British Stately Shabby

The big brother of Shabby Chic is British Stately Shabby, whether it's country house, Baroque, Rococo, Victorian or Edwardian. Nobody does expensive quite so casually as the English, offhand about centuries old antiques and carefully cultivating the appearance of not trying too hard to appear 'Nouveau' by matching anything or making it look brand new. 
There's nothing better than whiling away time poking through old stately homes or nosing around manor houses for inspiration, eccentricity, over the top bonkers and gorgeous decay. Our National Trust is a rich heritage of decor jewels and goes from castles to cottages. Going to mix it up a little with a sprinkling of grand and humble and a few stylish homes that combine both. 

Velvet box of 'ladies trinkets'. Trinket is rather a lost word these days - shame!

This Decoupage isn't fake Victorian, it's the real thing. From 1859.

Recreation of an 1865 dinner table setting and floral arrangement designed by the actress Dame Ellen Terry. Lavish!

Fans, parasols and pearls, none of which would look out of place in today's Shabby Chic boudoir.

Pietra Dura marble inlay detail on a window seat.

Bed in a shrine. Note the china bedwarmer.

Ship chandelier, created in the 1930's.

Delft tile bathroom with incredible hardware. Lion head faucet. Doesn't look dated in the least.

1700's brocade shoes and fan. Footwear then, art now.

Door plate set with semi precious stones. It may be 1832 but Anthropology would sell copies in a heartbeat.

More genuine Victorian Decoupage, set into a screen. Recreating the look is not new, but it's great to have such a definitive reference to go by.

A generously filled plant stand from 1810. I love how it is indoors, not relegated to the garden.

Sure, we've all faux painted 'antiqued roses' onto furniture. This is the real deal; tambourines from 1795.

Headboard of James II, 1688.

Would not look out of place in this house, Lordship Park, which has retained all of its grandeur and presented it freshly.

  
Lordship Park chair...Stately and Shabby! 

Lastly, I love this Stately home entrance in The Manor, Oxfordshire, which has everything - beautiful hanging lamp, family hats, incredible plaster work, Doric columns, lions guarding the steps, ormolu for days and A BEAR. 

Beyond The Pale

Doris Day, Petit Fours, '57 Chevy's, sugared almonds, faded vintage cotton, marabou mules - the things I think of when walking into a pastel colored room. Good associations to have! 
When pastels are combined expertly they create spaces you'd be happy to be surrounded by, they're definitely not depressed. Mood lifters. Summer days. Tranquility. 
Who couldn't be happy with this little pink car parked under their kitchen table? 

I love this vintage wallpaper, combined with true shabby ethos...incidental, not showcased and contrived. Someone really lives here. 

On the other hand, carefully thought out is no less gorgeous. The furniture clearly took years to source and blend perfectly. 

here 

Pastel courtesy of sunlight and decades of being loved, mixed seamlessly with precisely the right color new silk drapery. I hear Shoreditch antique market in London was a fruitful source of these beautiful pieces! 

 here

Elegance in pastel seen here. Barest lilac gently walks you through to pinks and greys used in the dining room and lounge, all drawn from the original starting point of the Edwardian leaded glass front door. 

Summerhouse cottage pastels that make you want to get the tea on and remember where you hid the vintage biscuit tin. Credit

British Stately Shabby at its prettiest. What a color to pick to bathe a room in! Lovely. 

Sophisticated vintage. Refusing to opt for obvious color choices, this room has all of the calm without the candy. 

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Good old fashioned English country house Shabby. Traditionalist but still fresh as a daisy. Decisively bold to paint out the fireplace to blend with the room, the ornate plasterwork no less a standout for it. Pass me the cupcakes!

Find it here

Shabulous Color

Sometimes Shabby can be seen all too frequently as dainty pastels, as if the current Bohemian trend was actually Shabby with vivid color, compared with what most see as the traditional ethos and embodiment of the movement. Not so; it can be done with daring shots of wondrous technicolor and still be the Shabby we love, in a contemporary or classical way. 

