UPCYLCED: VINTAGE CHROME CHAIRS

After much trial and error, we have the finished product of the vintage chrome chairs and I couldn't be happier to reveal them to you. The reveal is of 4 vintage Milo Baughman style chairs , and they are absolutely stunning; seriously gorgeous. To really appreciate and soak up the goodness of these chrome beauties - I must uncover them when I found them...yeah, the before. 

Scary! Scary how these were probably sitting amongst a flea market for years in the corner, and they were just waiting to be given a little TLC. I did just that, a lot of that. Let me share with you the process ...

First I pulled inspiration for the chairs. What drew me to these chairs in the first place? The frame. I loved the curved shape of these chairs like the ones above. I sourced inspiration from various spots and was drawn to mostly dark textiles against shiny metal. So all there was to do, was put it all together.

So I set out to strip these chairs down to their original metal, which I thought was brass but quickly found out was not. To be honest, I really wasn't sure what it was, but I knew that simply stripping the layer of cream paint wasn't doing the trick. For the next attempt, I thought to paint them in a nice metallic paint. It seemed like a great idea, so I primed them and painted them a shiny gold metallic - no bueno. They looked bad, real bad. I knew these chairs were special so I wasn't trying to get them done to simply, get them done. 

So back I went to multiple hardware stores and scoured the web for helpful info and found the solution. I just needed a more aggressive way of stripping off the paint! There were multiple, and I mean multiple layers of paint on these chairs.  The gold that was initially under the cream paint was actually paint as well - like a gold plated film. So I went to town, and scrubbed like no other - you might have seen the vine video here or here earlier. 

And the outcome was gorgeous chrome!!

I remember thinking, whew! And wow, all at the same time. 

Next, the cushions had to be reupholstered. I was going to use this vintage deep blue velvet that I had in stock, but after finding out the frames were chrome I thought the best way to go would be a dark textile to really showcase the metal sheen.  

I set out to find a nice textured textile in black. I found this gold speckled fabric but there wasn't enough of it to cover all of the cushions. Good thing that didn't work out because after a little more scouting - I found the perfect ikat. Black - silver - gold - modern...the perfect fabric to compliment these vintage yet modern frames. 

Aren't they stunning?! Wouldn't they be great around a dining room table mixed with other chairs. It was so exciting to be able to debut them at our pop-up shop last week at Mockingbird Domestics, and paired with Stone Textile pillows - it was a match made in heaven.

A huge thanks to my husband, Josh, who was a really big help with finishing these pieces to be able to have them at the pop-up! 

I look forward to expanding Magpie Fields to showcase more furniture in the future. If you are interested in these chairs, check them out here! If you would like us to scout out that perfect piece for your space, give us a shout at hello@magpiefields.com - we would be happy to help you! Happy weekend everyone! xo, e

inspiration:

lonny magazine july/august 2011

here 

FEATURED FIND: ANTIQUE TURKISH KILIM PILLOW

Oh textiles, how you are loved! The color, the texture, the graphics that tell a woven story. One of my favorite types of textiles is antique Turkish kilims because of their classic beauty, fine craftsmanship, and cultural richness - which is exactly why Magpie Fields has chosen to add a selected few in the form of pillows to our collection.

A turkish kilim is a flat woven type of turkish carpet or rug and in its most authentic form is handwoven and made of live wool. Each pillow is made with a portion of an antique turkish kilim rug to make a one-of-a-kind pillow, a beautiful piece of art.

Not one is the same, and is made of naturally dyed live wool; live wool with all the natural oils to allow the natural dyes to pop. The live wool is handwoven - yes, each little knot was done by hand and not by machine giving it a story of its own. Imported from Istanbul and its neighboring villages, these  antique kilim pillows are handwoven pieces of rich history and can add a natural element to your space.

Magpie Fields holds true to the mission it was built upon and this product follows suit by:

1. Green goods - recycling beautiful handwoven antique kilim carpets and rugs into classic pillows

2. Global goods- providing a unique and culturally rich found good

3. Giving chances - by your purchase you are making a difference; a portion of your purchase is given to a charity of love 

FEATURED FIND: PAINTED FIXTURES

We've added strokes of color to these vintage 1960s aluminum fixtures to brighten up your day and your space! One-of-a-kind Magpie Fields exclusive, these metal light fixtures were rescued from an old motorcycle shop. Reshaped - refinished- rewired - and then redefined with bursts of color and added to our lighting collection. 

The sleek shape couldn't be overlooked and now with the splashes of color - each is truly a unique piece and original piece of art.  We can't get enough of this reclaimed collection - a colorful series for the live-out-loud spaces and metallic glam for the chic at heart. When they're gone, they're gone for good my friends... 

FEATURED FIND: MALI WOVEN BANGLES

Have you seen our woven bangles from Mali, Africa in the shop? Hand-woven with recycled plastic by local artisans, these bangles are the perfect splash of color to add to your everyday outfit. Check out the detail in the different designs and what about the colors - vibrant!  

We love the idea of stacking several on your wrist and even blending them with other trendy bracelets - such a huge trend for this summer.

