decor: farmhouse inspiration

When I look at the home tours on Apartment Therapy, I'm always drawn to the homeowners' answers to the "My Style" part of the questionnaire. They say things like "modern meets pretty with a touch of whimsy" and "clean and simple yet eclectic" and "eclectic maximalist." I'm curious how other people describe their style because I'm not really sure how I'd answer that question about my house.

I have a lot of classic antiques and fun vintage finds in my house, although I wouldn't describe my decor style as antique-y or vintage-y. I try to take old things and use them in a new way. Or place old pieces alongside brand new things. I like old things -- but I still want our house to look like people in their 20s and 30s live here.

I definitely would not use the word "farmhouse" to describe my decor style, but I found myself drawn to some of the antique decor elements in the Pennsylvania farmhouse that Tony and I rented last weekend.

Let me start with the doorknobs. I have some opinions about doorknobs.

Tony and I sometimes walk around our neighborhood on Sunday afternoons and hit up the open houses just for fun. (I've picked up a lot of decor and storage ideas.) A lot of the houses are flips. A developer will buy a rowhouse and gut it. And then they'll put in laminate hardwoods and stainless steel appliances and granite countertops and whatnot. And don't get me wrong -- the houses look fabulous. They just tend to be generic. They're missing some of that architectural character -- things like crystal doorknobs. The houses don't necessarily look like they were built in 1880 or 1910 or whenever once you're inside. Maybe that's the point, but I think the old architectural details are what make the houses in this city interesting.

Our house was not a flip, but at some point in the last 92 years, the original doors and doorknobs were taken out, and now our doorknobs are decidedly generic. I've been wanting to change them.

I'd had it in my mind that we'd eventually replace our doorknobs with crystal doorknobs like this little beauty, which I spied at the farmhouse:

But then I started to fall in love with these guys:

So pretty, am I right?

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OK, moving on. Let's talk about interior doors. Along the same lines of why I'm not a fan of the doorknobs in our house, I'm also not such a fan of the interior doors. They're not solid wood, and they don't have a lot of heft to them. This hasn't been a big priority project for Tony and me, to be honest, but it is something that's crossed my mind.

The doors in our house are white, not natural wood, as is the trim. But then I noticed this combo, and I started to get some ideas:

White trim. Natural wood door. I dig it. I think I really dig it. I may have to keep an eye on the salvage door sales at Community Forklift and move this project up on our to-do list.

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Other things I loved about this include the reproduction old-timey push button light switches. 

I mean, it's not really a practical DIY home improvement project. But still. Cool.

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And up until this past weekend, I've always been smitten with clawfoot tubs. They look awesome, clearly, but I've discovered they aren't really practical. I know, I'm kind of disappointed in that fact, too. Turns out, when you take a shower, the curtain completely surrounds the tub. And it's kind of claustrophobic.

So, no clawfoot tubs for me for now. At least not until I have a big house with a gigantic master bathroom that can fit a standalone shower AND a clawfoot tub that I can use exclusively for taking baths.

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But I do kind of want a typewriter now. (Maybe Santa Claus is reading this and will keep an eye out??)

I'm picturing myself using a typewriter to address birthday cards and Christmas cards. Want it.

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Before Tony and I bought our house, we almost bought a house with a deep farmhouse sink. Sometimes I daydream of that sink. Aren't farmhouse apron sinks the best?

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And here's the naked light bulb that's hanging above the sink. I like it.

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I also really dig these old hooks, which the owners attached to a piece of wood to create a coat rack.

OK, now I'm feeling inspired!