Shabby chic décor is a decorating style that combines beautiful, elegant items with those that are aged and worn. Shabby chic furniture and accessories are reminiscent of the 1900 to 1950 eras. When Grandmother decorated her home she didn’t buy new furnishings, she used hand-me-downs and made accent pieces by hand.
Where can you find shabby chic décor and furniture?
First and foremost is to look for shabby chic décor and furniture in your own attic, basement or storage shed. For example, reuse that old desk that is scratched and nicked by taking off the old finish and using a whitewash finish.
Other excellent places to look for this type of décor and furniture are at yard sales, garage sales, second-hand furniture stores and antique stores. Don’t forget to ask friends and relatives for any items they are getting ready to discard–they would probably love for you to pick them up and get them out of their way.
Look in your closets and cupboards for unique knick knacks that have an old or elegant look. Even if an item is new but looks old, it will work in nicely with this style of decor.
Historically, this style of home décor and furniture were painted white–these days it can be any color. However, once you choose a color, stick with it. Paint each piece of used furniture the same color and reupholster it in a fabric with a repeating color scheme. Muted green and soft pink are two accent colors that are popular in this decorating style.
Shabby chic decorating is also ideal for putting the spotlight on a particular piece of furniture. A beautiful, much-loved antique can be the center of attention in this decorating plan. The simplicity of this style of decorating lends itself to highlighting one or even a few unique pieces of furniture.
As you can see, this is an excellent decorating style if your decorating budget is limited. Creativity, imagination and time are what it takes to bring together the simply shabby chic look.