While being stylish with your stacks - you're not only recycling what was once a waste material, but you're also supporting the incredibly talented artisans of Mali, Africa and we're pretty thrilled about that. So yeah, go ahead and stack them high!

FEATURED FIND: PLEASANTVILLE TRAY

Happy Friday friends! 

I wanted to send you all off this weekend loaded with inspiration from this week's "feature find" selected from the shop.  This weeks feature is the newly added Pleasantville Tray - This mid-century beauty has a quirky illustration hand painted with a soothing color palette. The piece is signed by the artist, C.P. Meter, and is in pristine condition - it's quite the find!

Don't you love the cut-out geometric shapes along the edge with the flash of gold paint?! I really just want to be a a part of that mariachi band - well i'm saying it's mariachi, but who really knows.

So if your in love with this tray as much as I am, but are thinking - "How would I use that in my space besides displaying it on the wall as art?". Well, I'm glad you asked because there are a world of options for this tray or any tray that fits your fancy - take a look at a handful of ideas below.

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Have a lovely weekend! xo - e

FEATURED FIND: Cigar Cloths

Cigar cloths also known as tobacco flannels were advertisement premiums used by tobacco companies in the early 20th century and was considered a hot trend between 1910-1915. The idea of using textiles as advertisement inserts was very common during this time - to entice customers and also to encourage women to purchase tobacco products.

These individual pieces of art were found at the Lincoln Road Antiques + Collectibles show in Miami, from a vendor who knew of their worth and potential. As modern design, these would be oh-so-unique pieces of art hung in any room - framed together, or individually as a series, or simply a stand alone, these pieces are fab + sure to make a statement in your space.

FEATURED FIND: CUP-O-CHEER

Don't you love that first sip of coffee or tea in the morning? What's even better than that, is drinking your morning beverage from a mug that will put a smile on your face. The Cup-o-Cheer mugs in the shop, do just that to me.

These Fire King mugs were produced from the 1940s until somewhere in the 1980s by the Anchor Hocking company - the brand you can see marked on the bottom of the mugs.  This very durable line of dish-ware was originally produced for everyday use and was often sold in bags of flour as promotional items in it's beginning stages.  

The dish line used many different patterns throughout it's production life, one being the gradient and luster version of the Kimberly pattern. This design was inspired by diamond mines in Africa mimicking a raw diamond ore - and hey, we sure like the sight of these diamonds!

Featured Find: Bolga Basket

With last weeks Mix + Match post on Bohemian Flair - I thought it only appropriate for the featured find this week to be the Bolga Baskets.  Bold colors + tribal patterns make these baskets a perfect addition to bring cultural richness inside your space.

The bolga baskets are handwoven from local artisans in the Bolga region of Ghana, Africa - we love supporting local artisans around the world.   Elephant grass is used to create these crafted goods and it allows the baskets to be easily reshaped - just rinse with water, reshape to desired form, and let it dry in the sunlight. The handle is fastened around a ring - making it easy to hold, and the genuine leather makes for a comfortable grip - the hand craftsmanship is truly exquisite and something hard to find in our modern times.

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The baskets are great to use for storage - in your living room for dvd's, outside for poolside activities, in bathrooms for washcloths, in bedrooms for odds and ends. They are even nice to bring to the local market to hold your fresh produce. We adore the bright colors + the story behind these goods, and we couldn't be happier to share them with you! And why not go ahead and take a look at what else we have in the shop!

FEATURED FIND: SECRET GARDEN CHANDELIER

    Well, hello there - I hope you enjoyed your weekend! This weekend ended with nice spring-like 

    weather here in Austin, and it left me craving warmer weather and lots of sunshine. To fill the void 

    of spring cravings + botanical blooms, our featured find today from the shop is the Secret Garden   

    Chandelier. 

    This hanging artwork is known as a Tole Chandelier, that is handcrafted from metal, and is a petite 

    masterpiece.  Tole Chandeliers range from 10" - 18" in diameter, and our Secret Garden Chandelier 

    is the more favorable and sought after 18" of excellent proportions + scale for any room.  

   There are three types of tole chandeliers, Italian, French, and Greek, that can be distinguished by their 

   design, and this floral design is one of an Italian artisan dating back to the 1940s. Hand-painted buds 

   and swooping vines give an appealing, organic shape and a touch of whimsy that's needed in every 

   home. 

FEATURED FIND: PARISIAN QUADRANT

With the shop doors recently opening, what better time would it be to add a little structure to the ole blog?  A new column that will roll on the blog will be "Featured Find".  The column will showcase one of our favorite pieces from the shop and reveal a bit more of the history behind the selected piece. 

With Valentine's Day right in our midst, the first featured find is the classy, feminine Parisian Quadrant.

I can't get enough of the soft pink shade of this Depression glass piece - The type of glassware was known to be made of translucent or colored glass and it was highly distributed around the time of the Great Depression - note the name depression glass. 

The bold pattern in the glass is called "Sunburst" and was one of the fourteen designs created by the Jeannette Glass company in the USA.  The fancy brass holder adds an extra special design element to this featured find; don't ya think? 

 The perfect juxtapose match is found in the design combination of the delicate details and the bold sunburst pattern. Oui, Oui we love the Parisian Quadrant!