Last year, my husband, Mark, and I did something we never thought we'd do (not at this point in our lives, at least): We built a house in Raleigh, North Carolina. It was definitely hard but equally rewarding. We'd been living in apartments for 15 years, so going from that to building our first house was pretty mind-boggling. One of the most overwhelming things about it is that we opted to furnish the entire house at once. The reason being, when we were renting apartments, buying furniture and home décor just wasn't a huge priority, and most of what we had didn't suit the new house, so we subsequently purged it and basically started from scratch. Luckily, we had the help of our amazing interior designer Dana Waldron to tackle the massive undertaking.
The beginning stage of a huge project is the most overwhelming, but by zeroing in on the brands I wanted to primarily use, it really helped to narrow the playing field and dictate the design direction we were going in (which was very much California-inspired with midcentury-modern touches throughout). Keep scrolling to see how it turned out for yourself, and shop the home décor brands I would've been lost without.
We got so much of our furniture from Lulu and Georgia (including important pieces like our sofa and bed). The pieces are very well made (which was important to us, since we wanted everything to last). The selection perfectly suits our modern sensibilities yet is just classic enough to stand the test of time.
Parachute has long been my go-to for bedding, but we took it a step further and also purchased all of our towels from the brand (they're so absorbent and cozy), as well as my favorite throw (pictured on the living room sofa above) and a shower curtain. I'm a Parachute fan for life.
France & Son is an excellent source for light fixtures (the reasonable prices blew me away) and midcentury-modern furniture. (I'm particularly fond of its statement-making lounge chairs.) It offers free shipping for many items, which is so nice because furniture shipping prices can be steep.
We decided against having any carpet in the house, but this meant that rugs were at the top of our shopping list. Luckily for us, Scandinavian rug company Nordic Knots makes beautiful, modern rugs without the high markup. We put them in both of our offices and our master bathroom.
Article is the wildly popular Canada-based direct-to-consumer furniture brand that's an amazing source for modern pieces. If you want to achieve a Scandi or midcentury-modern aesthetic without breaking the bank, you could feasibly furnish your entire home with Article pieces.
The Citizenry is an excellent source for beautiful artisan-made accent pieces. Between the pillows, rugs, planters, and curated selection of furniture, it has everything you need to achieve that coveted laid-back Cali look.
Since we purchased our first-ever king-size bed, we had to find king-size pillows to match. Boll & Branch is the source of the best pillows I've ever laid my head on, hands down. I hear that the bedding and towels are also amazing, which I hope to confirm for myself in the future.
Beni Rugs is the ingenious brand making handcrafted Moroccan rugs fully accessible to the masses. The customizable rugs are made-to-order in the Atlas Mountains in Africa, so you'll have to practice patience while waiting for yours to arrive, but it's worth it. My feet have never touched anything softer and plusher.
Schoolhouse is a Portland-based brand with everything from light fixtures to hardware to home décor items, all of which lend a retro sensibility to your home. I added several of its chic, useful pieces to my office, which I spend more time in than any other part of the house. (I work from home.)
Hudson Valley Lighting Group consists of four brands (Hudson Valley Lighting, Mitzi by HVL, Troy Lighting, and Corbett Lighting), all of which speak to different home décor style types. Most of our light fixtures were dramatic, gold, and modern, and between the four brands, they had tons of beautiful options that fit the bill.
The Container Store created my dream closet (see all the photos here), but I also shopped the brand's plethora of organizational accessories for my closet and the rest of the house. There's no better place to buy functional items that are as chic as they are useful.
One scroll through Made Goods' inventory and you'll quickly amass a lengthy wish list. (Trust me.) The pieces are beautifully made, and the designs are timeless. (Just a heads-up that it only sells its pieces to industry professionals, e.g., interior designers.)
I can't say enough good things about Rejuvenation. In particular, the mirrors and light fixtures are beautifully made, very aesthetically pleasing, and they won't break the bank. I'm obsessed with these pendant lights we chose to go over the kitchen island.
CB2 is my go-to for trendy items that add that wow factor to a room, like these woven leather chairs that will make any fashion girl think of Bottega Veneta. We placed many CB2 orders throughout this process and were so happy with every item that arrived.
Next up, the fashion, beauty, and home items I purged when I moved.
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