Hello friends & welcome!
Today is extra special since we are accepting the “Thrift Your Decor” challenge over on YouTube hosted by Nicole Northgarden, and co-hosted by Robin Johnson. I am thrilled to be joining these ladies as we find second hand goods from thrift stores, antique shops, yard sales, or estate sales then show how we use those items in our homes.
You are invited to join me in a shopping trip for some cottage style home décor treasures in blue, green, or cream. Then we’ll return home and decorate the antique hutch and as a bonus let’s style an antique tray in two ways! Let’s go shopping!
In the back of my mind I’ve envisioned a backsplash of hand-painted Dutch tiles & this one attached to this paddle cutting board pushed me over the edge. Now I’ve got one tile… the tile & board were $4. Now I’ll be on the hunt for more!
In the 18th century the French used bouillotte lamps like this one to light their card game by the same name. Here is an interesting historical tidbit from the article What is a Bouillotte Lamp on invaluable.com:
“A bouillotte lamp, often made of brass, is a table lamp that typically consists of two to four candle brackets extending from a rounded base. These brackets extend from the lamp’s core to in essence form a candelabra. Capping these candelabra-like mounts is the brass Bouillotte lamp’s shade, which was often made from lacquered metal, known as tôle, that could accommodate the heat of the burning candles illuminated beneath it. These shades were typically opaque on the exterior but highly reflective on the interior to augment the light provided by the candles.
“Perhaps the most brilliant aspect of the traditional Bouillotte lamp’s design is the adjustable slide on which the lampshade is mounted. With the turn of a key, the tôle shade of a Bouillotte lamp can be easily raised to insert new candles, or lowered to better focus the light of the flickering flames of a dwindling candle.”
This version of the French Bouillotte lamp does has the metal gold lined shade and it does give off a beautiful warm, shimmery light. This was at our local thrift shop for $7.
Now this big, beautiful, brass tray stopped me in my tracks… I’ve seen trays of this size styled on large overstuffed ottomans in cozy English cottage living rooms & knew I wanted one. But this was big, antique, & pretty! The booth was having a 20% off sale so it ended up being about $46, which seems a fair price for a piece this large. I was so excited to get it home and style it!
Here is a round up of the treasures we found on our outing today. A lovely mix of blues, greens, and creams in the English cottage style. Now let’s decorate!
I’m thinking this bitty chinoiserie tea pot might just be my favorite thing! It is a classic piece I can see being useful in décor vignettes nearly year round.
I usually decorate the top corner of the hutch as well. All of these pieces were either gifts from family and friends, or found at thrift & antique stores.
English cottage style home décor with pieces thrifted or found at the antique shop. Such fun! Let me know in the comments below what is your favorite!
Now let’s play with that big, beautiful tray!
In the living room the tray serves to corral my favorite English cottage style home décor books, some reading books, coasters for your tea (of course), a candle for ambiance, and a little dish for sweets. The turtle I made in pottery class when I was eleven – fun memories. This looks so inviting!
Now for the final look…
And finally to see this tray put into action as a tea station! The watercolor artwork was thrifted a few weeks ago & makes a lovely backdrop for out tea tray. The wooden box gives height to the bouillotte lamp, and various vintage chocolate tins hold different flavors of tea. The elegant sugar bowl was a great score recently for $3.25. I just love how this English tea tray has turned out & have visited this area several times a day…
Thank you for joining me today as we went shopping and then used the items we found in our home. Until next time,
Take care,
Rachel