Tent Sale 2021

If you haven’t heard, we’re having a tent sale! Whaaa! Whaaa! WHAAAAA! (airhorn) And we’re so excited about it.

The plan is to sell nearly all our accessories inventory, and some furniture, to clear our stockroom and make room for lots of new goodies. Today we’re going to share some of the things we’ll be selling and details on the event. If we leave anything unanswered for you, don’t hesitate to ask in the comments or email us (hello@grayoakstudio.com).

What decor will be sold?

We are including everything we have. Pillow covers and pillows (with inserts), fabric and wallpaper scraps, lamps, mirrors, art prints, throw blankets, candlesticks, baskets, containers of all shapes and sizes (our favorite), vases, planters, trays, bowls…so many decorative objects.

There will also be a whole bunch of handmade pillows by our favorite workroom (Curtains by Paula). She uses luxury and designer fabrics. Each piece is custom. We may be buying some of these ourselves!!!

We have several mini gray vases like the one we used in our Hickory Project.

Where do we get all our decor?

We got a few questions on Instagram about where we buy our decor and whether our “stock” is stuff that we can’t return to HomeGoods or Pottery Barn. Great questions. While you may be able to find a random CB2 or West Elm item, 95% of our stock is not something you would find at a run of the mill retailer. We purchase our decor from 3 places: wholesale vendors, unique spots (i.e. Brimfield Fair) and Etsy. And we spend a lot of time curating a collection of unique and special pieces - all the items you see in our projects.

How much will everything cost?

Most pieces will 25%-40% off and some will be as much as 70% off. The goal is to clear house, so the prices will reflect it! Plus, you’re avoiding the cost of shipping and supporting a small business. So many wins with one purchase.

We are going to share more pieces and prices on our Instagram stories next week.

We will have several of the hoop lid round wood containers we used to style the built-ins in our stafford sitting room.

When is the tent sale?

Saturday, May 22nd from 10 am - 2 pm.

Where is the tent sale?

At our studio! Which is a whole other reason to come. Don’t you want to check it out? 18 William Fairfield Drive in Wenham, MA.

What form of payment will we accept?

In true tent sale form, it’s a cash or Venmo only event. And everything is final sale.

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And now, for the furniture! We know these bigger pieces can’t be spontaneous purchases. For starters, you’ll need a large vehicle to bring them home. It’s also nice to measure the spot they’ll go in advance and make sure they’ll fit.

Rustic Dining Table with Modern Trestle Base

You may have spotted this table at your local Pottery Barn (Hearst Table) or on your internet travels (Erie Table). It’s big and beautiful. It’s 89” long and 40” wide and made of solid oak. It’s really, really heavy. It retails for $1,699. We’re selling it for $975.

Below is a lifestyle photo. Lifestyle photos are always helpful to understand the scale of a piece. Also, it’s good for you to know that this table comfortably seats 8.

Modern Tufted Leather Slipper Chair

We don’t have a photo of this beauty yet, but we’ll share it on Instagram next week. This chair is very, very cool. It’s definitely the chair that will up your design cred with everyone who enters your home. It retails for $1,475. We’re selling it for $800. The dimensions are 30” wide x 30” deep x 27” tall. We have the tan color. And, we have a feeling this one will be gone at the pre-sale. Wait! (You just thought). PRE-sale?!?

Yes, we are having a pre-sale. And the only way to get in the know is to email us at hello@grayoakstudio.com with the subject line “Tent Sale”. We will be notifying everyone on our list of an exclusive Friends and Family pre-sale.

Last up, if you want a full tour of our stockroom and sneak peaks of lots of the decor we’ll be selling, head to our Instagram highlights. The “Tent Sale” highlight has all the fun.

Hope to see you at the sale!

- Leah

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The Overlooked Styling Element That Will Transform Your Space

At Gray Oak Studio we have a few tricks up our sleeves when it comes to styling. We head to every Install Day prepared with loads of two things: plants, as you already know we are self professed plant ladies over here, and books. Yup, books. The unsung heroes of styling. We use them in each and every project to add texture, height, scale, and interest. 

When it comes to styling with books, we love to stack them, group them by color, or just let a really beautiful and meaningful book take center stage.

When considering which books will work best for each project, there are three simple factors that we keep front of mind: size, color, and content. We use big ole, showcase books on a coffee table or console table, styled along with plants and objects. We love to stack them on a chair or ottoman. And, of course, we use them on a bookshelf. Loads of books in stacks and rows.

