mission office ran aground on mission life.
much as i’m a catalog junkie, i approached this office re-do with the intention of getting pieces so unique that i couldn’t just toss my AMEX number at the CB2 website whilst sipping coffee sunday morning. no, the office should involve some sweat. (and more than the amount it would take to throw up a couple coats of paint.)
this is hard.
between an escalating load at work and some health-busting bugs, it took me a mammoth effort to get just three primary ingredients in place by now. i’m beginning to see why foraging for design is a full time job.
a weekend afternoon at a used furniture liquidator’s warehouse led me to this beauty:
what’s that, mr. fred’s-unique-furniture-and-antiques? solid wood desk by a classic american manufacturer in the perfect stain? no refinishing required? yup, load it into my trunk.
this is where the furniture adventure gets hairy. i don’t believe in cars and use a cheap little zippy one out of necessity. (if you don’t own a car in michigan, you might as well draw a face on your volleyball and call him wilson.)
used furniture rarely comes with the free delivery perk, though, so add to your to-do list the need to borrow an SUV. and the need to reserve the loading dock in your apartment building. and the need to make time during business hours. and the need to coordinate loading-unloading with your spouse’s schedule. doing this the fun way is starting to eat me alive.
i borrowed an SUV, picked the desk up from the warehouse, and nabbed a vintage eames fiberglass shell from craigslist en route. boom.
crisp white walls. wood mid-century desk. yellow mid-century chair. this room needs a burst of something to yank it forward into 2013 without rejecting the decades in between.
enter a bokhara rug (timeless) in the rarest vibrant blue (modern).
i win. literally, after a harrowing week of ebay bidding, i win.
now back to mission life, which demands my full attention for a week to recover hours lost to bugs. the rest of the room will have to wait… but i expect that a daydream or two will pull me back to crisp whites, warm woods, and a yellow pop on a sea of blue.
laplace tiya 
Wow! Amaaazing finds! Our own used furniture adventures have escalated to the point where we have to rent pickup trucks…I feel your pain, there. It’s so worth it in the end (and you’ll totally forget all the trouble it caused you…) Can’t wait to see the finished room.
thanks for stopping by. i love your work! so ambitious, and the final product is amazing. definitely worth truck rentals. i’ll have to use your blog as inspiration to keep away from big box stores.
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