Got your attention? I’m not going in that direction. And, I really don’t have junk to speak of anyways.
I can’t turn down these trunks. As in, I love a wonderfully constructed, ornately designed trunk. My count’s up to 3. Call it an addiction. Some people collect ottomans, some people collect vases, I, apparently, collect large wooden boxes that take up lots of space and need to be creatively displayed.
But I love the imagined history, I love the storage ability, I love the practicality. It’s the furniture form of me, well, except for being very worn (I’ll wear eventually too, it’s inevitable).
One came from Poland with mom’s ancestors (completely allegedly, who knows, people exaggerate). It’s stored in my bedroom, and holds lots of extra blankets as well as some ski wear.
Another one was $15 at a garage sale. It’s the flat-topped one that subbed in for a coffee table after I moved in and somehow stayed a permanent, rugged fixture in the living room. (The curly willows are not permanently there, I wrote about them over here.)
The newest, a fantastically maintained gift from a dear friend, has already found a home in the coming-together-slowly guest room.
Let me focus in on the details of this for a moment:
Leather handles. Wow. Well, this is the one that’s still intact. It’s obviously brittle, but it’s beautiful. Handle with care.
Functioning latches. No key, but the detailing is amazing.
It’s huge, people.
There’s a fabulously functional and inset tray, whose subdivides make me way, way too excited about organization (the one in my bedroom has one of these too, swoon).
And it’s lined in what appears to be a canvas-y cloth, which is just a spectacular, not to mention it has a fine, detailed paper trim lining the lid.
The immediate plan is to find a bedside table lamp to sit in front of the window. It’s top is rounded, but really has a flat 8″ area at the peak that I’ve been testing out with a tray, or books, or candles. Maybe a small clock in the future.
(Big thanks to a very generous Sherri!)
5 Comments
Emily it’s so cute! It makes me want to go hunting for some new trunk-turned-coffee-tables! I got to go some salvage yards this week, but had no such luck.
They’re so hard to find in good condition & at the right price. That’s probably why I’m so hoarderish about taking the ones I find. Good luck in your shopping – I can’t wait for the weather to improve in NY to hit up some of the good garage sales people have in the first few weeks of spring!
I have a certain love for trunks, too. Old ones, to be exact.
I have a gorgeous old trunk (turquoise) from Sweden that my husband splurged and bought me for my 30th birthday. I have another old green one, and it’s smaller in size. Oy, the older the better.
I love your three. They have great character!
Turquoise! Green! Any photos? I’ve toyed with painting once or twice, probably not any that I have now but if I found another trunk that I wasn’t as attached to, I might consider rehabbing with color.
hi emily, you don’t know me, but i’m friends with pete & sherri. anyhoo, just stumbled on your blog from sher’s FB page…and i gotta say, i heart it! you have a very merry pad, indeed…and i can see a lot of love and elbow grease have gone into it. will definitely stop back for a visit again. take care, kate sonnick
p.s. your furry, furry son is adorable, too :)