Shabby Chic Home Blog

Shabby Chic Design Foundations

Posted on 20. Aug, 2009 by shabbychichomeblog in shabby chic design

The shabby chic design style highlights vintage furnishings and aesthetics and uses them in modern, comfortable ways.  Vintage can include ornate dressers or rugged solid wood tables.  It is less about a particular time period of furnishings and more about conveying history, quality and uniqueness.  Pairing the concepts of vintage with modern or ornate with function can be a hard idea to grasp and even harder to put together successfully in a home.  The three ideas to remember here are simple, uncluttered, and comfortable.  Consider first your personal tastes and create a home around that.

Before decorating your home in shabby chic you must first take note of your home’s structure and foundation. When was your home built?  Where is its geographic location?  When looking at the home itself consider the physical elements.  This means determining which elements you have such as high or low ceilings, textural or smooth walls, shapes of rooms and doorways, large or small rooms.  While most any style of home can use shabby chic design, the application will be different for each style, such as traditional, contemporary, cottage, etc.

Once your personal style is established and the home’s structure is identified (and before furnishing) it is time to decide on wall, ceiling and floor treatments.  The desired effect is subdued yet elegant.  Versatility and longevity are also important.  These can be achieved with a monochromatic color scheme, usually in whites, off-whites and muted colors.

Floors in the shabby chic home should have a natural look and be easy to care for. Hardwood floors may be ideal for traditional homes while cement floors may look best in contemporary homes.  Natural floor tiles can create a warm and cozy feel.  Any of these floors can be covered with area rugs to add a focal point and depending on your style you may choose ornate vintage rugs or natural fiber rugs.  If you choose ornate rugs, you may want to balance that out with simpler design elements elsewhere in the room.

Walls are the visual backdrop of the shabby chic home.  It’s the main element we think of as tying the whole room together.  The walls should not have too much decoration or color.  White is most always a good choice.  Your local paint store will have several different white shades for you to choose from and these will vary between warm, cool, and bright whites.  Interest can be added with textural wallpaper or wainscoting, and decorative mouldings in complementing shades of white.

Ceilings are probably the least considered element, but you have options here as well.  Decorative elements here could be exposed beams, medallions, or stenciling. A little bit of effort on the ceiling is all that is needed to make it noticeable and stylish.

It’s important to address your home’s structure before filling it with furniture.  By addressing the structure of your home and exhibiting your design style through the floors, walls, and ceiling, you’ve created a long lasting foundation for any decorating elements that you may want to add.

Tags: shabby chic design