Displaying antiques doesn’t have to age your home. A room that is full of interesting layers is much more stylish than a boring, all-modern room. The goal is to arrive at a harmonious mixture of antiques and contemporary furnishings. But how?
This process isn’t as simple as plunking down a modern piece of furniture, such as a sleek leather couch with metal legs, and pairing it with an antique, like a vintage wooden coffee table. There needs to be a connecting link between the two for the combination to make sense.
Using the example above, you could connect the two pieces by adding traditional pillows to the couch. Kilm pillows are trendy these days and they are far from modern, so that would be a good way to connect the ultra-modern sofa to the coffee table. And then you could add several silver orbs on your coffee table and arrange them in a lacquered tray along with some books. The silver orbs will relate to your sofa legs.
Mix and layer and repeat and you’ll have a collected feel to your room.
Here are some more examples. An antique dresser with old-fashioned pulls can be easily updated with a switch of the hardware. Add some chrome or coloured hardware and you’ll have a beautiful antique piece that feels fresh. Although with very valuable antiques this is not advisable as it would devalue the piece but if it is not a very valuable piece this can be a nice update to create a functional dresser.
A wingback chair from another decade can look new again with a geometric, colourful pillow or throw. Geometric patterns are great for updating traditional furniture and decor. A yellow rug with a strong, geometric pattern will instantly modernize an antique, solid-coloured sofa, for example.
Pair a modern light fixture over your old dining table, along with lacquered chairs with chrome legs. Add a gallery of old art and frames on a wall to balance everything out. Soft and billowy white curtains would be the perfect final touch to this layered dining room.
In the bedroom, you could flank a modern bed with antique side tables along with modern lamps. Or you could pair a wooden bed frame from your grandparents with white side tables and brightly coloured lamps to balance everything out.
White is a great colour to use with antiques, along with bright pops of colours here and there. If your room gets a lot of sunlight, consider painting your walls a bright white to compliment antiques beautifully. Accessories that are white and lacquered can freshen up the look of a weathered piece of furniture. Look for white candlesticks, vases, ceramic animals, and other decor to refresh the look of your furnishings.
Many people search through antique shops to find old furnishings to add to their home, so consider yourself fortunate if you already have them in your home. Use accessories to create a nice blend of old and new. Add layers to your home to make it appealing and inviting.
