Looking for a vintage vibe for your outdoor spaces? If you don’t have heirlooms and collectibles, or aren’t confident in your ability to scour antique stores and thrift shops for interesting pieces, look for new products with these three elements.
Distressed finishes: At CB2, the Victory pendant light is inspired by factory lighting, with acid-washed iron galvanized and resulting in a gunmetal patina ($179, cb2.com). A metal birdhouse by Creative Co-op, for example, has a distressed gray finish with a rust top. It's part of the Secret Garden collection by the Tennessee-based company, which is a designer and distributor of accent furniture and lighting, wall decor and other items, and which has a showroom at AmericasMart Atlanta (suggested retail, $65, Creative Co-op items sold through retailers such as Wayfair.com and Kohls.com).
Filament bulbs: To enjoy your outdoor spaces after the sun goes down, give it additional lighting with flair. New filament-style bulbs, some of which are available as LEDs, are designed like the bulbs used in the early 1900s, sold by retailers such as Pottery Barn, RH and Lowes, for sconces and pendants. They come in globe, tube, cylindrical, teardrop and other shapes, with the filaments seen glowing for ambient lighting. At Pottery Barn, for example, the LED filament bulb prices range from $11.99-$25. Pottery Barn's retro outdoor lighting options also include Edison-style bulb string lights ($79, potterybarn.com).
Quirky vessels: At antique and thrift shops, you can find wheelbarrows, carts, washtubs and other used items that can serve as planters for entryways, porches and desks. Kalalou, a Mississippi-based home accents, garden decor and gift company that has a showroom at AmericasMart Atlanta, has refurbished old ammunition canisters for new uses, such as umbrella stands or vases (various sizes, suggested retail price $24-$35). A whimsical deer-shaped wine cooler and planter, also by Kalalou, uses reclaimed metal barrels that have been cut and welded back together (suggested retail price $89, local retailers include Sugarboo & Co., sugarbooandco.com, in Town Brookhaven and The Collection at Forsyth in Cumming, and Cottage Collection in Atlanta).
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