So now that you are convinced that you need more books in your life, where should you start your bibliophile journey? There are actually a lot of places to stock up on books. We always suggest you shop your home first, we guarantee you have some hidden gems lying around in a box in the basement or tucked away in cupboard somewhere. Let’s give those old books new life by taking off their dust jackets, which can at times be a bit too busy and colorful, and enjoy them the way they were intended - dust jacket free and in their purest state.

A collection of some beautiful blue books having a real moment here surrounded by plants and brass accents.

Stafford Project

No luck in your attic or basement, you can always head to your local bookstore to find the perfect hardcover that speaks to you. Or your town’s annual library book sale and thrift store. Etsy is also a great place to find vintage books if that is more your niche.

We take the task of sourcing books for our client spaces very seriously, and have spent many hours scouring the internet and book aisles to find the elusive perfect book. We always try to include something personal for each project, whether it is a nod to a client’s favorite vacation spot, hobby, pet, or hometown roots, it’s nice to have a book that isn’t just pretty to look at, but that is meaningful as well.

We pulled together a roundup of some of our favorite coffee table books to get you started. Drop us a line and let us know what is gracing your coffee table these days!

Books for the World Traveler

Destinations of a Lifetime

1,000 Places to See Before Your Die

Wanderlust

Books for the Minimalist

Simplicity

John Derian Picture Book

Minimalista

Books related to New England

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The Great American House

The Sea

New England Modern

Books for the Animal Lover

Dogs

Good Dog

The Wild Horses of Sable Island

Until next time! And remember to subscribe to our blog so you don’t miss next time!

- Sonia

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Home Decor Giveaway 2020 - Shop The Decor

This post is for everyone who entered last week’s decor giveaway and didn’t win. We truly wish we could give you all something from our stash, but that wouldn’t be a great business model…SO, we’re doing the next best thing. We’re sharing lots of similar decor options at ranging prices for you to treat yourself. And we’re even including styling inspiration to give you ideas on how to use them.

White Chunky Knit Pillow

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A chunky, soft knit has a casual feel. It’s great in a family room paired with a more tailored sofa or chair. In our Prospect Project Family Room, we added a variety of blue and white textural pillows on a tailored gray sofa. They feel ready made for a family movie night.

Prospect Project by Gray Oak Studio

Two-Tone Basket

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We consider baskets (two-toned or otherwise) essential to every family room. They add function and beauty by way of texture. In our Stafford Family Room Project, we used a basket next to the sofa to hold an extra throw pillow and blanket. Baskets are also great for next to a media console or bookshelf, they fill that extra bit of horizontal space. You can also fill them with magazines or toys. Whenever it’s used for the latter, we love draping a pretty blanket on top when guests come to hide the mess.

Stafford Family Room by Gray Oak Studio

Set of Stacking Boxes

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In the living room of our Prospect Project, we stacked some long brass boxes (the exact set linked above) on a bookshelf. We love how stacked boxes create height. They also create function - they are great spot to hide matches or cards or old movie theatre stubs. You can separate a set of boxes and use them on different shelves of a bookshelf or in different spots within a room to create visual cohesion.

Prospect Project by Gray Oak Studio

Round White Vase

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White vases look amazing against a colored background. In the sitting room of our Stafford Project, we scattered white vases throughout the built-in bookshelves that flanked the fireplace. The white was a beautiful, soft contrast to the blue/gray walls. You don’t even have to fill them with anything!

Stafford sitting room by gray oak studio

Oval Tray

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We used an oval tray on the round coffee table in the sitting room of our Hickory Project. Sometimes round on round doesn’t work because it’s too much of a good thing…but oval does. And oval is also really beautiful on a console table, the narrow nature of console tables don’t usually allow for a round tray, but an oval tray fits and is a nice contrast to cleaner corners. Plus, oval shaped anything is very on trend.

Hickory Project by gray oak studio

Lidded Wood Container

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We used all sorts of wood decor when decorating the built-in media console in the living room of our Enos Project. But, take particular note of the tiny round wood box on top of the books on the middle shelf. It’s the smallest piece, but the whole vignette would be imbalanced without it. The darker tone, the organic grain of the wood - it adds so much to the white and gray and blue backgrounds that we all love. And, it would be a fun spot to save lucky pennies.

Have a wonderful holiday! We're taking a nice break over the next couple weeks to unplug, relax with our families and recharge. We have so much happening in 2021, can’t wait to share it with you!!!

- Leah

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