Vintage Gems: Salt & Sundry

Salt & Sundry is one of those stores where you walk in and wistfully say, "I'll take it all..." as you start to twirl with arms outstretched. Or at least I do, anyway. There’s no need to hunt here, guys. It's allllll good. This shop is different from others I've featured in a few ways – for starters, it's retail rather than vintage or thrift. I like to switch up the repertoire, plus I don’t have to fight anyone for the pillow I spy across the way (just kidding – I would never...) The second thing that sets it apart is that many of the larger items are one-of-a-kind, handmade exclusively for the shop from my favorite state in the union: North Carolina. No wonder it feels like home! (Sooo...when can I move in?) 

Photo: Jeffrey Martin, courtesy of Salt & Sundry

The owner of the store, Amanda McClements, (that’s her at the register) grew up in the next town over from me and we both attended the UNC journalism school, albeit at different times. Small world, eh?! I’d already fallen in love with the store before meeting her, but now I like it even more. Amanda's friendly and unassuming, accomplished and entrepreneurial, plus she clearly has impeccable taste. An inspiration!

Photo: Jeffrey Martin, courtesy of Salt & Sundry

Look! That's my dining table up there, draped so sultrily in textiles. Change of plans, guys. I know I said I was gonna hang a chandelier over my table, but this mosquito net looks pretty gorg. The table was made by Amanda's dad, from old North Carolina barnwood – I was immediately drawn to its texture and age. 

Photo: Jeffrey Martin, courtesy of Salt & Sundry

I'm 100% digging the southern boho vibe Salt & Sundry brings to the district, and clearly other people are too, because a second location is opening in Logan Circle later this year. Northwest Townies, rejoice! Soon you can enjoy this gem without the trek to Union Market.

Photo: Jeffrey Martin, courtesy of Salt & Sundry

I'd certainly spend more time in the kitchen if I had all this pretty cookware to play with. (Hint, hint, Eli!)

Photo: Jeffrey Martin, courtesy of Salt & Sundry

I always bring my houseguests because it’s got something for everyone – even my friends who aren’t so obsessed with home interiors. (Yes, I have some of those.) Beautiful books, bar tools & bitters, artwork, PICKLES, greeting cards, baby clothes, candles, fashion accessories, lip salves… so many nice things I can’t wait to buy. What’s better – many of these items are handmade or locally-sourced. Yay, small business!  

I've read in other publications that Salt & Sundry is considered the best place to buy a hostess gift in DC – which is enough incentive for me to start throwing parties every weekend – but it’s a heck of a lot more than that. I mean, c'mon – just look at those pillows! I could offer them a nice home.  

If you live in DC or are just passing through town, you’ve got to stop in. Ogle the goodies, take a lunch break in Union Market, and then get right back to shopping! OR, if a trip to the district isn’t in the cards right now, you can also check out the online shop. (not an affiliate link) Oh, the beauty of retail! 

So what was your favorite piece? For me, it's gotta be the rustic Aztec pillows.

Vintage Gems posts are an opportunity for me to feature the local shops I love. I'm not getting any kickbacks or special treatment for them.

Choose a floor stain: Check!

The votes were still rolling in on Friday and I was having too much fun to let them stop, but I’ve kept you waiting in anticipation too long! I’m not sayin’, but I’m just sayin’ – the race is pretty much called. The people hath spoken! The results are in...

Gray won by a mile! Who here is surprised? (I am a little) I think the biggest case for grey, and what made it a popular choice, is that it offers contrast with the light walls and cabinets without being too dominant and dark. Amiright? 

So after much deliberation & poring over your feedback, I'm gonna take a middle of the road approach: Grayown (a technical term for Gray-Brown, obvi). Dark brown was the runner up in this high stakes race, and some of you who voted gray noted that the brown was "too brown." I hear you. I think Grayown will be the best of both worlds – lighter than the dark chocolate brown I showed you before PLUS grey undertones to kick it up a notch and make it cooler than your average wood stain. My hope is that it will still have that weathered beach vibe I love without being a total departure from traditional floor colors.

Usually I have no qualms with breaking from tradition & taking risks with color – I used to have fuchsia hair, for cryin' out loud – but I'm a little more hesitant with the floors. For starters, they're kinda permanent. Sure, I'm changing the color now, but hardwoods can only take so much sanding and refinishing before you hit the subfloor. It's quite possible that whatever I choose is the last color these floors will ever see, so I want them to look timeless. I love pure gray floors right now, but is it a passing trend?

E & I probably won't be in this house forever, and when we do go to sell down the line, I’d feel like a failure if someone walked in and said, "Clearly this was remodeled in 2014." Ya feel me? Someone also pointed out in the survey comments that dark brown would be best for resale value, and I tend to agree. Grayown is a happy medium to please traditional and edgy tastes alike, but most importantly mine & Eli's.

SO, with that all being said, I present you with Grayown:

That's not my finest Photoshop work, so just squint your eyes and imagine more beautiful woodgrain ; ] It's still on the darker side of the spectrum and cooler in tone than our current orange floors & the chocolate brown I presented you with before, while being It's warmer than the original gray. I think it’s really going to turn this place around. 

Now there are just a couple more decisions left before we get the metaphorical ball rolling. First is whether to go with a glossy or matte finish. I’m really digging the idea of a natural oil sealer (like Rubio Monocoat) instead of polyurethane because it doesn’t emit any dangerous/stinky fumes and only takes one coat. It's got a matte appearance, giving it a more weathered, aged look. I love the idea of that, but I still need to look at samples in person before I can say whether it's as good IRL. Poly is fumey, shiny and takes 3 coats – so we'd have to be out of the house for at least a week while it cures and airs out. The downside of natural oil is that it's more expensive. I'm not sure what the premium is yet (I forgot to ask), but the floor guys told me it costs "more." Very specific. I'll do some more research and get back to you.

