Posted 5 years ago
IronLace
(929 items)
This is a home decorating project I've been thinking about for a while, some larger display cabinets that would provide multi - purpose storage for collections of glass & books. I needed to provide extra space elsewhere in the house for books & I also wanted to create a more substantial look in my studio/glass room.
I'd looked at various cabinets & had also thought about getting them custom made. But in the end I went for these dark, blue - black cabinets from Ikea. I got these for my birthday & assembled them over the following few days...first I had to move out a lot of glass, take pictures off the walls, & move the existing display cabinets in order to clear space to work in. They replaced two 1940s era half round china cabinets, one of which I'm going to sell, & the other I'll place somewhere else...still figuring that out. :-)
After building them came the really fun part (as much as I enjoy assembling flat - pack, yes, I'm a sick bunny, I know) - rearranging the glass & bringing in books that had been in other rooms in the house. Much prefer having them all together!
Left hand cabinet contains mostly glass with applied decoration.
Right hand cabinet has Art Nouveau iridescent glass on the bottom shelf, & two shelves of Victorian hand vases in pinks, blues, & white. I've leaned towards displays of lighter coloured items in order to contrast the dark colour of the cabinets.
What I especially like, besides the practical aspect of increased storage, is that even though they are modern, the cabinets suggest to me the "Wunderkammer" or cabinet of curiosities of the "Grand Tour" era of collecting (which saw the establishment of both the museum as we know it today, & collecting as an intellectual & aesthetic pursuit). I think it's the mixing together of objects & books that does it for me.
I'm leaving the doors open at the moment to enjoy the sight of the books in particular. For some reason I am drawn to books of odd sizes & shapes which can be awkward to place neatly in conventional bookshelves...not an issue anymore...
Really terrific dual purpose cabinet, it's great to have the glass doors to protect your gorgeous glass pieces from gathering dust. As an avid reader I am also looking into multi purpose storage for my books, so thanks for this excellent post to give me some welcome ideas :)
Many thanks, Jenni!
The design is called Lommarp & it's a new product. I'd looked at a few other styles over the last year but this one really caught my attention with the dark blue colour.
Because the room is so big, bright & white, it could handle some darkness as a contrast. Plus the colour works well with the fact I have several other blue pieces in the room's decor - armchair, curtain, rug, & bench. The rest of the furniture is brown & black so it all ties together for me!
Lotsa luvly glass ....The dark coloured shelving really highlights the glass.
Much appreciated, Marty! Yes, the dark colour works great...I took a bit of a chance on that, but it turned out to be the right choice. White cabinets were the original idea but these have a more dramatic effect, which I prefer...
Yes! It's very cool to see a big collection all displayed together. Nice job!
What an interesting collection; it must have taken decades to acquire all the “lovelies”.
Something else caught my attention: in pic 1, at the fireplace....is the tall narrow floral item made of tiles? Part of the fireplace? Free-standing?
It’s pretty, whatever it is!
Job turned out nice all Looks good
Many thanks, iggy!
Thanks also, Patricia, much appreciated!
Yes, it's definitely been decades in the making, that's for sure...
The item that caught your eye is indeed part of the fireplace, it has Victorian tiles on both sides of the cast iron grate. The tiles feature a picture of an impossibly tall bouquet of flowers - lilac, lily - of - valley, & fuchsias.
Thank you most kindly, Vynil33rpm!
Excellent new cabinets. Enjoyed reading your story of decision-making and acquisition. Thanks for sharing the photos of your collection of glassware & books. I am reading the titles of your books — love Margaret Atwood.
Thanks so much, Daisy1000, as a matter of fact I will soon post photos of the books to do them proper justice, there's a bit of everything...