stephmodo: Real Life Home - Erin of Clementine & Olive

Real Life Home - Erin of Clementine & Olive

• 06 February 2012



Through a stroke of good luck, I discovered Erin's blog, Clementine and Olive, via Craigslist here in Seattle.  You see, Erin's brilliance lies not only in her design savvy, but in her ability to transform a sad, dated piece of furniture into a modern work of art.  And while sometimes she places these pieces in her own home, she often sells them either through her blog or through C-list.  So lucky me, to have found her, as she is a true inspiration and you're about to see why!

Today Erin is letting you peek into her Tacoma-area home, a restored Craftsman with great bones, which she shares with her family and lovingly cares for.  Erin combines a deep love for antiques with her signature "vintage glam" style throughout her home. Influenced heavily by her upbringing, mainly in Ireland, she is keenly aware that a space is enhanced by old, even secondhand pieces of furniture.  In fact, 80% of her furnishings are secondhand...can you believe it?  That leaves just a little extra for the occasional splurge.  I have to say I am quite impressed with Erin's resourcefulness; it's really a fantastic strategy for decorating if you have skills in this area.

Before deciding to stay at home with her twin boys and begin a new career in upcycling and design, Erin worked with several local sports teams as a massage therapist. She truly epitomizes what this series is all about as she is entirely self-taught (for those of you just tuning in, this series showcases living spaces decorated by people who are not formally-trained interior designers). 



I adore those yellow, vintage wingback chairs, don't you?  True statement pieces for sure.  But the real statement in this room is that fabulous daybed Erin recovered in DwellStudio fabric (nap, anyone?). But don't forget to take note of the supporting roles in the room--a great lamp, mirror, Louis Ghost chair, art on the bookshelf and neat stacks of books (Erin, how do you do that with toddlers?  So jealous!).



Proof that it's possible to have a well-styled, yet kid-friendly home!  Erin's philosophy is to give her sons a beautiful home to grow up and play in, without taking it too seriously.  That's one of the main reasons she enjoys thrifting so much--because "if something breaks, it's okay!". 

p.s. loving all the pops of color here and there as well as those fabulous high chairs tucked away in the image above.  

p.p.s. if you look closely throughout this collection of images, you'll notice that Erin moves around art and other accessories to keep things interesting--a great design secret in fact!



A gorgeous Danish mid-century modern dining set--a style I too love and dot my own space with.  A full set like this is hard to come by...what a treasure! 



Can you tell Erin loves DwellStudio?  :)

I love how she creates thoughtful displays everywhere, even at dinnertime! 



A beautiful mid-century sideboard with another pretty display.  Loving on the tray-with-Pellegrino idea.  Keep in mind as you view these images that Erin re-purposed/upcycled almost every piece of furniture you see.  What a useful skill to have!  I'd totally trade in one of my not-so-useful-skills (like hula-hooping for 10 minutes straight) for the ability to transform a garage-sale find into a gorgeous piece of furniture.



Proof that dreams really do come true...Erin has dreamt of having a tub like this since she was a little girl!  Also, it looks like Erin was lucky when Missoni hit Target...



I love how Erin takes note of her bedroom.  Instead of being an afterthought (such a temptation with the master bedroom I think), she's created a beautiful space full of warmth and femininity.  She mixes and matches patterns with confidence and shows that it's okay to not always be matchy-matchy if you don't want to be. 

This pretty accent chair is another one of Erin's upcycled pieces.  Stunning fabric choice. 

And that trundle under the bed is actually where her dog sleeps (gorgeous dog duvet found here).  There she is paying attention to the details again...:) 


Lest we not forget where her two pride and joys slumber peacefully (most of the time!) in the nursery...

So brilliant--that orange door!  A clever way of visually dividing the room and adding color to an otherwise muted color scheme. 