We have a bumper blog this time of master classes in expert vintagely vibrant so let's get to it!  

All photo credits here 

So many different tones pulled together beautifully in this Edwardian graced lounge:

Hot pink showcased with mirrored built ins. I'd never have thought to follow that with bronze drapes but it's a sublime element. 

Blue, blue, dusty blue in this elegant Kent country estate, made feminine by abundant pinks from the gardens.

Rich jewel colors give this London loft a majestic feel while the brick and modern radiators maintain a sense of urban.

Tuscan warmth on the south coast of England

A dash of fuchsia sexes up this delicate pink London bedroom

Bright little chair with a gold hand painted tree and citrine pillows make this entryway unexpected
 

Mint casual Shabby. I really love how the incidental stashing of purple flotsam jazzes it all up, as well as the tiny remnant of wall decor past is left to speak for itself. True shabby...effortless, organic.

A bold antique tin arrangement spicing up this blue British kitchen.

Kitschy polka dot with vintage baking accessories is cheerful and sweet

A display worth lingering over, adding lively accent to a farmhouse pantry.
 
White walls banished!

Londoners inspired to use offcuts of wallpaper to brilliant advantage.

Here they've followed it through to the hallway and paired it with paper lanterns...confidence in color.

Applying the concept to a chair. Probably not advisable to do both together! Sensibly the walls have been clad in a complementary deep red.

How summery! Makes me think of the best whitewashed Greek houses against an azure sky and also of forget-me-nots, which I adore. Flawless collection of bright blues.

Unafraid of collecting sympathetic tones and jumbling them into the mix.

Lastly, clean and crisp homeliness gets a garden fete delight of color. So effective!

Hooray! Perfect!

 All photo credits here

Magnificent Moodiness

With today's mania for 'letting the light flood in' being a major cause for demolishing walls and 'opening up' windows by tripling them (often with the dreaded folding panel patio door) it's a brave soul who even opts for a dark color on a 'feature wall'. And while I'm on about it, can I just say the next person I hear allowing the words 'feature wall', 'a pop of color' and 'wow factor' to drop recklessly from their lips will get a walloping. A feature wall is the decor equivalent of a fascinator - i.e, belonging to someone without the balls to wear a proper hat with panache.
So I'd like to salute everyone who has the confidence, character and expertise to decorate darkly with abandon, creating works of art with atmosphere that suggest using a room with far greater intent than 'bringing the outdoors in'. Because, if you want the outdoors in, live in the garden.
Here they are, in no particular order of brilliance: 

Photo credits here

An original take on paneled walls, coupled with beautiful lamps. Skillful mixing of contemporary edginess in rug, accessories and seating.

From another angle, taking light pieces and making them the negative of the walls. Genius. 

Courageous decision to resist a white emulsion wall, carried off beautifully. 

Spectacular couch, and the elegant gloom of the room remains lightly done by delicate furniture choices. 

Playful and historical hats (not a fascinator in sight) somehow look modern and showcased by choice of backing color. 

Jesus in a top hat. Can't get more chic than that. 

 Masculine brooding offset by rustic logs and multiple wall textures.

Loving how a little box echoes the antiquely shabby found-treasure of stained glass. Then they added some Sixties into the mix. I'm in awe. 

Bugger Feature Walls, do the whole room. Well done there! 

Justified confidence in a chair, a lamp and a door. Because they're so damn cool. French blue wall because they can. 

Feminine uberstyle, burgundy nets. Gorg. 

Divine decadence. Rich purple walls, black floorboards. No shrinking violets allowed.  

Here the black floors are paired with black damask and gold leaf tiles. Preposterously boudoir. 

A single chandelier creates all the refractive light play this hallway needs to make it stunning. 

The sort of people worth spending an afternoon with decorated this room. 

Photo credits here