Color and Other Design Horror Stories -

1930's Metal Furniture In A Guest Room Friends and Family Will Enjoy

What was once very cool and even, awesome, can be quite the opposite some years later.  Take for example these two metal side tables.  They spent their first years as trendy metal furnishings with a painted blond wood "look" that was quite the rage of the times.  You see them here in their second life having been used by different owners and painted light colors.

Using these today, as is, even if they were the now famous designer pieces which they are not, for bed side tables in a guest room  would qualify as a Color or Other Design Horror Story, for sure.  But that is the point, exactly.  Color and Design can take the horror out of the story.

Metal, old looking office furniture type pieces don't have a rightful place in today's spa-inspired oasis bedrooms.  However, these pieces have nice clean lines and they are sturdy enough to handle anything a guest might set up on them -including themselves.

The challenge was deciding how to alter the look and use them in a guest room.  A paint job made to look like wood didn't do much for them the first time around and probably wouldn't now.  However, textured paint in a rich deep color went a long way in altering the flat metal  antique file cabinet effect.  We used a hammered metal look spray-on paint in dark brown.




Adding a bit of whimsey and a more current style, we painted silver stripes over the top and sides.

These pieces never had a drawer.  Painting the interior dark brown blended it without calling too much attention to it, providing easy access for a book or magazine.


Since individual pieces are rarely viewed alone in a space, soft furnishings, textures, color, pattern and other design elements can be used to balance and harmonize.

 In this space, the brown stripes and legs of the table repeat the dark shape of the floor lamps.  The silver repeats the silver of the base of the lamps and balances soft warm gold colors found throughout the space.  The cool silver also bounces some light into the space and at the bedside from the windows.  The dark brown of the tables play off the leather headboard nicely and the stripes keep the pieces and the space from seeming too heavy with brown furniture.

This bedroom is over a garage with it's own private stairway and bath.  We wanted the space to maintain a sense of hidden surprise (as stairs and all are well hidden from the rest of the house) while being inviting with comfortable unexpected country elegance.  Spa-like settings provided some inspiration, however, this bedroom reflects the rambling interior architecture of the home and its country surroundings.

The tables are small and the stripes add interest to the tops, they don't require much in the way of accessories.  A simple water pitcher and/or fresh flowers reveal an interest in the comfort of the occupants.  Uncluttered surfaces leave respectful places for their things during their stay.

Items that are personal to the home owners, in a guest space, can sometimes make guests feel as though they are imposing upon personal territory.  Using a spa as inspiration for this space helped keep the focus on the guest.  Spas are for the client.  When there are extra rooms available for overnight guests -they should be for the guest.    They should be inviting and comfortable and not too fussy, assuring the stay is memorable for all the right reasons.