3 Tips to Incorporate Old Pieces into a New Home, According to an Expert

When your personal style or home address changes, it can feel like second nature to toss out your old furniture and decor and start fresh. Chances are, however, there are a few sentimental items you simply can’t imagine parting with. For Newport Beach-based interior decorator Julie Hovnanian, she’s held onto a pair of precast concrete poodles.

“Thirty years ago, I saw them in an antique store in LA, and I was completely obsessed with them,” she says. “Finally, after three or four months of driving by, I bit the bullet and they have been following me around every place I go.”

Julie Hovnanian

Hovnanian recently built her dream home, and the poodles that once stood at the entrance of her old house have taken up residence in her new outdoor patio. In her personal and professional experience, it’s all about collecting and displaying pieces that feel authentic to you and celebrate who you are and what you love. 

“In your environment, you want to walk around and see things you love,” she says. “They should bring you joy to some degree, or just put a smile on your face.” 

Everyone has their own poodle equivalent, and Hovnanian has solutions for anyone who wants to bring special furniture and decor into a new space. Read on for her three pieces of advice that encourage you to follow the mantra, “in with the old.”

Thomas J. Story

Seek Out the Story

Whether you’re a world traveler or are a self-described ice cream aficionado (just me?), there are certain pieces that will just speak to you—and they tell a story that’ll engage your guests, too. So, it could be a one-of-a-kind lamp you found at a little antique shop in Paris or a Gray Malin ice cream cone print to showcase your food-forward style.

“There’s a story that goes along with it that engages people,” Hovnanian says. “It’s so much more personable and homey than walking into a house that looks staged, where there’s no history. I really feel like in order to make a house feel like a home, it has to have your personal items that you can share with other people.”

Thomas J. Story

Don’t Stress About Style

While there could be some consistencies, it’s understandable if your interior design style changes from time to time, and from home to home. Hovnanian says to embrace the eclectic nature of combining the old with the new.

“I think it makes it more interesting to throw something kind of random or a ‘one-off’ in your house,” Hovnanian says. “It’s unexpected, but it totally works because people can see why you love it so much.”

Hovnanian says one of her clients inherited her great-grandmother’s dining room table and chairs, which are far more ornate than other items in her home. To bridge the gap, they reupholstered the chairs with a more contemporary fabric. They also took a piece of the original fabric and framed a swatch of it as a nod to the chairs’ original look.

You should also feel free to repurpose sentimental furniture and decor, Hovnanian says. For instance, your grandmother’s old pair of mixing bowls can provide contrast (and a conversation-starter!) in a sleek, modern kitchen. If it matters to you, you’ll make it work, Hovnanian adds.

Thomas J. Story

Find a Common Thread

Part of finding a new home for inherited or older items is understanding where and how to display them. 

“Pick an area of the house where the piece would work because it’s a little more similar to the old style of the house,” Hovnanian says. “It’s really using the term juxtaposition, and figuring out a way that it fits into your new decor.”

This common thread could be an accent color or wood stain that reflects your previous home’s style. As an example, an item with olive green could get tied into the new design with a more contemporary pillow with a pattern that includes that same color.