Apologies for the lack of updates, it’s been so busy around here! We did manage to put a new rug down in the living room, though. After much deliberation and stalling, we finally settled on the Alvine Triangel flat wool rug from IKEA. Yes, the flokati was nice, but cleaning up after it (and brushing it, and hand-vacuuming it) for the past two years has been more than I really feel like dealing with. Plus, we really needed something bold and graphic in the room, and I think this really does the job! I love how soft the white parts of the rug are. It has a Moroccan feel to it that’s very appealing, and a nice contrast to all the Victorian features of the house and the Danish Modern/mid-century furniture.
I also took the time to give a good oiling to the Arthur Umanoff bar cart I scored a few months ago. It was really looking very gray and haggard, but Danish oil once again saved the day and made it look great. I strongly recommend trying to oil old furniture rather than putting polyurethane on it! If the old finish is scuffed or damaged you can sand it a little first, but you’d be amazed how many flaws oil will hide. Every now and then you can give it a light re-oiling if it starts to look dry, and the finish will stay looking rich and warm.
12 Comments
Stunning living room. Crisp pallet but still very comfortable and cozy. I love Danish oil. My grandmother told me about it many moons ago. It is amazing what a piece will look like after it has been cleaned and oiled.
Oh, wow, what a beautiful room! I just love (well everything, but especially) the still life in the fireplace.
that rug is really fantastic and i am so very jealous of your beautiful cart! which oil are you using on your wood?
the rug looks great & bruno looks so regal in the chair!.
that’s a very stunning rug. it all looks great!
Kelly: I’ve been using either Danish (linseed) oil or just plain mineral oil. Both give great results (mineral oil is a little easier to work with and easier to find, but I find you need to apply more coats). I’d try first with mineral oil, since you probably have it on hand already if you have wood cutting boards or salad bowls. If you like the result, you can move on to Danish oil or tung oil the next time. Just make sure that whatever you use has as few ingredients as possible (one!), and is wax-free.
What a beautiful room! I’ve had my eye on that same rug, I’m really liking black+white these days.
great room! the fireplace, rug, everything.
Your home, as always, looks lovely. The rug looks amazing in the room. And I second the oil treatment that you used on the cart – it has spruced up many pieces of furniture in our home, too.
Hey Anna! Happy New Year! The rug looks perfect. and thanks for the Danish oil tip too! We have a couple of teak pieces of furniture that need sprucing up which I’ve been afraid to do anything with in case I inexpertly wind up doing them more harm than good.
that rug is fantastic in that room! good choice.
what a lovely home! i particularly like the very minimal decorations in the fireplace. i have one question for you: what can you tell me about oiling wood to look like new? i recently bought a lovely wood endtable off of craigslist, but don’t know how to make wood look new other than to paint it. any suggestions? thanks!!