About a year ago, Erin from Elements of Style suggested I use Schumacher's Chiang Mai Dragon fabric as a way to pull together many of the colors represented throughout the first floor of my "new" circa 1886 home. I had the novel reaction of simultaneously hating and loving the pattern, but I knew that ultimately the strong impression was a good thing.
My four year old twins, on the other hand, were seriously hesitant to share the couch with this guy:
Nothing like having the pants scared off you just as you're sitting down to catch up on Curious George.
Eventually, they came around, and I've come to absolutely adore this pattern. Some in the design world would argue Chiang Mai is becoming over-used, but I'm not the least bit sick of it.
My latest DIY project involved lining the back of my great-grandfather's secretary with this beautiful pattern. Here's the before:
And some close-ups of the after:
The top shelf features the work of annechovie artist Anne Harwell, whose work I blogged about yesterday as featured on the set of It's Complicated. The foo dog candles are one of my favorite new finds, made by Bliss Living Home and purchased at Somnia in Portsmouth, NH.
I picked up this turquoise vase while on vacation last week. I stumbled upon a random antiques barn in Plymouth, NH while driving around for miles in order to lull my children to sleep for an afternoon nap that was apparently never meant to be.
The orange ball and quatrefoil picture frame (featuring my youngest stuffing her face at her 1st birthday party) were purchased at Homegoods. The ball is being held in place by a turquoise bracelet my mother gave her mother roughly 40 years ago. (The bracelet spent a lonely three hours in the gutter one night in Greenwich, CT. We were miraculously reunited, but I realized it's just way too big for me, and I can't risk losing it again.)
Oh how we miss you Domino magazine! At least we have the memories captured in this book. I purchased the string of orange butterflies placed in the glass bowl at Whyevernot, an adorable shop in Mystic, CT for $12. You can find similar ones at Pearl River.
The final look:
Check out some of my other favorite uses of Chiang Mai Dragon:
chairs available for purchase from Hudson, located in Boston and Wellesley, MA
Jenny from Little Green Notebook's DIY Chiang Mai headboards
by Erin from Elements of Style
Chiang Mai Stationary by Dempsey and Carroll
What are your favorite patterns of late?
Cheers,
Deb
Welcome to the blog world!!
ReplyDeleteI love how you used the Chiang Mai pattern here- it makes this piece look new again!
Wow, I love that fabric behind your shelves. What a lovely fit. Would love to hear more about how you attached the fabric. . . I'm proposing using fabric on the back of a piece for a client's dining room and would like to have some guidance for her on how to do it.
ReplyDeleteBTW, a big thanks for including my family room in your navy post. I'm flattered :)
Emily