Nichecraft Show Off Your Uniqueness By Decorating Your Home With ‘Personality Pieces’

If home is a statement of who you are, is your statement a one-dimensional sentence or a multifaceted memoir?

Whimsical, flamboyant, irregular, bold, spicy, artful. If one of these hints at your personality, is there something in your home that reflects this?

“Personality pieces” are home furnishings which proclaim and celebrate our uniqueness.

The elk antler table in the game room. A copper lampshade lighting a den. Bear towel holders in the bath. A rattan armchair among a formal grouping.

These unusual items are as much fun to discover as they are to display. Decorating with them allows us to stray from the expected to give our homes a little zest.

There is no need to do a whole room in rattan or an entire bedroom in rustica, yet a couple of these items, carefully placed, will give a look that is different and memorable, opening our homes - and ourselves - to smiles and surprises.

And you no longer need to hop on a plane to shop for these pieces.

A number of locally owned businesses in the Inland Northwest offer unusual, one-of-a-kind home furnishings for the customer in search of a personality piece.

This is not an all-inclusive guide to unique shops in the area but rather a starting point to inspire you to discover local retailers who sell merchandise so interesting it invites comment.

There are benefits to purchasing through local shops rather than through mail-order catalogs offering similar items.

You have the advantage of seeing, touching and judging the quality. You will save on shipping and freight. Local merchants offer design assistance, will often customize a piece according to your preference and will service the piece after the purchase.

Moreover, while mail-order catalogs and superstores have their place, these merchants believe that satisfaction comes as much in the search and discovery as in the final purchase.

Valorie Buergel opened Buffalo Street Interiors in North Spokane three years ago. She sells furnishings and accessories in styles referred to as “American Country West,” “Northwest Lodge,” and “California Rustica.”

A designer by training, Buergel has seen a growing demand for her unusual items ranging from large mesquite door coffee tables to small birch bark candles.

“People are wanting more unique things around them. We have a lot of time-saving conveniences in our homes, but we have less time so we are putting more importance on our home environment. As we’re rushing out the door, we want to look at our surroundings and see that it’s comfortable and solid and good.”

Long ago, everything in the home had to match in the same style and wood tone, Buergel says.

“We’ve gotten away from that now. We’re moving more often and into bigger homes so we want to add pieces to what we already have. We’re traveling more and as we view the furnishings in other cultures, we want to bring those back and incorporate them into our homes.”

The result is an interesting combination of materials and styles that bespeaks a personal flair.

Here are examples of uncommon furniture, garden ornaments and accessories to encourage the discovery of your own personality piece.

Furniture

The lodge pole pine log bed at Buffalo Street Interiors is one of Buergel’s favorites. She has helped customers cover this bed in fabrics ranging from florals to paisleys, quilts to lace to match every bedroom style.

One or two log pieces makes a bedroom warm and wonderful, says Buergel.

“You can get away with fun and different pieces if the color is tied together. Furniture such as the coffee table, credenza, bed or display cabinet absolutely does not have to match anything else in the room,” she says.

Consider a set of twig chairs in a formal living room with seat cushions to match the sofa. Or a small twig table accented with Battenburg lace next to a mahogany piece.

“Don’t go too much,” says Buergel, “but you can introduce these things into a very formal room for a unique look.”

For a different kind of look, consider wicker furniture, which is no longer confined to the sun room or patio.

“Wicker is timeless and makes a wonderful accent to any room,” says Susanne Hartwell, owner of Wicker & Rattan Specialties in North Spokane. “A chair, plant stand or baker’s rack can add a finishing touch making a room warm and cozy.”

Rattan is a type of high-quality wood. Wicker is the process of weaving the wood together, says Hartwell. Well-made wicker is functional, sturdy and comfortable. It is versatile since it is offered in several colors and finishes.

Wicker and Rattan Specialties has pieces that complement traditional homes and contemporary styles that work well with glass and brass.

“Choose a complementary furniture style, then choose the fabric and the finish,” says Hartwell.

Garden ornaments

As winter approaches, bring the outdoors in with several unique items found at La Tierra and Luminaria, adjacent stores in downtown Spokane.

“What I’ve tried to do with these stores is to provide fun and interesting stuff that most stores won’t take a risk on,” says owner Geoff Loftin, “and to encourage people to trust themselves to incorporate these things into their living spaces. They will find them visually appealing, soothing and restful.”

If you have a blank wall in the kitchen, consider a wall fountain. In the bedroom, wrought iron is striking as a headboard, a room divider or a curtain rod. An oversized urn or planter in the living room becomes as much a focal piece as the plant itself, says Loftin. And a vintage light fixture tells a story in any room.

La Tierra has garden benches, pagodas, architectural artifacts, granite sculptures and birdhouses, to name a few.

“Give yourself permission to go out of your comfort zone and take a risk on something which is not mainstream,” Loftin says.

Accessories

Definitely not mainstream are the items found at Metropolitan Interiors in downtown Spokane.

Combining classical Old World charm with contemporary living, Henry and Marilyn Mayer’s store specializes in architectural accents, custom sculptured designs and ornamental plaster restorations.

Consider a bust or statue of the timeless sculptures of Rodin or Michelangelo. Or a coffee table of white columns and beveled glass. Perhaps a Corinthian column or classic urn reflects your style.

Buergel warns against throwing too many accessories together for the hodge-podge look. “Take into account theme, color and proportion making them consistent throughout the home,” she says.

If it’s a wildlife motif, look for things associated with hunting, fishing and animals. “Paint your walls green. Use throw rugs. Stencil a pine tree. Put some antler knobs on the dresser,” Buergel says.

Antler accessories can be found at Cabin Fever in Sandpoint, as well as materials like iron, copper, hickory and leather. Cabin Fever owner Rebecca Edwards hopes people experience a positive mood swing when they browse through her store and then look at their own homes in a different way.

“People are afraid of breaking rules,” says Edwards. When they see the antler chandeliers or the copper lampshades she hopes they won’t take decorating so seriously.

“It’s pretty wild,” she says.

That’s the idea. Personality pieces allow you to stray off-center and take a walk on the wild side.