Vintage Charm

Grandma's house is a cherished memory for many, a romantic ideal for many more. And when it comes to fresh country style, the unabashedly sentimental, cozy feeling of "the old homestead" is undeniably appealing. Charming old furniture, kitchen implements, knickknacks, and fabrics are still plentiful and affordable, so if you didn't inherit them, haunt the resale shops.

Charming appliqués of bleeding hearts and peonies give these vintage-style pillows special appeal.
Charming appliqués of bleeding hearts and peonies, two old-fashioned
perennial garden favorites, give these vintage-style pillows special appeal.
The sage and violet color scheme is romantic, too.

Quilts, needlepoint and embroidery pieces, bits of old lace, ivorine (faux ivory) vanity sets, maple and walnut armoires, chests, and dining room groups can give your home a warmly memorable look. If you like your vintage charm with a bit more edginess, dip into the '20s, '30s, '40s, and '50s for a funky take on an old favorite.

Chenille bedspreads with ball fringe, tea towels trimmed in rickrack, novelty salt-and-pepper sets, pastel-tinted Depression glass, and roadside signs from the not-so-long-ago all help recreate those bygone days when America was a young consumer culture. Nostalgic? No doubt. But who can resist?

For more decorating ideas, see: