“Where we love is home….home that our feet may leave but not out hearts.” ~ Oliver Wendell Holmes SR.

I had not even heard of the decorating style of “Shabby Chic“ until about 6 ears ago, when a friend of mine invited me over for a cup of coffee and showed me her new coffee table book called “Shabby Chic Homes.” When you think about its title, its quite catchy but there is certainly nothing shabby about the styles presentation. 🙂  The minute I opened the book, I was ‘hooked.’ 🙂 Each page with it’s resplendent decor, was even more lovely than the one before…It was definitely a different kind of style, yet it really captured a part of my heart.  It’s a great ‘look’ to mix with other decor techniques as well, especially country cottage, vintage and French country.

What exactly is “Shabby Chic?” First of all, “Chic” is pronounced as “sheik,” not “chick.” That made me feel a lot better. 🙂 (I mean lets face it, if the title for this decor style was going to be named after ‘a tumbledown, hip girl,’ I would have to come up with a new nickname for it.) 🙂   It is a decor theme that creates an ambiance of pure comfort...you know the kind of solace that says ‘it’s okay to take your shoes off and put your feet up on the couch?’ It’s simple, mix and match, romantic, elegantly lulling, has some tiny imperfections but that is what makes it endearing, eminently girlish, usually created in a white and pastel pink color palette, using antiquated linen and cotton fabrics, highlighted with vintage accessories.

Dried rose swags, appliques, a myriad of diverse garlands and adorable chubby cherub angels are also very popular accent pieces for this kind of decor theme. Other types of  accessories for this eccentric patina would be pillows made of bark cloth material, chenille fabrics, vintage  lamps and chandeliers, antiquated picture frames, all types of roses, an abundance of lace, floral fabrics and antiques.  The style itself has accents of the noteworthy and eloquent French country motif.The furniture is ‘made to look old,’ with many of it’s tables, chairs and hutches painted over several times throughout the years, with the different hues of paint color shining through. You are sure to find an ‘old fashioned pie safe or jelly cupboard ‘ in a Shabby Chic home.  Some have commented that it has an ambiance of a small fashionable shop, a charmingly warm and snug home, or an old, garret style dwelling place.  All I know is that it Shabby Chic is beautifully alluring, fetching and it makes me feel all ‘warm and cozy’ inside. (I am not sure if it would be my husband Kit’s first choice though.) 🙂

The Distinguished Quote Corner.

“I use to travel to see visual beauty and find comfort for my soul…I no longer feel that need as I find an abundance of  beauty and comfort in my home as it surrounds me at every corner.” ~ Author unknown

” Be a connoisseur of comfort.” ~ Author unknown

“The miracle isn’t that I finished, the miracle is that I had the courage to start.” ~ John Bingham    (I love this quote in regards to beginning your journey to take a room and make it into your hearts dream come true.) 🙂

“A house that does not have one, worn, comfy chair in it, is soulless.” ~ May Sarton

” The ornaments of your home will be the guests who frequent it.” ~ Author Unknown

“There is nothing like staying at home for real comfort.” ~ Jane Austin

 

Lets look at a few “Shabby Chic” living rooms and you can decide for yourselves! 🙂

The first thing I am thinking about right now is  that my big, burly Briard dog would not be allowed in this crisp, white, elegant room. 🙂 (Or I would be forever taking out my ‘dirt devil’ to vacuum up his black hairs… 🙂 On a serious note, I love this style and it truly is very ‘girlish’ and feminine as well as classy!

I adore the way this decorator has combined her bright whites with the creamy light, tan painted walls, an abundance of pastel rose and green highlights, along with the antiquated, vintage lamps and chandeliers. This particular living room does remind me of an ornate, enchanting boutique…If that were true, my basket would be full! 🙂 Beautifully captivating!

This elfin living room looks delicate, yet courtly! I really like the vintage wood behind the “chic” couch, the chocolate brown walls , potpourri of light and dark woods as well as the motley throw pillows. This room reminds me of a little cottage hidden away in the mountains by a beautiful, placid lake. Very inviting!

These two “Shabby Chic” living rooms are a bit more formal, yet still give you the ambiance of romance, bliss and comfort.   I just love the whites with the perfect blend of faded rose, blue and yellow highlights.  Both rooms look eminently fresh, crisp and clean. I love the  decorative floral rose pillows against the bright white couch. 🙂 There is just something about the color of white as a foundational tincture. I can’t decide which one I like the most! 🙂

Elegant, warm, creative and very inviting! This decorator has used an abundance of light, creamy and soft tans amongst the brilliant whites. The added blue tones in her accessories and area rug are heartwarming and fortuitous. The vintage mirror is striking and  definitely a poignant  decor piece for the ambiance of this room.   I am impressed with the combination of cozy-comfy amongst the formal and regal decor style.

Welcome to a Shabby Chic , genteel yet very casual living room. The flavor of this room is resplendent,  unique and triumphantly welcoming. It is a tad bit more on the laid back side with it’s wrought iron table and fireplace artwork. Again, the soft whites are captivating and the hints of hushed yellows a heartening addition.

I love this living room! With the bright, winning whites, (so refreshing) highlighted with the shiny, light wooden flooring and the inviting sunflower yellow kitchen in the background, this room is not only gracefully feminine, alluring and amazingly comfortable, but warm and charming. This decorator has added the perfect amount of accent colors to her color theme with the rose pillows, dried flowers with a wealth of green hues and her red flowers as a coffee table centerpiece. Another  riveting addition is the bay window with the soft pink and white pastel pillows with their enrapturing roses. So far, my favorite! 🙂

Shabby Chic with a Victorian flare! 🙂 There is still plenty of ‘white’ for the fresh, blissful motif, yet a potpourri of great accent colors that greatly enhance this rooms charm. The high ceilings are perfect in creating a voluminous, spacious ambiance, and the accent colors of rose and green are captivating. I really like the  picturesque and engaging valances. Another great room that sings; “Let the sunshine in,” 🙂 with it’s wondrous sunlit windows. 

