Before & After: Vintage-Inspired Lights Help Transform Victorian Home
Over the past three years, we have enjoyed the renovation journey shared by our friend Christina on her blog Christina’s Adventures. She and her husband have lovingly transformed their 1902 Victorian near Philadelphia into a warm, bright, and welcoming home that they share with their three young children.
Today, we’re taking a look back at some impressive before-and-after photos of three of their rooms. When you see these pictures side by side, you can appreciate not only the vision that Christina had for each space, but the countless hours of work devoted to this labor of love.
With a young family, Christina envisioned her kitchen to be a central, oft-used space. She wanted to turn the dark, cramped room into a warm farmhouse kitchen. To highlight her new island, Christina chose Minimalist Copper Cage Pendants with black wire cages and black cotton twist cords. For a soft glow, she added 1910-era Edison style light bulbs. What a difference!
Over the copper sink, Christina added the Brisbane Stem Mount Pendant. She customized this American-made ceiling pendant with a 16″ shade, Bronze finish, a Bronze guard, and frosted glass.
Upstairs, Christina tackled the renovation of her master bathroom, the only full bath in the house, for the One Room Challenge. Her followers often remark that Christina has a remarkable talent for mixing vintage and contemporary styles. Her renovated bath is a classic example of this touch.
“We went for a vintage-inspired farmhouse style with lots of white, various wood tones, and an eclectic mix of metals, ” Christina explains. “Adding lots of texture with shiplap, a brick wall, wood ceiling, and layered Turkish towels really gives the room life.”
For bathroom lighting, Christina mixed the vintage look of the Primary Schoolhouse Gooseneck Light with the more contemporary Downtown Minimalist Adjustable Sconces. You can read more about this project here.
Christina’s entryway was the last major project downstairs. She notes that this space was difficult because she couldn’t hide the mess behind a door at the end of the day. The couple welcomed guests through the front door into a hallway filled with paint cans, ladders, and drills for more than a few weeks!
The mess was worth it in the end as Christina discovered beautiful hardwood floors hiding beneath decades-old carpet and original copper hardware under layers of paint. She chose to complement the copper hardware with a Bowie Wall Sconce in the entryway. This hand-spun copper wall light is customized with an eight-inch shade and an Oil-Rubbed Copper finish.
“Our hallway blends the original Victorian character of the house but has our casual farmhouse style,” she notes. “We love everything about it and the lighting is like the jewelry in the space. It truly completes it and complements all of the other design elements we added.”
Photos courtesy of Christina’s Adventures
