21st-Century Looks for Shabby Chic Fans
How to update a style that's been popular since the 1990s? With new colors, crisper lines and contemporary settings
It began when I sank into the world's most comfortable white slipcovered sofa in the Shabby Chic store in New York's SoHo in 1999. I got hooked on Shabby Chic. I watched the TV show, I slept on the supersoft sheets and I emulated everything Rachel Ashwell, who coined and trademarked the term and style, did.
But as time passed, I found myself transforming my furniture and style — I pared down the accessories, sanded down the peeling paint, spray painted my benches and wicker chairs semigloss black, replaced the pastels with bolder hues and decorated so that key pieces and my growing outsider art collection would stand out.
Shabby Chic grew out of a mashup between Ashwell's love of cozy flower-bedecked English cottages and her modern lifestyle on the California coast. Not hemmed in by strict guidelines, Ashwell started to incorporate what she dubbed Zen interiors into her aesthetic, as well as looks for "the Shabby Chic man" by the end of the TV show's run, talking up warm woods and natural objects like stones.
After all these years, "Shabby Chic" still continues to be one of the top search terms when it comes to home design. But how can you adapt this look for the 21st century? If, like me, you still have a soft spot in your heart for the shabby but are striving toward more chic, the ideas in these rooms may strike your fancy.
But as time passed, I found myself transforming my furniture and style — I pared down the accessories, sanded down the peeling paint, spray painted my benches and wicker chairs semigloss black, replaced the pastels with bolder hues and decorated so that key pieces and my growing outsider art collection would stand out.
Shabby Chic grew out of a mashup between Ashwell's love of cozy flower-bedecked English cottages and her modern lifestyle on the California coast. Not hemmed in by strict guidelines, Ashwell started to incorporate what she dubbed Zen interiors into her aesthetic, as well as looks for "the Shabby Chic man" by the end of the TV show's run, talking up warm woods and natural objects like stones.
After all these years, "Shabby Chic" still continues to be one of the top search terms when it comes to home design. But how can you adapt this look for the 21st century? If, like me, you still have a soft spot in your heart for the shabby but are striving toward more chic, the ideas in these rooms may strike your fancy.
Think French farmhouse. This room is the closest of the ones here to the original Shabby Chic style. Its aesthetic is spare, which lets its weathered pieces, crystal chandelier and weathered-door headboard stand out.
Look into modern rustic. The slipcovers remain but are ruffle free. A crisp rug with thick stripes grounds the space. Farmhouse touches like wide-planked pine flooring and a paneled ceiling with rough-hewn beams grab our attention. The textures of the antique pieces stand out due to all of the white and the careful editing.
See more modern rustic looks
See more modern rustic looks
Take contemporary turns. Again, shades of the Shabby Chic look come in via slipcovered chairs and the whitewashed ceiling and walls, but the look is updated with a contemporary dining table and industrial chandelier. Hydrangea blossoms bring in the romantic touch that drew us to Shabby Chic in the first place.
Add industrial touches. The room combines crisp new finishes with well-worn antiques. Think about updating sweet floral bedding with something more geometric.
Channel Parisian apartment style. Antiqued patinas and traditional furnishings are still celebrated here, but a controlled color palette of ivory and gray with brown and gold accents brings sophistication and polish to the room.
Check out Belgian style. Shabby Chic sofas and armchairs are typically overstuffed, with rolled arms; the lines of the pieces here are more slender and straighter. Linen and burlap fabrics replace cotton denim.
See more Belgian style
See more Belgian style
Layer in warm neutrals. This sunporch has a lot in common with the original Shabby Chic look, but creamy ivories and tans tone down the white. A wood ceiling and stylish footstools add to the fresh take.
Read up on "patina" style. A term coined by interior decorator Brooke Giannetti and her husband, architect Steve Giannetti, patina style celebrates seeing the history of a piece of furniture in its aged finish, weathering and nicks and scratches. In this bathroom stainless steel sinks and symmetry keep the style fresh and current.
Learn more about patina style
Learn more about patina style
Keep a strict color palette of white plus one main hue. Choose one bold accent color to highlight throughout a mostly white space. Turquoise stands out in this Texas farmhouse's guest house.
Go coastal modern. Warm neutrals replace Shabby Chic's soft pinks and greens; while the sofas have deep, cushy upholstery, the thick stripes give them straight lines. For more notes on the look, check out more from coastal modern connoisseur Tim Clarke.
Add powerful lines with crisp black and white. Ditch the floral needlepoint rug for a black and white striped one. This beach house in the Hamptons, New York, enjoys the comfort and light of a Shabby Chic room, while black accents create sharp contrast. Clean lines balance the overstuffed upholstered sofa and chairs.
Highlight found objects from nature. Ashwell used objects like seashells and bird's nests as accessories; create your own mini museum of natural history. The muted color palette here creates a pleasing backdrop for antlers, hives and nests.
Mix in earthy tones. Browns, greens and tans give these Shabby Chic–style sofas and chairs a more contemporary look.
Tell us: Were you a fellow Shabby Chic show addict? Remember when Ashwell decorated J.Lo's restaurant during the height of "Bennifer?" Please leave a comment below and let us know how you incorporate the look in your own fresh way.
Tell us: Were you a fellow Shabby Chic show addict? Remember when Ashwell decorated J.Lo's restaurant during the height of "Bennifer?" Please leave a comment below and let us know how you incorporate the look in your own fresh way.