Erin, thank you for letting us peek into your beautiful home!  Friends, you can read more up on Erin and her latest projects over at her blog, Clementine and Olive

Peek at more inspiring spaces in the Real Life Home Series:

Real Life Home No.14 - Nadia's Converted Barn in Vermont
Real Life Home No.13 - Dottie Angel's Mossy Shed
Real Life Home No.12 - Aunt Patty's sophisticated mid-century home
Real Life Home No.11 - Rubyellen of Cakies and her French-inspired flea market finds
Real Life Home No.10 - Julie's coastal home with reclaimed materials
Real Life Home No. 9 - Petra's Tower in downtown Seattle
Real Life Home No. 8 - Kayce's Nashville Home that's both Southern + sweet
Real Life Home No. 7 - Sara's colorful and eclectic Portland Home
Real Life Home No. 6 - Amy's Calming Neutrals in California
Real Life Home No. 5 - Lynne of Sugar City Journal and her whimsical details
Real Life Home No. 4 - Emily's gorgeous whites and woods in Dallas
Real Life Home No. 3 - Kirsten of Simply Grove's clean and textural Idaho home
Real Life Home No. 2 - Maria of Two Peas and a Pod and her white kitchen
Real Life Home No. 1 - My sister Cherilee's eclectic, mid-century home

images by Erin Corcoran

14 comments:

  1. Мои самые наилучшие пожелания Erin и ее очаровательным близняшкам!
    ... ванная, посуда, кроватки ... просто сказка!
    Спасибо. Valentina

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  2. beautiful home- love the kids bedroom and the pillow in the master bedroom, my wedding china is the same

    great post stephanie!

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  3. Loving that living room! Thanks for sharing.

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  4. Nadia, that is such a coincidence about the china! You both have great taste, this I know.

    Angela, I think the LR is my favorite room too. That's kind of why I started out with it--I just couldn't wait to share it! Erin is super talented and really puts things together like a professional!

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  5. love your home. where is your bed and pillows from?

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  6. I really love the upcycled finds. Great eye! And the use of color.... beautiful, stimulating and yet comfortable.

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  7. Amazing pops of color! You've inspired me to try and do the same. I needed this to get me away from my usual 'safe' style! Thanks to Erin for inspiring us all with her amazing style!

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  8. OMG I know Erin! I grew up with her extended family in California. Such a small world. Thanks for showcasing her awesome style and self-made career.

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  9. I absolutely love her style and blog...a daily read of mine...I've been crushing on those yellow wingbacks since I first saw them a few months ago!

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  10. Erin did a fantastic job on her house. I am sooooo jealous that she was able to score a Target bath towel. I was drooling over all the Target accessories when they came out, especially the bathtowels since my blog is about bathrooms I so wanted to get a bunch, but no luck.
    I also really like the white bureau Erin is leaning on, so pretty.

    :)
    mikky
    www.todaloos.com

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  11. I'm dying over the dog trundle! Do you know how many sleepless nights I'd be spared if I had something like that! So true Stephanie that the master is sometimes low on the priority list. Fabulous style Erin! Thanks for sharing your home...

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  12. i'm about to pin almost every picture here. she's done an amazing job.

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  13. A huge favourite of mine - I love the fact that her home is truly a labour of love with so much of it brought up to a truly glamorous standard by her own two hands and her fantastic vision. She's done an amazing job especially with two little ones in tow! Total respect :) xxx

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  14. Shauna, no way!! Small world indeed.

    Mikky, I know...how did she get so lucky? And yes, I LOVE that bureau as well. Probably my favorite piece.

    Erin, I have to constantly remind myself to keep the master bedroom lovely and serene. It's so easy to put all the crappy stuff in there!

    Martha, thanks for pinning these! I hope others are as inspired by Erin as I am.

    Redilocks, total respect is right. The fact that she's a single mom makes all of her projects and endeavors even more incredible in my book. I don't know how she does it?!!

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Thanks so much for taking the time to drop a line. I really appreciate it!

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