

and finally, my new obsession - super skinny candlesticks.  and their super skinny holders.  and this vintage one is such a good price starting at $9.99 with no bids and only a few hours left!  someone buy pleaaaaase????  via here

have fun shopping!!!

xxoxoxo

a+a