How to Mix Old and New

Featured Pro: Kristan Cunningham
Category: Home Décor
Time: 1:30


KRISTAN CUNNINGHAM: Hi, there. I’m Kristen Cunningham, and this is your GMC Trade Secret.

You know, we’ve all inherited or been given things that maybe aren’t our style but have sentimental value or are just valuable and there’s no reason to give them away. And that doesn’t mean that they can’t work in our modern homes or in our taste.

Now, here we have a whole collection of pewter. It’s a little bit old-fashioned. What’s so beautiful about it is that old-fashioned patina. It’s got great detailing. And all of that detailing really comes to life when it’s contrasted with these white wrapped books. So you’ve got a beautiful clean backdrop, very, very spare shelves.

Even a traditional item like this feather, which could go kind of in the other direction, is in this very, very simple shadow box. You mix in some wood tones, mix in some other metals, and suddenly those layers start to build up. Throw in a piece of modern art, this contemporary lamp, and all of a sudden you’ve got a really nice blending of styles. And it’s in that mix that all the interest lies.

This time I took the same general idea. I took a bunch of things that are like each other and grouped them together, in this case old tools. But I created a different new backdrop for them to live on. These are regular art canvases that I wrapped burlap around and then stapled them in place. And then these store-bought shelves are screwed right into the wood frame itself to secure it in place. So it’s a really clean backdrop for yet another collection.

And that is how you take old-school accessories and put them into modern vignettes. I’m Kristan Cunningham, and that’s your GMC Trade Secret.