When a Victorian home in Pennsylvania gets a modernized update, but maintains its original features that makes it special, you know it’s going to be a winner. Michelle Gage livened the heck out of this home with some bold colour and artwork, mid-century classic furniture and lighting and the bonus of an adorable dog. (Photos: Rebecca McAlpin)

When we first moved in to our current house for some reason I had the bright idea that we needed a really long dining table. Possibly because our previous house had no dining room and therefore the table was in the middle of the kitchen. My husband spent many hours and much $$$ building me a 8 foot long dining table out of hemlock (with a steel base we had fabricated). As shown above. I love that dining table. But it took up the whole room. Having to walk around it to get to the bluetooth speaker/radio my husband converted, or getting to the buffet cabinet was annoying. And there’s 2 of us. And we never have anyone over for a meal. We both agreed a round or oval table would be ideal that seat 6, and I would use the 8ft table as a desk in the living room (more on that another day). I went hunting on MarketPlace and Kijiji. For months. Then the pandemic hit and I was working from home and figured this would be a great time to get this going. So I changed my strategy and stopped hunting for the perfect table and opted to just find something that was the right size. I found a round office table for $50 on Kijiji and figured what the hell, I could pimp it out and if I end up hating it, I’ll get rid of it and try again.

This was the table 5 minutes after bringing it home and disinfecting it. Stains all over the top, and boring all around. At this point all hardware stores were closed here and only offering online ordering which takes some time so I decided to try and work with what we had. I ended up spending nothing to fix up this table. First we cut strips of wood from some Ikea shelving we were no longer using and trimmed out the base with it. I then stained the slats black. I wasn’t sure what to do with the top but husband wanted to try sanding it down and seeing what the wood looked like (turned out it was solid wood). In the end the wood turned out to have such a gorgeous grain we just used some Livos on it and that was it.

As soon as we had everything in place we realized this table was in fact too small and we could have gone for something bigger (that fit 6 – this one only fits 5). But it is such an improvement for flow in the room and we absolutely love it so we’ll live with it until my dream table is found. Welcome to my $50 dining table!

Also, I think this might be the first time you’re seeing my new Lambert & Fils light fixture. I love the smaller scale of this one compared to what I had before.

I had to add in some pics of a special piece I got my hands on this past Friday. I spotted a quirky little side table for sale in the Instagram stories of Toronto-based Bettencourt Manor a while ago but could not justify the 4.5 or so hour drive to go pick it up. Turns out the guys of B.M. were headed to Ottawa and they delivered it for me. I put it in the dining room for a quick IG story but it turned out to be the perfect spot so I left it there. I love the angles on it.

If you would like to participate in the Monday’s pets on furniture series please send photos, your name, location and a brief description to kim[at]desiretoinspire[dot]net, or hashtag your photos on Instagram with #dtipetsonfurniture. Thanks!

From me: Lucky and Phoebe hanging out on my dining table turned workspace table, and Frankie on the sofa.

As soon as I came across a feature on Russian designer Boris Dmitriev‘s office/apartment in Architectural Digest Russia I laughed because it is such a bold contrast to the office Jo featured yesterday. Located in a building built in 1905 in Moscow, this 84 m² space is so unique. Boris does not shy away from colour or pattern! I know this isn’t for everyone, but his attention to detail and the way he pulls it all together with such cohesion is extraordinary.

Photos: Mikhail Stepanov

Another take on traditional meets modern in this elegant home designed by Carmiña Roth. With a backdrop of white, the antiques and artwork really pop and make the wonderfully eclectic spaces uplifting.