eclectic

When it comes to a historical collection, John Lattimer had a doozy. A sword belonging to Ethan Allen. The bloody collar worn by Lincoln during his last moments. A portion of Napoleon’s, um, remains. Letters written by Lee Harvey Oswald. Nazi suicide paraphernalia.

Some of Lattimer’s collection was built by being in the right place at the right time. By trade, Lattimer was a urologist, but during World War II service as a medic he became an expert on gunshot wounds and battlefield surgery. Being in the right place at the right time, Lattimer was in Nuremberg after the end of the war, but in time for the Nazi war crimes trials. He was there, treating Nazis according to Geneva convention requirements, when Hermann Goering committed suicide rather than being executed. The ampule that contained the poison taken by Goering is in Lattimer’s collection. His mastery of ballistic wounds came to great use decades later, when he was asked to review the evidence in the John F Kennedy assassination. Lattimer’s collection grew with ephemera from the event, and he gained notoriety for announcing that Oswald was the only shooter, and fired the shots that killed Kennedy.

The rest of his collection contained bits and pieces from the edges of history. Every article on Lattimer and his collection drops names: Lindbergh’s goggles. Custer’s coat. W.C. Fields’ hat (at right). According to a 1994 interview in the New York Times: “I have four degrees signed by Nicholas Murray Butler,” said Dr. Lattimer, referring to the late president of the university who became his patient. “I also have his prostate in a bottle.” Lattimer’s collection also included medieval weapons, armor, and relics from pre-American history. “Eclectic” is an excellent word for Lattimer’s collection, in the fine Victorian defintion, as a positive and honorable description of a fine collection of odds and ends.

Sadly, last year Lattimer passed away, but after reaching a respectable age of 92. His collection, however, lives on and remains in his estate, in the care of his daughter Evan, seen at left. Lattimer, unfortunately, did not make preparations for his collection after his passing, as all good collectors should. Evan has been left with the task of deciding what should be kept, what should be thrown out, and what should go to museums. It’s a difficult task: her father kept poor records, and some possible tragedies have happened. She took some broken, nondescript chairs out to the curb. Too late she realized they may have come from Ford’s Theatre, where Lincoln was assassinated: a junk picker had already grabbed them from the yard. Lincolnania that was documented and saved will be auctioned off in November, but more than a year after Lattimer’s death, Evan is still trying to make headway. Lattimer’s drive to collect the things that interested him was a driving force in his life, and it’s too bad that the collection will suffer so in his death. Let’s hope Evan handles her father’s collection well, and his years of collecting and archiving will be one of his greater legacies.

Many collectors like to show off their collections, and find that an eclectic home decor is the style most willing to accommodate such a display.While an eclectic decor is a mix of styles, materials, periods and even some whimsy or humor, the look is not random. If you want to mix it up, or at least relax a more traditional decor, but not look like the sales floor at the Salvation Army Thrift Shop, here are a few simple tips.

The true style is achieved when you select a theme.

Themes may not be like other interior design themes, such as King Louis or Traditional, but you must still have a plan. The easiest way for me to do this, is to select a color, as I fall in love with trinkets, fabric, furnishings, pillows, etc. on a daily basis, and it is much easier to stay in budget with a color than a time…

(After all, you wouldn’t put that retro poly print top with that vintage peasant skirt unless the colors worked, would you?)

Rachel Ashwell of Shabby Chic fame, believes ‘less is more’ and sticks with basic pastel colors. I personally am more of a vibrant gal, and probably own more trinkets & collectibles in my one home than she had in all of hers combined, but her approach is easily adaptable. She uses slip covers (made her millions, yes they did!) for easy care. (I prefer to drape rather than sew, then I always have a cover too!) She knows that a coat of paint or a box of dye can change virtually anything. So you needn’t buy replacements for many things.

Let’s say you want to mix cultured objects (the global trend is still very hot). It is easy to keep natural wood tones &/or black as your color theme, making that the constant backdrop for your collections.

If you are drawn to a time period, look at the dominant colors in the home decor of that time, or select a few of the largest or most expensive pieces & keep those colors in mind in selecting the rest.

One of the signature marks of eclectic looks, is the unexpected or whimsical touches.

This can be a color contrast, a featured collection, or a wall treatment. (Just like vintage dressing, you may wear a rather simple outfit, but throw on an outrageous colored scarf, or bright pin!)

Something a tad unconventional works too. I know a friend who has an old stove in her living room as a coffee table, which really made her vintage rooster & Pyrex collection look at home, yet stand out in a fun way. She can display her collectibles in a larger room and show them off more, as not too many people visit her kitchen!

This is also where that ‘trash-to-treasure’ creativity comes in to play… Take old items you already have, or ones you can find cheap at rummage sales, or store closeouts, and turn them into something different.

The last important tip I can give you is to remember that decorating is a creative process.

Like any other creative process, it is not likely to be completed in one weekend! Give yourself time to come up with your ideas. And even more importantly, give yourself time to put it all together.

Finding the right piece, or choosing the perfect wall treatment will take time. Live with the items you have for a bit, and let them inspire you with the way to go… Sometimes, knowing what you want & finding it may be months apart!

Realize that you do not need to create perfection in one easy step — and frankly, where is the fun in that, anyway?