Victorian Spring Home Tour

“Never yet was a springtime, when the buds forgot to bloom.” -Margaret Elizabeth Sangster

And so it is even in times that seem uncertain, so I am choosing hope and joy, and I certainly hope to spread some happy spring spirit as I share my home today.

I’m excited to join Marty at A Stroll Thru Life for her Spring Home Tour series along with 29 other very diverse bloggers, and I’m so happy you are here stopping by from Julia’s beautiful home at Cuckoo4Design. 

If you’re new, you can read more about us and our mountain property HERE.

I love being home, and making my home a cozy and safe haven for my family is something really important to me. And that doesn’t mean going out to buy more things, but using what I have to create that refuge away from the world. For Spring, it’s all about plants and color — specifically mustard yellow.

Earlier this winter, I ran into these antique Eastlake chairs on facebook marketplace, which were a steal, so I could not pass them up. They really completed the Victorian parlor this room has become. 

To the reds and yellows, I brought back in the green plants that ended up in my daughter’s room over Christmas and a few new ones. Plants are so important in a room, and especially in one with dark colors and lots of texture. 

On the mantel, I used an Italian vase I gave my mother for Christmas as a child and filled it with Nandina branches and Mountain Fire Pieris blooms.

I borrowed a Chinese planter from my mother for the palm tree, and hope I can keep this one alive here by the window. Palms are such a fixture in a Victorian room, and this one really brings life to this corner.

I blogged about the picture rail and paint a few weeks ago and am absolutely loving this easy and dramatic change. 

I also added the window trim and baseboards from the old house earlier this year and am loving the difference that amazing wood makes.

This is a room we use, and we love that it’s cozy and warm. Even as it heats up outside, the dark color feels cool and calming, and will be a nice escape from the summer heat later on. 

I did buy these yellow/gold pillow covers from amazon and love the mustard yellow for spring and summer. I also liked the ruffled fringe and the more modern look that brings to all the antiques. They went perfectly with pillows I already had.

I’m really quite astonished at the difference the plants make. I’ve always used live plants indoors, but the combination with the yellows and reds just really brought this room to life for spring.

Inherited channel back chairs, books, great granddaddy’s drop leaf table, 1800s oil lamp and windows from the old house create a cozy and welcoming spot for reading.

I really do love the direction this room has taken and find myself feeling like I’m escaping to another time. And that’s a welcome distraction from today’s pandemic news. And honestly, having my family enjoy it and feel comfortable here is all the affirmation I need.

I added another interesting variety of ivy to my wagon wheel hub planter on the inherited buffet. I also moved my grandmother’s antique print here and borrowed an inherited Chinese Imari plate from my mother. 

Inherited brass candlesticks and lamp add the gold touch to brighten things up for spring as well.

On the dining table, I layered a toile runner I made several years ago with a red velvet runner and simply added a pot of ivy and my grandmother’s brass candlesticks.

Since we spend a lot of family time here, I need the centerpiece to be relatively simple, and of course low.

In the kitchen, again yellow/gold was the key to spring so I added antique brass plaques, gold Pyrex and kept the floral “Queensland” fabric to tie it all together. I change the sink skirt and curtains often because I can easily get a totally different look with fabric, and the options are limitless.

I just love this fabric, though, and had no idea how popular it has been for the last 20 or so years until so many people started commenting on my social accounts that they had it as well.

I did find this antique electrified oil lamp at an antique mall near and thought the $22 price was also a steal. I did have to rewire it, but that was super easy and something I recommend learning to do if you don’t know already.

The wormy chestnut beadboard was also a project I accomplished last year and a labor of love to restore this wood that graced the third-floor room in the old house. 

I normally only use the J & G Meakin Romantic England pattern at Christmas, but I just loved the pink/red transferware pattern with the greens and yellows for spring.

If you have ever watched I Love Lucy, you’ll recognize my vintage Mirro Matic coffee pot😉 The needlepoint is one of a pair and was made by the same family friend who crocheted the afghan later in this post.

I blogged this millwork restoration last spring, and am still in love with this restored piece of my family history.

My grandmother made the two aprons on each side of the gingham apron my mom gave me.

Since we removed the island last winter, I cannot tell you how much we love this spot. It really has become the center of family life for us, and we love to sit here for meals and conversation. 

This is a favorite spot to sit for coffee and conversation, and I added a vintage afghan made by a family friend and a kilim pillow with the same colors. I love to mix patterns, and it’s so easy when they have coordinating colors.

Over the piano, I added a $35 chandelier I found on marketplace and made over with paint.

You can certainly see how beat up my 1930s piano is, but it has been well loved since I found it in the D.C., area in the 1990s. 

I did change a few things over the inherited 1880 Smith American pump organ by adding a window from the old house and original paintings by the relative who gifted us the organ. 

As in the other rooms, I added some clippings from the yard and a palm tree and called it done😊

The millwork restoration continued in this room as well earlier this year, and I could not be more thankful to have made a dent in the pile of wood to restore. 

I’m a big believer that seasonal changes can be dramatic but don’t have to be, and in fact shouldn’t be expensive. A few plants, mustard yellow pillow covers, and I have a fresh look for this season.

I think *home* has taken on a renewed importance in people’s lives with recent events, and making home your own really just takes some creativity and resourcefulness – not money. So make your home yours, and let it tell your unique story — but most importantly, make it warm, welcoming and a refuge for those who enter its doors.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and be sure to follow Whispering Pines Homestead on instagram so you don’t miss anything!!

Next,  head on over to see Rhoda’s beautifully colorful spring home at Southern Hospitality, then on to see the rest of today’s homes. Every day Marty will introduce six more bloggers so don’t miss any of these beautiful homes full of ideas you can use!

Monday

   A Stroll Thru Life  – Remodelando La Casa  –  Cuckoo4Design –  Far Above Rubies – Southern Hospitality – Duke Manor Farm 

Tuesday 

House By Hoff  –  Pink Peppermint Design –  ZDesign At Home – Taryn Whiteaker –  Inspiration For Moms – Decor To Adore 

Wednesday

Cassie Bustamante –  11 Magnolia Lane  – Hymns &amp Verses – Modern Glam – Thrifty & Chic  – Grace In My Space 

Thursday 

 Our Southern Home  – My 100 Year Old Home – Sanctuary Home Decor – Seeking Lavender Lane – Southern State Of Mind – StoneGable 

Friday 

Thistlewood Farms –  White Arrows Home –  The Woodgrain Cottage – Life On Cedar Lane –  Follow The Yellow Brick Home  – Making Home Base