The last question I'm facing is whether to DIY or hire it out. The quote I got for hiring out a Monocoat finish was $4.50/sq.ft., or about $1,800 for our space. I'm not rolling in dough so that's more than I'd ideally spend on the floors, but then again it could be worth it to ensure I don't royally screw it up. I think the decision will come down to what we feel comfortable doing and how devastated we’d be if everything that could go wrong did If I can master the sanding and staining techniques on a practice surface I’d happily invest the sweat equity to save the money for something else.

What would you guys do? And who's on the Grayown train? So many of you weighed in on the floor color, and now I want to put a survey in every post! Thanks for chiming in and lending me your perspective! You rock. 

Decisions, decisions, decisions: Choosing a floor stain

I've been jonesing to change the color of our hardwoods since I first stepped foot on them. I'm sure some think I'm crazy for wanting to redo new floors, but they're just so.....orangey yellow. And getting yellower, thanks to polyurethane. Without a lot of natural light to balance them out, it feels like we're living in an orange peel without the refreshing fragrance. The floor is such a pervasive and integral element in the house – so I'd like it to be all blessing, no curse! After a year-long tryout the orange peel has had its chance to woo me and failed. It's time to make moves.

Refinishing the floors is going to be a big project. They run from the living room to the kitchen, including the powder room, up the stairs and in the small hallway between our bedrooms. All in all it’s about 400 sq. ft. of flooring. If we decide to DIY it's going to be a lot of labor & stress, and if we hire it out it's going to be our most expensive project to-date – so I'm appropriately terrified of making the "wrong" choice of floor stain. In high-stakes scenarios like these, I turn to my friend Photoshop for a little extra help trying on different options. Let's talk colors, shall we? 

Option 1: White

If you've spent any time looking at home decor on Pinterest, in IKEA or Target you may have noticed a resurgence of Scandinavian style. It's minimalist & utilitarian in the most charming way possible, with lots and lots of white. One hallmark is a white floor – either whitewashed or painted. I'm a fan of both. White floors can play nice with just about any style, from super modern to shabby chic. They're cozy, fresh and serene.... like living in a cloud.

Source

Source

Before we go any further, let's hit pause so I can give myself a reality check. I, Chloe, recognize on this Friday the 5th of September, that these gorgeous photos are Pinterest fodder and, in the absence of perfect natural light, wide-plank floors or interesting architectural features, they should not be mistaken as actual representations of how my house could look. Ever. Sorry, sometimes I need a reminder...And now back to our regular programming. Where were we, then?  Oh right, an assy rendition of what this trend might look like in our house! Photoshop – Engage: 

Not as dreamy as the lookers before, but if you squint your eyes in the right way you can sort of envision living in a cumulonimbus cloud, right? If you’re still not seeing it, please refer to Section A of the above reality check & forgive me for my hasty photoshopping. A white floor could definitely brighten up the space & bounce light around, and it would improve the flow from the kitchen to the white-tiled floor in the laundry room. The question is – how much more time would I spend sweeping and mopping? No pets or kids 'round these parts, but we do have a set of size 12 Bean Boots slingin' mud during the wintertime... Are these floors like a sloppy 6th grader (only clean on picture day)? These are life's hard questions... ; ]

Option 2: Gray

Another less-than-conventional color I'm considering. I haven't seen many rooms rockin' the rocktones on Pinterest, but I'm taking that as the sign of a trend yet to blow up rather than one that's fallen flat. From the few gray-floored spaces I have seen, me likey. It reminds me of weathered driftwood, which reminds me of the beach, which reminds me of vacation, and I could use more vacation in my life...amiright? This palm wallpaper & driftwood floor combo is taking me there.

Source via sfgirlbybay

Mmmm...vacation.... OK, let’s see what this might look like in our house:

I like the contrast between the dark floors and light walls, and between the step treads and risers. I know I just said earlier that white floors could brighten up the space, but that's not a direct translation for dark floors == dark space. As far as I'm concerned, light walls and ceilings feel brighter and taller when emanating up from a dark floor. The contrast gives them an extra pop. Either way, floors that are much lighter or much darker would be an improvement from the mushy orange tone we've got now.

Option 3: Dark brown

Walking on rich, chocolatey brown floors makes me feel luxurious, like I should be wearing a cashmere robe and have freshly pedicured toes. I wonder if I'd return to my old ways of eating chocolate frosting by the spoonful if my floors looked this scrumptious… 

Source via Homepolish

And here's a similar tone in our house... I think you'd see more wood grain and less of a flat color in real life.

My only concern with going very dark is the same one I had with going super light: keeping them clean. We don't have any pets, but I do shed like a border collie...plus we 2 adult humans still manage to create weird things like dust and footprints. That said, spending more time cleaning the floor may not be such a bad thing. When we painted the cabinets white I noticed for the first time how dirty they get...  and thus realized how dirty they must have been during the previous year of neglect. Ick. Thinking about it makes me feel retrospectively gross and simultaneously pleased with our new, cleaner kitchen. Could be the same dealio if we switched to an extreme light or extreme dark floor. 

So there you have it. Those are the three options I'm bouncing between right now. You can see them all side-by-side below. So tell me – what would you choose? It's a big decision, and I could use some help in making a final call. You can send me your vote in the survey to the right!

After we get the color sorted, I'll get quotes from different flooring companies and take a look at rental prices for sanding equipment before I decide to DIY or hire it out. If you've refinished your floors or had someone else do it, I'd love to hear about your experience in the comments!