Rethinking Old Soft Furnishings

Hi everyone, happy Thursday! It's kinda gloomy out there today, so we thought we'd show off some of our cheerful and fun re-upholstered pieces.

All of the soft furnishings that we have in the shop are vintage pieces that have been completely re-done. We love the style and quality craftsmanship that can be found in older soft furnishings.

Vintage footstools re-done in bright geometric Kravet fabrics.

Treasure hunting is one of our most favourite things to do, and we seek out old soft furnishings with good bones that can be given a second life! With some creativity, and a lot of skill from our upholsterer, we create these beautiful and unique pieces. The pieces have all new innards and are covered with new fabric. This ensures that they will look and feel like new while maintaining their original character and sturdy structure.

Small vintage sofa in a beautiful Kravet ikat, we're smitten!

Rustic chic- we love this bench with its new burlap-covered seat.

Kravet is one of our top picks for fabric suppliers. They offer such a variety of styles from many top designers. They have something for everyone, and the quality of their fabric is fantastic! If you're ever in need of fabric for your own projects, come and talk to us about it. We can help you choose a fabric and order it for you at 15% off the regular price!

Come by and have a seat in some of our soft furnishings, we'd love to see you soon!!

Win a $25 gift certificate for henhouse!!

Exciting news! We're working on an update for our website and we need your help! A $25 gift certificate could be yours if you hurry!

Here are the details: E-mail us a pretty picture of your henhouse piece and tell us about your experience. The first ten senders will receive a $25 gift certificate to use at the shop and their photos and comments will be featured on our upcoming website landing page.

Why are you still here reading?! Fire up your camera and e-mail us now at info@henhouse.ca

Good luck!!

**Update! We'll be notifying the winners by e-mail tomorrow!

We're Nuts for Walnut!

Can you believe it's October already?! We've been busy bees here at the shop; getting ready for Christmas, stocking up on antique treasures, and as always we've been working away on a variety of custom pieces.

Lately we've had a lot of requests for pieces built in walnut. Walnut is a great choice for furniture or cabinetry because it's very durable and has an attractive grain. With proper care, walnut pieces can last many lifetimes.

This entertainment armoire is made of a birch surround with plywood walnut doors (we always always trim our plywood with real solid wood for longevity). The birch is painted a creamy white, the doors were left natural and have been treated with oil. This piece really showcases the beauty of walnut. The simple contemporary lines draw attention to the textures and colour of the natural wood doors and drawers. To keep with the linear and contemporary feel of the design, the vertical wood grain of the doors continues into the drawers.

Because of its durability, walnut is a great choice for any high-usage piece of furniture. We made this custom walnut island and gave it a dark walnut coloured stain. The perimeter of the surface has been embellished with a subtle hand-painted design.

Down below there is a slatted shelf for open storage and "hidden" drawers just underneath the top surface for place-mats and napkins. In collaboration with our customer, the legs were reproduced from an antique newel post, and were hand-turned on a lathe by our amazing woodworker. We feel this design and choice of rich wood perfectly suit the William Morris aesthetic of this Halifax kitchen. What do you think?

Just in time for the weekend!

We wanted to let you know about some great deals going on at the shop right now:

Henhouse for the Holidays

We're taking 10% off all custom or standard furniture orders placed before Septermber 30th! Place your order before the end of this month and have it in time for the holidays!

Last Call for Kravet Sale!

There's only two more weeks left of the Kravet summer sale. We're offering 30% off of any Kravet order until September 30th! Kravet is known for its high quality fabric available in fresh, unique colour palettes. Come by the shop to take a look at our samples, or view them online, then place your order with us.

Living Room Discounted!

Our gorgeous living room set is on sale as well. All pieces are vintage and have been re-upholstered in Thom Filicia for Kravet fabric. The seat cushions are down wrapped for extra comfort!

Sofa: $2995.00 down from $3450.00

15% off of the armchair, wingback chair and down insert pillows

Discounted wood furniture!

Dresser: from our South Shore collection, pine with five drawers, slightly distressed. Was $1890.00 now $1590.00

Pedestal Table: Beautiful pine with a walnut stain, 45" diameter with a 15" leaf insert. was $1820.00 now $900.00!

