French Shabby Chic style can be explained as French-inspired worn and distressed items which are not actually as old as they look, but rather designed to look much older than they are!
Very popular in large country homes, the peeling paintwork and chintzy-style decor add to that lived-in feel and can help to make a house into more of a home. Although haphazard and rustic in its appearance, if done right, the end result is one of opulence and elegance - and can even help the environment too through recycling old furniture and giving it a new lease of life with a few coats of paint and the help of some sandpaper!
The French twist to the standard shabby chic look takes inspiration from the French Chateaus with grand pieces of worn furniture, large distressed gilded framed mirrors and fabric accents in the form of French linens used for sumptuous cushions and oversized drapes. Although a seven-foot high antique French piece might look a bit out of place above your fireplace (!) a modern smaller version might be just what your home needs. The idea is to take inspiration and adapt it to suit your home environment. Before you know it you will be channelling the French shabby chic style to perfection!
Turning your kitchen from its current state into a Shabby Chic Kitchen is a lot easier than you think – and cost considerably less money. It was a revelation when the likes of DIY-SOS and 60 Minute Makeover showed us how to completely transform a kitchen just by changing a few cupboard doors, and now it’s even easier than that with the help of a pot of paint!
The first step is to remove your cupboard doors as it will make them easier to paint this way. Take off all handles too so you just have the bare door to work with. Next is probably the most time-consuming part where you will need to sand down the doors with a fine sandpaper as this will ensure that the primer sticks properly. After sanding, wipe down the doors to remove any surface dust and then apply your primer with a clean paintbrush or roller. Leave the primer to dry - preferably overnight if you have the time.
Next you will need to apply a base coat of oil-based paint – choose one which is recommended for kitchen cupboards; most DIY stores will have these clearly labelled in the paint aisles. You will need to choose two shades of paint – the base coat will be the colour which shows through so this is your main colour. Allow the base coat to dry well – again preferably overnight – and then paint on your second colour coat of paint (usually a shade of white or cream works best). Once this second coat has dried thoroughly, rough up the corners, edges and around the door knobs with fine sandpaper. Wipe off any excess dust and rub again if necessary. Your base colour should be gradually showing through your top coat. Sandpaper until you are happy with the result, pop back on the handles, and – viola! – you have yourself a shabby chic kitchen!
When you get a fusion of modern and vintage furniture with some patterns and colour thrown in for good measure, you get a shabby chic feel to a home which is always as unique as its occupants. A piece of shabby chic furnituredoesn’t have to be expensive, nor does it have to be from a particular period or era. The beauty of shabby chic is that it doesn’t look too ‘put together’ or polished – it can be casual cushion or throw over accenting your sofa or a battered dresser displaying all your favourite knick-knacks.
Shabby chic style should be a collaboration of old meets new, colourful meets pastels and patterns teamed with plains. Shabby chic furniture should be battered wood, distressed paint effects, detailed with floral prints perhaps and more than a little loved. It’s the piece that your found on a skip during somebody’s house clearance, the chest of drawers that your distant relative didn’t want anymore, your childhood wardrobe brought back to life. Shabby chic furniture is shabby – but in a good way. It is chic – but not too polished. It’s furniture made with love and we all deserve a piece of that in our homes.
