Add a bit of shabby chic to your home

Shabby chic is a very popular style but what is shabby chic?
It is a form of interior design that uses different elements to give a room a distressed romantic soft layered look and generally uses a lot of whites with soft pastel colours introduced in the form of painted furniture, laces and linen and anything with roses. Especially peony roses.

The following materials are the essence of shabby chic

• Vintage delph i.e cups and saucers, vases, serving bowls etc
• Laces & Linen - table clothes, cushions, bedspreads influenced by french tioles and Victorian linen and laces
• Distressed furniture - painted furniture with several layers of paint worn at the edges.
• Florals - introduced in pictures, delph, accessories, cushions, bedspreads etc

The term shabby chic was supposed to be coined by 'The world of interiors magazines' back in the 80's and became very popular in the US in the 1990's. I remember the first time I saw shabby chic was when Pamela Anderson's home was featured on MTV's Cribs series what must be 10 years ago. I have to say I was not that impressed with it at the time as her home was just jam packed and just cluttered which is off putting no matter what style your home is. I think the whole shabby chic look has calmed down a bit these days and is much more elegant. If you are like me you will probably have elements of different styles in your home and in my opinion I don't think anyone has just one style they follow. If you look around your home you probably have some shabby chic, some country kitchen, some contemporary etc.

Here are some images of shabby chic rooms and ways of adding the shabby chic look to your home while blending it in with what you already have.

 Florals especially peony roses are a hugh part of the shabby chic look. Add a few to your kitchen or any room in your home.

 Vintage delph I'm glad to say is the in thing now so search your Mothers or Grandmothers Cupboards and borrow a few bits. Even something as simple as this can add the shabby chic look to a table or shelf

 Toile is very much a part of the shabby chic look but too much can be overpowering. I like the way it is done in this bedroom with just one wall papered and blended together with the curtains and oxford pillow shams...oh and of course the lovely blue wardrobe

 Get the shabby chic look in your garden by adding some layered tablecloths to your table and cushions cushions cushions....

 As I said above the shabby chic look uses a lot of white and this is an excellent example of a shabby chic bedroom.

 Painted furniture is essential to achieve the shabby chic look. This little table is painted in a pale blue and has the distressed look around the edges with a cute drawer handle added to add the chic to the shabby 

 A little girls room is where you could really go over the top with the shabby chic look and what other room deserves it more. It's such a feminine look and perfect for a little girls room.

 A shabby chic style kitchen that in my opinion has a bit too much going on but again it shows the essence of shabby chic. Roses, laces, vintage delph, whites, soft romantic feminine look.

 I would prefer this shabby chic style kitchen. Nice pastels colours, bright and inviting.

 Add shabby chic to your kitchen by adding some open shelves and placing some odd vintage delph on them.

A shabby chic bedroom using florals and pastel colours.

At DressMyHome we have loads of accessories that will help you achieve the shabby chic look. Here are a few of them. For more information on these products and to view more items go to http://www.dressmyhome.ie/shabby-chic-accessories.html?limit=all

Pauline:)