Tag Archives: France

How to Decorate In the Paris Style

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Decorating in the Parisian style simply entails making as many references as you can to Paris, France as you can in a room. A dimple way to accomplish this is to use France’s most iconic and well-known landmark, the Eiffel Tower , as a decorating themed. You can find this symbol on fabric, on throw pillows and also in statuary, posters and paintings. Displaying a collection of mini replicas or Eiffel Towers in snow shakers alludes immediately to “The City of Lights” in your décor.

It helps to paint your place in Parisian colors such as grey, white, black, chocolate and soft orange. Touches of red, aqua and gold also complete the look. This gives the home that cheerful French feel.

You should also search online and in flea markets for vintage furniture from Fence. Typical items that speak of the city are wrought iron and brass headboards, tall armoires with mirrored doors and pictures with elaborate gilded frames. Dress forms are also a French touch as they allude to Parisian Fashion legend Coco Chanel. You can hang scarves and necklaces from the dress form and pin brooches to it to make a lovely but unconventional free-standing jewel box.

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Brass and bronze lamps with heavy ornate bases are also very Parisian in look. For that touch of the “French Brothel” choose a lamp with a shade that has a fringe on it. Throwing fringed shawls over regular lamp shades have a similar effect. Just be careful that you do not light any fabric on fire as you drape it over the bulb.

Yet another hallmark of this look is vases of roses everywhere. Tuck dried roses in your picture frames, your mirrors and on top of door frames for a unique Parisian shabby chic look.

In the bathroom you should place white bowls of roses and make sure that the floors are bare and white and that the towel rack is stuffed with fluffy white towels. Soap should be gold or pink in color and be in a charming dish. Shell shaped soap dishes are quite common in France.

A charming antique bookshelf should display the French classics of literature whether they are in English or French.

Displaying French postcards, menus and signage also gives your apartment or home that Parisian flair. Of course nothing says Paris as much as a wine rack filled top to bottom with the best wines from Southern France that you can afford to buy.

How to Decorate a French Country Kitchen

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One of the most fashionable ways to decorate a kitchen is in the French Country style. This is a very rustic look that is reminiscent of the charm found in homes in the South of France.

To accomplish this look you will have to decorate with toile. Toile is a fabric that has pictures of the countryside of France on it. It might depict landscapes, bottles of wine, cheese and the produce of France on it as well. These motifs are a great choice for the curtains, tablecloth, chair seats and dining ware in your kitchen.

Ladder back chairs are also characteristic of this look. Make sure the table is large and rustic and that the chairs have seats made out of rush (twined water reeds.)

The colors of the French Countryside are rusts, greens, blues and golds. Keep the walls, ceiling and floors in earthy brown, creams and red colors. If you have beams running across your ceiling you are lucky because it means you would have accomplished the look. If you don’t have beams in your ceiling you can also install them.

A stone floor also compliments this look. You can get faux tile in stone like colors that can help achieve this affect. Another charachteristic of this kitchen style is roughly plastered walls. Cast iron wall sconces also look nice on a plastered wall.

Yet another characteristic of rustic French kitchens is rusted metal. Rusted metal could be found in kitchen cabinet hardware, lighting fixtures and baker racks.

French motifs in the form of scultprues, clocks and other items can be roosters, olives, sunflowers and lavender. Decorate with handmade pottery to bring the element of the French countryside to your kitchen.

It is also characteristic to hang baskets in a kitchen. These woven baskets should be large and natural looking. You can put fruit and vegetables in these baskets and use them to store cooking implements.

Copper pots and iron pots also look gorgeous in this type of kitchen. Be sure to hang them from the ceiling and on the walls to augment the look.

When planning your space, remember that the French Country is a very warm, relaxed, and informal decorating style. Stay away from anything too fussy or formal.