Thursday, January 5, 2012

Dining Room Sneak Peek


Thanks everyone for your comments on my last post.  I am struggling to keep up with work demands, so I'm way behind on replying to emails and comments, I apologize for that.
Normally I like to wait and show you a room once it is all finished, but I just couldn't wait this time.  I'm in love with a piece of furniture I just got, and I think I might need a 12 step program for it!  Sorry for the quick and dirty pictures, but I wanted to show it off right away.  See that bolt in the photo above?  It had me at hello, and it was one of the reasons I bought this piece, sight unseen from my friend Caroline.




I met Caroline, and her husband Jon-Paul, when I did a photo shoot for Romantic Country Magazine at one of their amazing barn sales in 2010.  Through their business, Eskter Antiques, they import wonderful things from around the world and then sell them at their gorgeous property outside of Leesburg, Virginia during the barn sales they host several times a year.

Caroline is a native of the Netherlands, and her taste is beyond compare.  The home she and her husband share with their two beautiful daughters has been photographed for magazines, and has appeared in Fifi's wonderful book Romantic Prairie Style, and will also be in Fifi's new cookbook!

So I know that when Caroline posts photos of an upcoming sale, I will always find something to fall in love with.  Usually I just drool at her photos because I don't have room for some of her pieces, or I'm just not in the market for something new, but in December I lucked out!  Not only was I in the market for a new dining room cabinet to hold all of my china and crystal, but there, staring out from her website, was the cabinet that had been living inside my head, the one I'd been waiting for.  I knew right then and there that it was time to sell my grandparent's dark furniture and get what my heart was longing for.

So I sent Caroline an email, and then we had a few phone conversations, and I decided to just buy the cabinet without driving the 2 1/2 hours to see it.  It had cremone bolts for heaven's sake, how could it not be beautiful, I thought!  And it was nearly twice as wide and way taller than my old china cabinet, so that meant that the special stemware and dishes that had been living in boxes for 4 years would now finally have a home.  If I ever move or add on, I will make sure that every inch of space is devoted to storage, because this house is lacking in it, well at least for a plate addict like me!
 



My only hold back about the cabinet was that it looked a little too white in the photos, and in my head my ideal cabinet looked like an old piece of driftwood.  Then last Saturday, when Jon-Paul delivered the cabinet, my jaw just about hit the floor.  When I walked outside to see it in the back of his truck, it was not white, but a beautiful driftwood color, woohoo, luck be a lady tonight!  I was thrilled that it wasn't white, even though I would have been perfectly happy with something more white.  

Because Caroline imports much of what she sells, she often only gets one or two of any particular item and she may or may not be able to get more.  When I first contacted her about this cabinet there were 3 other people clamoring to own it, but one by one they couldn't take it.  So my first bit of luck was in being the one who got to buy it, and then when it was the color I wanted, had the right dimensions, and was in my price range, well I was over the moon happy!

The other good news is that I've sold my grandparent's table and chairs, which you see pictured, to a lovely young couple who contacted me through Craigslist.  Yay for no one killing us when they came to look at it!  They will be picking it up on Saturday, and I feel certain it will have a happy home.  When the guy came to look at it last night we ended up chatting for almost 2 hours, gotta love it when you like the people who buy your stuff!

So there will be some more rearranging around this place over the weekend.  I'll be in full on fluff mode until everything is the way I've been envisioning it in my head since we moved in here over 4 years ago.  I just love it when a plan comes together, and apparently patience really is a virtue!

I'll will be posting much better pictures of the finished room, when it is actually finished, and showing you another special item I got from Caroline and Jon-Paul.  And in case you are in love with this cabinet too, I happen to know that Caroline will be getting at least one more, most likely sometime in January, so if you are interested, you can contact her by clicking HERE.  You can tell her you want the special Kat Kabinet...I'm kidding people! ;-)

And I will be linking to Furniture Feature Friday with Miss Mustard Seed, because for the first time in a really long time, I have a new piece of furniture....YAY!

