Shabby chic revisited

How to mix and match fine linens with natural finds, or adopted castaways from yesteryear.
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If you are exploring the shabby chic look or want a touch of French countryside in your dining and living rooms, you may be perusing the hashtags #rustictorefined, or #shabbychic, or #frenchcountry on such websites as Pinterest.com, Houzz.com, and Tumblr.com.  Even wedding oriented websites are showing artfully arranged scenes of barrels and unfinished driftwood integrated into lavender and lace tabletop displays. Not to mention those including flowers, candles, and customized place settings.

While this trend is not new, its permutations often are, and it is fun to see what new looks interior designers and wedding planners keep inventing in their search for juxtapostions of old and new, the mundane and the startling.  

Many designers lean toward a palette of all white, with color accents.  I am here to advocate that you go with whatever works for your eye. The fun is in the discovery.  Even a cake design can inspire the themes and motifs that are used for the rest of an event.

I am sharing a photograph of one of the cakes my cousin Stacy Chatfield of Verbena Cakes has made for a wedding event. It is easy to see how the flower motifs and choices of colors can help steer remaining choices for tabletop displays, mixing up colors, textures, and eras for a visual statement. Expect to hear more from me on this trend, and ways to improvise your own interpretations. In the interim, enjoy some links to my Pinterest posts showing how mixing and matching your linens with natural flora and found wood and other objects can create a memorable and welcoming display for your event.
www.pinterest.com/atablecheznous/french-style-country-weddings/