For the Love of Collections
Sinkology is proud to present Kristan Allen, our design expert and guest blogger who runs the @FarmhouseRedefined Instagram. Kristan is here to share some design ideas and inspiration around designing your home around your copper sink.
I’m a collector by nature. When I find something I love, I think I’m genetically hardwired to immediately start searching for 20 more of that item. Anyone with me? There are so many different décor styles out there and my tastes tend to change fairly often. But one thing remains the same – I always try to surround myself with things that have special meaning for me. This sentiment is usually the deciding factor in what kinds of items I end up collecting.
For example, I collect vintage barn oil paintings (you can check out a pic in my Sinkology blog post from last month). Why barns? Because I live on the farm that’s been in our family for 200 years and seeing an old barn with a red roof will always remind me of home. So in the spirit of collections, I thought I’d give you a little peek into a few more of my favorite collections and throw in some cool ideas for how I display them!
Seashells
We don’t live near a beach (boo!), but we’re fortunate enough to have the opportunity to escape to a few beaches each year on vacation. My kids have been obsessed with seashells since they were babies, so every time we go away, we come home with a baggie full of our favorite shells. I used to keep our years’ worth of collecting efforts in a drawer in our laundry room, where no one – including myself – was really seeing them. So I decided to dust them off and put some of our most favorite ones in an old apothecary jar in our living room. We dated a lot of the shells with the year and beach and just seeing this little jar fills me with warm, sandy memories!
Letters (OK, Just One Letter…Not All of Them!)
The minute my husband and I got married, I started collecting letter A’s for my new last name. Over the years, I’ve amassed quite a few big letters, but I’ve also managed to find some really old printers’ blocks in various sizes, too. I decided to put them all on one shelf because there’s strength in numbers, right? I used a candle pedestal to elevate the teeny-tiny printers’ block A’s. Tip: old printers’ blocks of all letters make a great collection because they’re beautiful and functional – I’ve made bar signs with them for parties and they’d also be great at place settings!
Typewriters
I bought my first vintage typewriter at a flea market a few years ago. I instantly fell in love and couldn’t wait to get home and clean it up. The case still had the original owner’s name in it. I started thinking about all the different things that typewriter must’ve typed and how different communication is today. This started me on the path to collecting old typewriters! I have 7 or 8 now and I’m starting to get a little limited on space, but I love the way they look grouped together on my office shelves. They’re definitely a statement-maker if you have the room to display them!
Old Books
I should clarify and say that I don’t collect just any old books…but specifically old blue books. Why blue books, you ask? Because I love the color blue. It’s as simple as that and, in my opinion, you don’t need any other motivation to start collecting something other than that you love it! Regardless of color, I find old books to be works of art in themselves. The cover and spine artwork are so intricate and detailed. I started a gradient collection of blue books, so mine run the spectrum of light to dark blue. I’ve found some at flea markets or antique stores, but the majority came from my little local library. Community libraries often have a used book store and they have a huge selection of old books that you can buy for a song. Plus, the purchase goes to support new books/technology for the library, so it’s a win-win!
Whether you just started yesterday or you’ve been collecting for 20 years, we’d love to see your collections! Just tag @Sinkology and @FarmhouseRedefined on Instagram. Happy Collecting!
If you have any additional questions during your search for the perfect copper sink, our Sinkologists are here to help. Contact us or follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Houzz, Pinterest, or Instagram for more helpful tips and design ideas.