By Jackie Burrell
CONTRA COSTA TIMES
From its book-crammed shelves to the travel artifacts tucked on table tops and softly lit by small lamps, this was a room that brimmed with personality.
The furniture itself was splendid, but it was the details, the accessories that caught the eye. And you didn’t need to know who lived there to conjure up the story of a globetrotting, book-loving artist — and figment of designer Catherine Macfee’s imagination, who created the room for last spring’s San Francisco designer showcase .
Every dwelling, says Macfee, should tell a personal story — yours. And it’s the accessories that tell that tale.
“It’s what do I want this room to say?” says Macfee, an award-winning designer with studios in Orinda and at Lake Tahoe.
Macfee’s latest projects include decorating the new Va de Vi restaurant in San Francisco, the interior of an antique 1920s boat, and various homes in the Bay Area and at Tahoe, so she’s constantly looking for new accessories to bring rooms to life and make them cozy.
But for the decorating-challenged, the whole accessories-thing is easier said than done. They buy vases and glassware and plop them on a coffee table, but the room never looks pulled together. Or, it looks exactly like Page 21 or 43 of the latest Pottery Barn catalog — beautiful, but not exactly personal.
The problem, says Macfee, is that they’re not picking accessories that speak to them.
“They’re kind of stuck in Pottery Barn and generic-land,” says Macfee. “They add more simplicity and generic to a space instead of taking it to a next level — an interesting antique, a little found piece, working with a combination of colors, letting the accessories finish that look, pull it together.”
Some of the most meaningful treasures lurk in your own closets and trunks, says Macfee. There are souvenirs from trips and beloved items passed down through families.
And the Bay Area abounds with antique stores and eclectic boutiques that boast one-of-a-kind items from Asia and Europe. Some carry hefty price tags, commensurate with their vintage, materials or provenance, but there are deals to be had, too.
Danville’s Elegant Clutter, named the East Bay’s best home accessories store by Diablo Magazine readers several years running, carries a wide variety of items, from vivid scarlet and yellow patterned pillows and Provencal accessories to gentlemen’s club-type fare. Oakland’s Rockridge area is home to antique shops and to Maison d’Etre, a quirky boutique for Francophiles. And Walnut Creek’s Paris Flea Market holds an eclectic mix of French flair, antiques and unexpected treasures, such as coat hooks made of white painted iron and large crystal knobs.
The idea, says Macfee, who’s just returned from the real Paris Flea Market, is to display one-of-a-kind things that you love — ceramic bowls, treasures from a trip, mirrors — to achieve an eclectic, one-of-a-kind look.
But “eclectic” just looks cluttered when there’s no common element.
“I love tons of things and people love tons of things, but if there isn’t a common thread through it, that’s where it misses,” she says. “Pick a color — not necessarily a theme — but maybe it’s a chocolate brown that pops in and out of things.”
That pulled-together look comes when a color from the rug pattern pops up on a pillow, a piece of art or a lampshade, says Macfee. And balance is important, both in size and visual detail.
If your couch is taupe and your carpet a subtle blend of hues, the accessories need to pop. In Macfee’s Orinda studio, a gently curved armchair with butterscotch suede upholstery is offset with a colorful Italian throw, casually draped over the back. The small round side table holds a yellow orchid and a tomato-red picture frame — both colors echoed in the soft wool blanket.
If the furniture has a busy pattern, on the other hand, or strong architectural details, then the accessories should be “calm,” says Macfee.
Collections are wonderful things, especially when grouped together or tucked among books on shelves.
“Collections are awesome,” says Macfee. “Maybe they’re all out on a bookshelf, mixed with books, so it is like a little museum. But it’s what do I want this room to say, a cozy family room of all our favorite things?”
Reach Jackie Burrell at 925-977-8568 or jburrell@cctimes.com.
DESIGNER TIPS
TCHOTCHKES & ANTIQUES
• Add warmth and personality to a room by displaying items that tell a story — treasures picked up on a trip, antiques, and meaningful or whimsical artifacts.
• Use color to balance the room. Pick up hues from the carpet and carry those tones onto throw pillows, decorative objects and art work. If your couch is a neutral color, use vivid throws, pillows and accessories. If your furniture is architecturally detailed or the upholstery is a vivid pattern, scale back the accessories.
• Pay attention to proportion. Avoid placing a small, framed artwork, for example, over a large piece of furniture. Either pick a piece whose frame is two-thirds the size of the couch or group several small pieces together. Those smaller pieces will work better together if the mats or frames are similar.
• Display items in loose groupings of three or five similar objects of varied height and scale. Collections have much more impact when they’re grouped together, as opposed to scattered about. Arrange them on a tabletop or tuck them into bookshelves, among the books. (By the way, some designers suggest shelving books by color and size. That may look nice in pictures, but it makes finding a particular book impossible. Don’t do that to a book lover.)
DESIGNER TIPS
TCHOTCHKES & ANTIQUES
You can find a wide variety of home accessories — and some real bargains — at stores such as Cost Plus, Pier 1, Ikea and Target. But the Bay Area also boasts scores of eclectic home accessory shops, antiques stores and interior design boutiques, the latter with prices to match. These are just a few:
• Anthropologie — Clothing, gifts and apartment accessories. 750 Hearst Ave., Berkeley, 510-486-0705.
• Catherine Macfee Interior Design — High-end designer and imported furniture and home accessories. Orinda Theater Square, Orinda, 925-254-2600.
• Elegant Clutter — High-end designer and imported furniture and home accessories. Danville Livery and Mercantile, Danville, 925-837-1001.
• Keenan/Heinz — One-of-a-kind home and garden accessories. 3454 Mount Diablo Blvd., Lafayette, 925-284-0159.
• Maison d’Etre — Gifts and home accessories for Francophiles. 5640 College Ave., Oakland, 510-658-2801.
• Paris Flea Market — Antiques and one-of-a-kind home accessories with French flair. 2050 N. Broadway, Walnut Creek, 925-952-9200.
• Therapy — Furniture and home accessories for hipsters. 541 Valencia, S.F., 415-621-5902.
• Urban Outfitters — Clothing, gifts and apartment accessories. 2590 Bancroft Way, Berkeley, 510-486-1300.
