Looking to infuse your dining room with vintage vibrancy? Take a cue from Emily Yep, the founder/owner of Magnolia and Willow, located in Long Beach, California. Throughout her and her husband Marshall’s Southern California home, you’ll find vintage and antique treasure. “I do shop a lot from our store,” says Emily. “If I’m drawn to something, I try to make it work at the house. I upgrade as I go. If I find a better chair, I get rid of the current one and update. Since I’m constantly surrounded by opportunities to buy, I could be a hoarder otherwise!” Her dining room is a mix of old and new but she shares how to easily bring vintage touches to your table.
The table and chairs in her dining room are among the few new-purchase items in the home. “I wanted something massive,” says Emily. The hutch she found at an auction and painted, while she discovered the artwork at Magnolia and Willow. The Fu dogs came from the Yeps’ trip to China. In the cloche on the hutch, you can see cake toppers from the weddings of both Marshall’s and Emily’s grandparents. “I’m obsessed with everything old,” she says.
The easiest way to add vintage style to any gathering? Vintage silver. “My mom collected three vintage silver patterns, and I got to choose one when I got married,” says Emily.
The couple’s wedding china blends easily with their collection of mix-and-match vintage napkin rings. Emily also has a collection of teacups and compotes. Silver compotes can be used for so many things, Emily notes. “I like them tarnished, but if you were actually serving food in them, they polish up really well.”
Use display areas in your dining room (china cabinets, sideboards and bar carts as areas to show off vintage collections. A pincushion doll, this figurine has been wired to be turned into art; in the past, it would have been sitting on a fabric skirt. To the right are French perfume bottles.
