Reader Design: Aftan's Multi-Faceted Home

We're off to sunny North Carolina! It's a state that I hold dear in my heart, after spending four years at Wake Forest for college. But today, we're headed a few hours away from Wake to Raleigh, North Carolina where Aftan lives with her husband and Lucy, their 150 pound Newfoundland dog!

Aftan's home is multi-faceted - it is eclectic, traditional, Southern, and modern all at once, with each item selected for a specific reason. 

From Aftan:

When I’m styling our home, I like to try and make it feel cozy and inviting for others while still keeping the fun and funky vibe that I feel my husband and I bring to our home. I love when you walk in someone’s home and feel their personalities throughout the space. Not only that, but I feel like your home should tell a story. Who you are, places you’ve been, how you’ve acquired certain pieces, etc. So I try to make sure my husband and I are represented accordingly.
 
 

One of Aftan's go-to moves is mixing and matching patterns and colors. Luckily for Aftan, that is super on trend right now, but she's been doing it for ages. So what if 'color' mostly refers to neutrals - black and white are neutrals, right!?

That said, a favorite of Aftan's are the stunning emerald green chairs in her living room. 

Our green chairs are definitely one of my favorite things in our living room. They were thrifted and given to us by our aunt when we moved into our home. They’re the first thing you see as you walk into the room, so they’ve been a great conversation piece as well as adding that pop of color that our space needs.
 
 
Our chandelier was given to us from my in-laws who had it in their home for all throughout my husband’s childhood. Not only that, but they got it in a lighting shop Austria which is where my father-in-law grew up and his family currently still lives. Our dining room table and bench is also unique, and I can say one of a kind because it was made for us by a friend. It’s important to my husband and I to have unique pieces that are special to us while also supporting local artisans.

This home is just chalk full of treasures, some collected home, some new, but all special. 

Aftan, thank you for showing us around! And Mutts, follow Aftan along on Instagram @aftanbrown for more. I'll see you all next week. 

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Heywood-Wakefield Coffee Table

This spring, I had the privilege of picking over my first ever estate sale with my very best pickin' buddy Chelsea.  And boy did we strike gold!  Just check out some of the smaller goodies that Chelsea scooped up:

Thanks to Chelsea's research, we stumbled into an eclectic gold-mine-of-a-house that was brimming with unusual finds.  One of which was an original Heywood-Wakefield coffee table with a missing leg.  But pieces with missing legs don't stop us - especially if it comes with a missing-leg price.

Known for their curved lines and lighter finishes, Heywood-Wakefield pieces are American made and date back to 1897.  Based on some of the clues outlined on their website (yes they are still making furniture) our gimpy little find was more likely circa the mid-century.  Without the fourth leg, I knew I couldn't restore it to it's original glory.  But as Chelsea pointed out - it still had 3 perfectly good legs.  They just need to be repositioned for some stability.

By centering the remaining good leg on the left side, the table could get back on it's feet again!

In my opinion, it looks like it could have always been a tri-base!  

I ended up leaving the patina as-is instead of restoring it to the typical Heywood-Wakefield satin finish.  I couldn't help it - I just love the story it tells!  The rustic wood plus the curved lip on the table reminds me of an antique dough bowl.

For funsies, I styled the wall around the table with some digitally-altered blank canvases. (Could you tell? As much as I'd like to, no I don't own an original Matisse sketch.)  That blue-green balcony view print was also an estate sale steal.

If you're in the DC Metro area and want to bring home this vintage score - email me at cate@stylemutthome.com.

Tri-Base Heywood-Wakefield Coffee Table
Now Available for Sale
$525

Hairpin Legged China Cabinet

Big news!  No like really - this is my biggest-sized flip yet.  Clocking in at 71" tall, meet my first ever china cabinet:

I found him on half price day at the thrift store hiding underneath a wooden fish and wearing some plastic flowers like a laurel.  He was so petite without any legs that I almost didn't realize he's a china cabinet.  But upon closer inspection the wood was in impeccable condition and the sliding glass doors were without chips or scratches.  So I jumped at the chance to bring him home for my signature leg-lift.

 
 

I'm such a sucker for those warm wood tones that I couldn't bring myself to paint it.  All he needed was some minor repairs and some legs to stand on.

This piece features (1) a drawer for flatware

(2) two lower cabinets

(3) two sliding glass doors to keep dust off your displayed wares.

(4) beautiful angled lines true to it's Mid Century Modern age.

Also keeping with his mid century theme, I used MCM accessories to style it.  Those chartreuse Russell Wright dishes were a gift from my Aunt & Uncle and I've been dying to show them off.

The brass martini table seemed like the perfect mad-men touch and also a fitting pedestal to show off those fun 1-2-3 glasses I found recently at a consignment store.

If our apartment were bigger, I'd have half a mind to keep this guy!  But my loss is someone's else gain - he went to a new home just this weekend before I could debut him on the blog!

Hairpin Legged China Cabinet
37.5"W x 15.5"D x 71"H
SOLD

If you are interested in this piece or a custom order like it, please email me at cate@stylemutthome.com.