We hope you'll visit us this weekend and take advantage of our great sale items!

Kentville Kitchen

Recently, we had the pleasure of working with the young couple who own this beautiful home in Kentville N.S. The house is a charmer- built in the late 1800's, it is filled with character! We love the look and feel of older homes, but often they need some updating. In this case it was the awkward and dark 70's kitchen remodel that needed to be completely gutted. As always, henhouse was up to the challenge!

click on any of the images to see them in full-size

A challenge indeed! Before the reno the kitchen had very limited storage and work space, not a lot of natural light, and it had five doorways and two large windows to reckon with. Our designer Sappho worked with the family to come up with some great storage solutions, lighting and colour schemes and a flooring option that would blend in well with the history of this house.

To provide more light, flow and to modernize the space, the wall between the kitchen and dining room was removed. The custom henhouse peninsula helps to define the kitchen from the dining space and adds storage and seating. Having the microwave tucked into the lower cabinetry frees up counter space and looks clean and contemporary. The apron sink from Nova Tile and glass hutch from henhouse add touches of the past and speak to the character of the house.

To create more storage, Sappho created a tall pantry unit and placed it where the old stove once lived. A window and a doorway were closed up to accommodate the new placement of the fridge, stove, and surrounding cabinetry.

The door that you see in the before photo was covering up a cute little staircase that leads to the second floor. The doorway was opened up in order to showcase this unique historical feature. The desk space remained tucked away in this perfect little nook in front of the window.

The island was created from the family's old dining table. The henhouse team added shelves and castors and re-finished it at the shop. It's now a moveable work surface and storage area with loads of character and history.

This kitchen is a great success. It's now a fresh, family space that is functional and fits in with the 19th century home. We wish this happy Kentville family many years of joy in their beautiful home!

Hi! It's September already, can you believe it?! I sure can't.

Today we're sharing some photos sent in by one of our customers. We don't always get to see things in situ, so it's really exciting for us to receive photos! There's a really big difference between seeing a piece in the store or in the workshop and seeing it in someone's home.

This customer needed a dining table, chairs, and stools for her beautiful summer home on the Northumberland Strait.

Above is an 11ft (!) Harvest Table from our Oxford Collection. This piece was built with a cherry tabletop and a birch base that has been hand-painted and antiqued. The clean and simple lines make reference to Shaker style furniture. The ladder back chairs, from our supplier in Toronto, are a perfect match and are available through henhouse.

These stools were ordered though henhouse and work really well as seating at the island. They carry elements of Shaker style and help to tie the eating area to the kitchen workspace.

Here are some elegant swivel stools from the same supplier. They look great and they're really comfy too!

Thank you S for sending in these photos :)

If you have furniture or decor items from henhouse take a photo and share it on our facebook page! We'd love to see how you made our products a part of your home!

Enjoy the rest of the week!

The Art of Lynn Rotin

If you've been into the shop before you've probably taken notice of some of Lynn Rotin's artwork. Having studied in France, Toronto, and here in Halifax, Lynn now pursues her passion for art from her studio in West Pennant, Nova Scotia.

small pears on wood $42.50 each

Lynn's pear paintings capture the beauty that exists in everyday ordinary pears. Painted in oil on found wood, her pears give meaning and new life to something old and discarded. The contrast of the wood against the paint gives the work a warm and rustic feel which is instantly attractive to the viewer. Lynn's interest in pears is longstanding. For her "... the form is sensual, the colour subtle and they allow for endless variety and variation".

Mini Canvases $35.00

Some of Lynn's other subject matter includes flowers, bowls and text. She also creates work that leans more toward abstraction. Her oil paintings are an expression of her love of the medium. According to Lynn "lushness of colour, depth of surface and a passionate brushstroke are key elements".

2'x2' untitled oil on canvas $595.00

Come by the shop to experience some of Lynn's work in person. We have a nice selection of pears, some encaustics, and some oils on canvas. You can also visit her website here.

Oh, and don't forget it's Music in the Hydrostone Park this Saturday 2-4pm featuring Ben Caplan and the Casual Smokers. You can check out the Facebook page here.

Have a great weekend!

Alyssa