One of the areas of the home in which the shabby chic style functions best is the windows. Shabby chic window treatments set a tone, establishing a color, theme, style and pattern that you can extend to the rest of the room with simple furniture choices. The advantage of this style that it is predominated by translucent fabrics, light colors, faded patterns and vintage pieces, which make for an eye-catching look without blocking natural light. Does this Spark an idea?
Café Curtains
A quick window treatment you can create with a packaged set or with repurposed material is a café-style curtain, typically of a lightweight, soft fabric, such as cotton or muslin. The curtain should be shorter than the window frame. Place the curtains over a simple curtain rod, such as a slim piece of wrought iron painted antique white, that is set about halfway down the window. Natural light can then come in through the top of the window, as well as the translucent fabric.
Go for a relaxed and crafty style by reusing old dish towels, pillow cases or an apron in soft pink, pale pistachio, faded cornflower blue, lavender or antique white. Faded patterns work as well, especially florals, stripes or paisley.
Long Sheers
The shabby chic approach favors an unstructured, untailored look. You can accomplish this aesthetic by casually hanging a large amount of loose sheer fabric over a curtain rod, allowing it to extend far past the base of the window frame and ending in billows on the floor. If you require more privacy than sheer fabric affords, use muslin or poplin instead. While velvet is rather formal for shabby chic, a lightweight version can work for this window treatment.
Architectural Features
The shabby chic design trend favors window frames with wooden architectural features such as sconces, bead board trim, window seats, garden boxes or floating shelves. Emphasize your window by framing it with wood and adhering a line of bead board trim, then painting it white or giving. You can also give it a distressed finish by painting it with a thin coat of whitewash, letting it dry, and using fine-grain sandpaper to gently rub at the corners and edges to allow the underlying wood or darker paint color to show through.
Wooden shutters and blinds are also charming when given the antique white treatment. Keep the lines simple and spare and make sure there is a way for the sun to spill through the window coverings.
Tags: antique white, bead board, bead board trim, board trim, shabby chic
