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The Most Awesome Dining Table Ever + Some Stuff About Imperfection

05.28.14 | By
The Most Awesome Dining Table Ever + Some Stuff About Imperfection

I’m not a person who would ever use the word “rustic” to describe my style. I would probably never (never say never) buy something described as “barn style” or “farmhouse”. HOWEVER, you guys, I fell in love with a table. A rustic table. Made of old, funked up wood.

I’d been recently inspired by rooms with rustic barn or farm style tables paired with modern chairs and lighting, pinning tons of them to Pinterest and obsessing over finding the perfect imperfect table. I think the quirkiness and juxtaposition of the table vs chairs is what I find most appealing. In my last house, I felt like everything needed to be mid-century. In this house, there’s no character whatsoever to compete with—a truly blank slate. So, rather than settling in on one style, I want to get as eclectic as possible while still making everything feel like it’s perfectly placed.

Armelle Habib for Inside Out

Armelle Habib for Inside Out

Design by Jessica Helgerson \\\ Photo by Lincoln Barbour

Design by Jessica Helgerson \\\ Photo by Lincoln Barbour

Source unknown

Source unknown

Ashley Tonner for House & Home

Ashley Tonner for House & Home

I think that my navigation toward more mixed pieces and my acceptance of imperfect and mis-matched pieces has a lot to do with a journey I’m on in my personal life: I’m a recovering perfectionist. I’ve been working hard at combating it, but I never thought about its effects on my personal style or aesthetics… But after we moved out of the MCM house, I started thinking about where to go from here? It was as if a whole new world opened up to me and this new world of possibilities came with it—an opportunity to grow. I wanted to create an environment for myself that no longer needed intense overthinking and scrutiny. One where you could drop something and if it dented the floor, oh well. Or if there was a chip or a divot or a ding here, I could totally handle it. I wanted to be a “go with the flow” “no worries” “it’s all good” kind of person. However, moving into a new house was a challenge because it’s like having brand new white sneakers that you don’t want to get dirty—in fact, you don’t even want to wear them because you might mess them up. I had to get over that really quickly, being as though we have a two-year-old with sticky hands and dirty feet. So I did. There were some margaritas and lots of deep breathing. But, we got over the “newness”, made some scratches and dents, and eased into it, like breaking in a new pair of jeans. Moving away from the impossible bubble I lived in before and embracing the realness of my life, the reality of having a two-year-old, and the OK-ness of imperfection has made me a better person. Anyway, this is probably all TMI but ultimately, my design senses have changed as a result.

restoration-hardware-farmhouse-salvaged-table-black

Enter the Farmhouse Salvaged Wood table from Restoration Hardware. It’s described as made of “unfinished, solid reclaimed pine timbers from 100-year-old buildings in Great Britain.” The “unfinished tabletop bears the patina of reclaimed wood and is accented with distinctive nicks and imperfections that speak of the wood’s age and provenance.”

My friend Michelle of Studio Surface recommended it to me and, at first, I didn’t like it because I had a gut reaction; It was very farmhouse-y. And very rustic. Upon second look, it was as if beams of light were coming out of my computer and the angels began to sing. A farmhouse table with nice clean modern lines—AND IT COMES IN BLACK! AND IT WAS ON SALE! Shut up and take my money. At first, we ordered the smallest size only to be superbly disappointed at how disproportionate it was; we’d completely underestimated the size of our dining space. Luckily, RH customer service was awesome about exchanging it, and so we ordered two sizes up and I couldn’t be happier. Bring on the dings, dents and scratches!

restoration-hardware-black-farmhouse-table

I know what all you die-hard modern purists are thinking – I can hear your groans from here. But just LOOK at this table. LOOK AT IT.

restoration-hardware-black-farmhouse-table-detail

Sigh.

It already has a story to tell and I’m looking forward to adding to it.

Now, where do we go from here?

Jaime Derringer, Founder + Executive Editor of Design Milk, is a Jersey girl living in SoCal. She dreams about funky, artistic jewelry + having enough free time to enjoy some of her favorite things—running, reading, making music, and drawing.