Taking a Vintage Secretaire and breathing New Life into it

This gorgeous little bureau/secretaire makeover was a project request by a client in the Eifel region of Germany recently hit by devastating floods. It was such a joy to be a part of someone’s vision for their newly restored home.

The first step was finding the secretaire that fitted the available space and aesthetic at the right price. The next was putting together a colour scheme that matched her preferences. The exterior colour scheme was the easy part, based on another piece I completed last year. Fusion Mineral paint’s Bayberry is such a lush green with its olive undertones and rich depths, matching beautifully with the red/orange tones of the exposed wooden highlights.

The interior did not come together so quickly. The initial plan was for magnolias to creep across the sides and back framed by the interior shelving. Instead of the space being light and welcoming, the final reveal showed the motif overpowered by the dark backdrop and shelving. Unfortunately, that meant rethinking how the space would look but I was stuck in a mindset. And to be honest, some anxiety. I wanted this to be perfect and was not sure how far I could take my ideas without losing my client’s vision.

After some false starts and a little procrastination, I let go and took a different direction. Although I had toyed with the idea of painting it gold, the back ended up being draped with a lovely woven material providing warmth and texture. I lightly spray painted it gold to provide a little shimmer in certain light but held off making it too bold. The aim was light, warm, natural tones and thankfully my client loves it.

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