for anyone who remembers the eighties, chintz may be a dirty word. I remember wearing a Laura Ashley dress and pearls as my sister's maid of honour, and my mother fretting because my hair was black, and half shaved, and I refused to remove my nose ring :) It was a moment. I despised the sweetness of those oversized florals back then, and never thought there would be a day where I would be embracing them. But lately, in clean hues, when used with restraint, a floral chintz is looking rather fresh. It started a few month's back, with Anna Spiro's
pink curtains, (shown below), then I saw a fabulous post last week over at
I Suwannee featuring Carleton Varney, and began wandering around the house, looking for a spot to tuck some in!
If you'd like to bask in this vibe, a room wrapped in large florals is a brave leap into pattern and colour. Love the idea of using this as an alternative to tile for a backsplash in the kitchen - so pretty!
Not quite ready for wallpaper? Curtains require less of a commitment....
and pillows are simpler again.
(these aren't all chintz, exactly, but you get the idea :)
A patterned chair is a perfect exclamation point to a space.
and if a chair isn't quite enough, then perhaps something larger?
Small bits of chintz can be layered in with smaller pieces.....fabric on a frame? Do that all the time!
Although this is a little over-the-top, I do like the idea of an upholstered/wallpapered lack table...hmmm...
I think the key is to to avoid pairing chintz with country/shabby anything, because it is already such a "sweet" look. It's the juxtaposition of chintz against clean lined-furnishings and hard surfaces such as mirror, metal and glass that make it modern.
What do you think of chintz? Could you see any of this in your own space?
photo links: tile settee blue rug ZsaZsa Bellagio YSL living HamptonsShowhouseGreen wallpaper porcelain dish retro layers yellow sofa House Beautiful Albert Hadley gallery wall canvas curtains&lantern white sofa pillows Blue curtains white&gold settee blue pillows retro chair floral chair brown floral chair black floral chair Cush and Nooks dining fabric tablecloth
