Turn Your Living Room Shabby Chic

Shabby Chic Living Rooms are very comfortable and pleasing to the eye. In order to create a shabby chic living room you need to use pastel blues, greens, and pinks. You can highlight with darker blues, greens and pinks just a touch. To start move everything out of your living room. Paint your walls a very light pastel blue and any trim such as the baseboards white. Find paint at a discount store or hardware store.

Sofa: Buy a white or white and blue stripped sofa cover for your sofa at a discount store or online for the best deal. Cover your sofa per directions on the fitted sofa cover.

Buy a white chenille blanket and fold blanket over the back of the sofa to show the texture. White chenille blankets can be found at department stores in your area in the bedding department such as Sears, Boston Store and JCPennys.

Next purchase four throw pillows for your sofa. Find a nice pink and blue flowery pillow and buy two. (Roses are the main flower for the shabby chic decor.) Next buy one blue and white circle shaped checkered pillow. And the last pillow to purchase buy a white and blue stripped circle shaped pillow. Set the two square flowery pillows in the corners with the corner of the pillow up in the air. Place one of the circle pillows leaning on the square pillow on each end. Find pillows at Kohls, K-Mart or Target. Target has a special area just for the Shabby Chic look to purchase items.

Coffee Table: Buy or look for a wooden table at a rummage sale that would fit in your living room as a coffee table. No matter what color it is, purchase it. You can paint over the existing paint white. Once paint has dried, take a piece of sandpaper from Wal-Mart or the hardware store and gently sand areas of the table. Your table will look distressed. Just the look you are going for.

End tables: Find two small wooden end tables or if you have them in your home make use of them. Paint with white paint. Layers upon layers of paint is the look you are going for to achieve shabby chic. Use sandpaper gently in areas to give a distressed look. Spindle legs will add a nice charm to your table if available.

To decorate end tables: Use white base lamps. Place lampshades on with a white lampshade. If you are able to find a lampshade with beads and/or lace hanging from the ends or pretty ribbon around the edges that is even better. Or use a glue gun to glue ribbon, lace and/or beads on the edge of the lamps.

You can find a glue gun, glue sticks, ribbon, lace and beads in the craft area at Wal-Mart.

Place a pink or light green glass dish on the table. Fill with potpourri.

Second end table place a lamp as above. You can use two different looking lamp bases or shades. Same colors just different patterns and styles. That makes shopping easier and your living room very shabby chic. Place a doily on the table that is from Wal-Mart or a hand me down from an aunt that made the doily. Make sure the doily is antiqued. If not white with stains, take two tea bags, sink or bucket, water, and let soak overnight. Take doily out and let air dry. Iron if needed. Place three different sizes of white ceramic with roses frames. Found at ShopKo or Kohls.

A small light pink candle in a brass holder would be chic next to the three frames.

Chair: A white wicker rocking chair would look lovely in your shabby chic living room. Place a light green and pink pillow for the base of the rocking chair pillow to sit on. Chair pad found at Target. Tip: Type in "chair pad" to get the most selection at Target. Do not use the words "rocking chair" or you will only get three results. Set a polka dotted pink and white pillow on the back of the rocking chair.

Wooden floors: In your living room will give the cottage feel that shabby chic is all about. Place a white chenille rug under the coffee table. Found at Boston Store, JCPennys, and Target.

Carpeting: If you prefer carpeting white or off-white is the best so you can easily change colors of your living room if you so choose in the future.

Pictures On The Wall: Use white wood frames. Buy at any discount store or department store. Take sandpaper and gently rub wooden frame to make the frame look distressed. Choose old-fashioned looking pictures such as old time advertisements, or black and white large old fashioned photos, white cats, Victorian dolls, or any print having to do with roses.

Curtains: If you know how to sew, make your own curtains using light and airy fabric that is white with small printed roses. Find material at Joann Fabrics for a wonderful selection. Or buy curtains, your choice of style, with a white background and small printed roses. Anything with roses on is shabby chic.

Surprising Places To Find Shabby Chic Items: Your own home!

Example) Candle Stick Holders: We had two wooden tables with the lamps attached. My husband cut the tables up for fire wood. He took the lamp bases off and threw them in the fire pit. A few days later I saw them and thought they would make fantastic candlestick holders! I bought a glass holder for $2.97 and candle for $4.99 at Super Wal-Mart. My husband could hardly believe the things I come up with for things he thinks is junk. I still have to paint it white and gently sandpaper the candlestick.