Shabby Chic, vintage and cozy! Surrounded by gorgeous paned windows, the antiquated painted walls, vaulted ceilings along with the accent colors of muted greens, lulled blues, and creamy tans, this room is very welcoming and ornate. (Again, I feel like I am in a cozy, mountain cabin near the alluring timberland’s.)  

This duo of living rooms are “Shabby Chic,” to the max! Exceedingly  distaff and girlish, filled with ample chairs and couches, making each guest feel pampered, coddled and in the midst of a “lovely, happy home.” 🙂 I can just envision a Victorian tea pot upon each coffee table! 🙂

Okay, I already have a new favorite! This delightful room is Bunyanesque, enchanting, summoning as well as magical. It embodies the perfect amount of furniture, each piece, delicate and comfy, beautiful vintage lamps, tables and I adore the petite chest of drawers with it’s pastel blue and white shades. The roses add a touch of elegance and the creamy, ethereal butter colored walls are fabulously complimentary. A perfect place to enjoy a cup of coffee and fresh baked, warm sugar cookies, right out of the oven with your best friend or enjoy reading your beloved novella.  

Elegant, regal, stunning, inviting and down right “gorgeous.” If I were a single woman, without a “big, black, hairy dog,” I would create my living room to look just like this one.  🙂

What a whimsical, gossamer, enchanting and creative living room. The vaulted ceiling with it’s white wood beams are infinitely classy and something you don’t see everyday. I love the boxcar white pillows for a “coffee table,” the jubilant and picture-book window treatments, the vintage white furniture amongst the cleverly wood paneled walls, and the hunter green chair.  The paned windows are also breathtaking…This room is definitely engaging, lovely and sublime.

Lastly, this classy living room exudes the words welcome, snug and commodious. I adore the lighting, antique plate display upon the soft yellow walls, the vintage mirror and lamps as well as the lulled rose pillows. I am quite impressed with this decor style and who knows, maybe my husband would agree to me doing a ‘Shabby Chic” bathroom one day. 🙂 It is undoubtedly, a beauteous, captivating and exceedingly feminine decor!    

If you love this look as much as I do, and plan on doing at  least one of your rooms within your lovely haven in this decor style, here are some engaging, posh and recherche’ Shabby Chic accessories.

What a creative, enchanting decorative idea…ballet slippers festooned with lace, pearls, ribbon and stars… I love it!  (It really would be easy to make with the help of your favorite craft store.) 🙂   I already have a myriad of ideas of diverse uses for this adorable blue wired basket. In or out-going mail, a place to display your favorite magazines, a home for your baronial and motley kitchen towels or even pastel washcloths if placed in the bathroom. (You can always change the ‘name’ of  your basket to whatever you  choose to keep inside of it.) Very lovely.

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I adore this quaint little chest of drawers with it’s potpourri of colors and creative stenciling. This would look fabulous tucked away in a corner with picture frames filled with your loved ones along with a decorative topiary tree, or in the foyer of your home with a vintage lamp. 

WOW! These are rhapsodical. They remind me of hanging birdcages, but look so beautifully decorated, I see them more as candle holders…They would be so welcoming and alluring with a tall, creamy, white pillar candle lit within. 

A perfect “Shabby Chic” corner with all the vintage clothing and accessories in their regal tans amongst the noble and delicate pink roses…. What a great idea for decor.

This vintage, shabby chic armoire, antiquated mirror, motley flowers with the ageless,  venerable lace is absolutely stunning as well as  par-excellence, evoking emotions of bliss and romance. I adore this look!

This vintage, Victorian frame is not only a “true find'” but it would be a showstopper in any Shabby Chic or Vintage home. (In any home for that matter!) 🙂  I love the style and duo of the hushed rose-pinks against the gold and white intricately created frame.

Another creative and homemade Shabby Chic home decorative accessory! This would be so easy to make with a mason Jar, white lace, motley ribbon and netted fabric. I could easily see these displayed throughout any room with petite tea light candles glowing from within. Very charming!

These candle stick holders are delightful!  I love the intricate and unique work along with the decorative display of  pastel teal green berries. Not only would they be absolutely superb and grandiose on the dining room table but also on any living room or bedroom  table as well.   

What a gorgeous ladies Armoire. Displayed in the corner amongst the beautiful and ornate fire place, bedecked with vintage lace, it truly is euphoric. The painted and stenciled birdhouse is serendipitous and would look great in any room. The crystal-like prisms create the ‘Shabby Chic’ flavor to a “T”. (It’s amazing what one added change can do! ) 🙂

“Two other famous decorative items within the “Shabby Chic”  decorative style are the renowned Jelly cupboards and the popular Pie safes.

This Jelly cupboard is definitely part vintage, looks adorable and very “Shabby Chic” with its weathered blue doors and the bright, buttercup yellow artwork and crisp white, (with hints of blue and green,)  table top decor.

This decorator is using her Pie safe as a quilt holder…Very creative and a beautiful piece of furniture and decor style!

The ‘Shabby Chic’ decor style, as you can testify, is absolutely genteel, artful, creative, cozy-comfy, heartwarming and blissful.  I hope this blog has given you some great ideas and don’t forget to check this link on Shabby Chic decor as you will find more breathtaking photographs than you can possibly take in, within one sitting! 🙂 Enjoy!

PHOTOGRAPHS. Place your  computer mouse upon any photo or graphic and it will display where the picture originated from.

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