polka spots

it all started with this sofa from Furbish last year....

then the chairs....

then it was this fabric

on these chairs...

but now walls? 

polka spots are everywhere......

and I like 'em :)

(you can buy Thibault Tanzania wallpaper here!)
Office no. 1 Office No 2

yea or nay: chintz

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 

desert tribal

These days I want pattern. Heaps of pattern. But not dignified, perfect made-by-a-machine pattern. I want dots, but not perfectly formed round polka dots. Yesterdays geometry in a more organic format. Chevron re-thought.  I want mud cloth from Africa and rugs based on southwestern Native American designs. It's about to get tribal, lovelies.

I started a link folder a few months ago titled tribal, and when I opened it today it contained almost a hundred links :) So lets break this into a couple of posts, shall we?


on the menu for today: desert tribal

 

If I'm being honest, it's not just the pattern here that appeals to me - it's the handmade aspect, a merging of natural elements and aesthetics's, a respect for the materials involved, a sense of spirituality. Something more than just a pretty room.

 

I know. Almost too much to take in, isn't it? Are you feeling as connected to this as I am? On friday I will post the rest of it, pop by and share in the beauty. am x





(I know some of the patterns involved in these items are sacred to Native Americans, and I apologize if you are offended by their use here. Please know we are simply appreciating a small part of the beauty of your culture.)

feather arrowheads   room  Pastel Arrows  painted driftwood  Matthew Williamson Rug navajo rug fabric fabric 2 cavern wallpaper nook navajo dhurrie vintage textiles Marcia Smith art Anna Montiel art basket wall fringe pouch  window display freepeople outfit bag stamp set clutch lokahi print toms arrow pebbles arrows art print arrow fabric art flower fringe wall fringe banners

Block Print Love

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Block prints make me my heart skip a beat.

Particularly the ones from  Les Indiennes...

ah, paisley, my love...

the texture of natural linen, the quiet beauty.

Enchanting.

Leopard Love

It started in high school.

I found a silk leopard printed scarf and it became my signature bit.

tied in my hair, on my bag, as a sash..

that scarf could have told some stories :)

Oh yes, the knee-length faux leopard coat was so hot in 1999..

moving from the city to the burbs, I still wore it out to the grocery store,

much to our neighbours amusement.

Onward to my first apartment, which looked nothing like these spaces below, LOL.

 My first purchase was a leopard carpet - I was sleeping on a futon, but had my carpet!!

 There is always a few leopard pillows floating about our place..

it never fails to impress me how versatile this print is - 

moving from room-to-room with ease..

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Currently, I am trying to convince D. that the old Chippendale sofa 

sitting in our bedroom could really use a little leopard love..

It may just skip off to the upholsterers one day, ready to be re-invented...

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I like animal prints when used with RESTRAINT- 

they add that bit of kitsch and take the edge off.

Do you use any?

Which is your favourite?

on a side note, I was trying to find an example of a chippendale sofa done up in leopard to sell D.,

and have learned that searching chippendale leopard in google will bring up many results,

 most of whom are male and scantily clad :) 

didn't impress him, for some reason!

til next time..