28 comments:

  1. Wow, that's one gorgeous piece of furniture! I love it, you must be thrilled! xo K

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  2. I do love it and it is a perfect fit. Can't wait to see the room when it is all finished. Glad you weren't killed, too. :)

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  3. Oh Kat...this piece is heavenly! It is patina'd to perfection, and your dishes look wonderful inside. Love all the locks and hinges. It was certainly a treasure worth waiting for.
    Enjoy!

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  4. What a beauty and I love the story behind it. It was meant for you too.

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  5. Beautiful!
    I wish I had a wall
    for a buffet. Our dining
    room has windows on
    three sides, so that's
    that. I will enjoy this
    one vicariously through
    you!

    xx Suzanne

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  6. Kat, your new cupboard is absolutely stunning!! I just love it and it is more you!! Well I've never met you before but it seems more you! I'm glad that a nice couple is buying your grandparents set too! HUGS to you my friend!!

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  7. It's incredible, Kat. My gosh, it truly is! I love that chandelier too. Also love it when a plan comes together. Bravo for you ~

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  8. It fits the space so beautifully Kat: must be Destiny ~

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  9. It sounds as if it was just meant to be! It is gorgeous and I'm excited for you. What I want to know is how did you emotionally part with the grandparent's furniture. I have a house full of "can't get rid of this because it belonged to..." and I have no idea what we are going to do when we move.

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  10. That piece is DROP.DEAD.GORGEOUS.

    It all looks wonderful Miss Kat-

    Enjoy having a place for all of your plates!

    Laura
    White Spray Paint

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  11. It's just gorgeous, Kat! I have out-grown the size of my china cabinet too. Not in the market for a new one, but if I were I'd be all over one like yours. Congrats on selling yours and snagging this new one. :-))

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  12. OH Kat...it is perfect...and it sounds like everything worked out just as it should have! Can't wait to see more!

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  13. It's perfect - perfect - perfect!

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  14. GORGEOUS! and sounds perfect. Yay you!
    xx
    z

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  15. Kelly J/Hunters HillJanuary 6, 2012 at 7:43 AM

    I am LOVING that cabinet and truly appreciate what you are saying about needing room for PLATES! I only wish my dining room had a wall to accomodate a cabinet like that!
    So glad to know your grandparent's furniture has found a good home, I am sure that young couple is very happy :-)

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  16. I have stood in front of one of Caroline's wonderful cabinets more then once at the Ekster barn sales and drooled on myself because they're so gorgeous. To think that I actually KNOW someone who has one is so cool!! I'm thrilled that your grandparents' table and chairs is going to a new family, and that your dining room dream is coming together!

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  17. Talk about having a plateful! What a beautiful piece and you're right...it does look more white on her site, but serendipity at it's finest that it's more driftwoody.
    Deb

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  18. P.S. Her taste...and yours...is impeccable. Now I'm off to find a dictionary and look up cremone bolts!

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  19. What a fabulous piece!! The color is beautiful. I'm sure you'll have lots of fun arranging and rearranging. :) My daughter lives in Northern Virginia so I hope to go to one of the barn sales sometime while visiting. :)

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  20. Wow, that cabinet is GORGEOUS!!! Great choice!

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  21. Kat: The cabinet is amazing! I cant wait to see the finished room! By next step is to sell my dining room furniture thru Craigs List.....

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  22. I didn't even know what a cremone bolt was, but I actually gasped as soon as I saw your gorgeous new cabinet! It's breathtaking and I adore the beautiful driftwood color and how it really sets off your beautiful iron light fixture. Can't wait to see more! xo ~Lili

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  23. My jaw hit the floor too when I saw your photo first come up. A truly amazing piece and is so perfect for your space. WOW, WOW, WOW way to score Kat!!!
    Sending you big wishes for a wonderful 2012 Kat.
    hugs from here...

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  24. Kat, What a gorgeous cabinet! The paint finish is amazing.
    Hugs,
    Sherry

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  25. Be still my (envious) heart! It's FAB!

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  26. It's just ravishing! Gut decisions are the BEST ones. andrea@townandprairie

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