She's Changed Her Style

I am visiting my younger daughter and I haven't been here for several months.  Her wonderful husband is extremely handy and they have been busy remodeling their beautiful family home.  I intended to feature some of her toile fabrics for this blog.  But, surprise!! She's banished the Shabby Chic look for a beautifully serene costal style.  No toiles! I do see a few stripes, but no prints at all.  She is filling this house with the most wonderful soft colors of the sea.  

However, she does own this wonderful book, "Toiles de Jouy", and even has it on her coffee table in the living room.  It's full of great information and inspiration. 

It is authored by Judith Straeten, a fabric archivist at the iconic fabric house, Brunschwig & Fils.  She is the keeper of the antique fabric collections for the company.  She has collected this group of full page color plates of different toiles with a history of the story each depicts and the manufacters.  Gibbs Smith publishes this and many other beautiful decor books.

I'm going to be a really, really good guest, in hopes that my daughter just might give me this book. 

This Girl's Toile Tale

This girl has been following so many beautiful blogs that have enriched my world.  I want to thank you wonderfully creative people for many hours of fine viewing.  The creation of this blog is in answer to the feeling that I probably have something to give back to the blogosphere.  It is my hope that some of you will be visiting me often and that you find that some posts speak to you in a way that you will want to share these musings with your similarly minded friends.  My friend Barb, of Somerset Manor Designs in Indianapolis (whom you will hear a lot about, I'm sure) is the one who turned me on to blogging.  Our husbands call it "decorating porn"!!!  I am so indebted to her.

My own home has a multitude of toiles incorporated into the design.  I just can't say no.  My favorite toiles have dogs in them.  Offer me any fabric with a toile influence and a dog and I'm finding a way to use it!!

The photo from the profile for this blog is a wallpaper by Thibaut that I have in a powder room.  When we bought this house it had a black toilet and a black granite floor.  Yikes!  I had to figure out a way to make them work for us, since I really didn't want to replace them.  When I found this paper, I realized that I already had it bookmarked into a "use someday?" file.  So up it went and it totally changed the room. Don't you just love the raspberry vines and fruit in it?  I don't use much wallpaper, but I feel that a powder room is the perfect place for this decorative statement, since you don't have furniture, or much fabric in those rooms.

This blue toile is my all-time favorite fabric and it is by Brunswick and Fils.  I have it in our tv room for the skirted table, a cushion on a wooden chair, lots of pillows, and anyplace else I could use it!

This is the same fabric in a different color way.  It is from a different part of the scene.  I have used it in our basement family room to cover a chair and ottoman. 

I used this toile in our master bedroom for the duvet, to cover two chairs, and on two large European shams.  It is so subtle and the colors are wonderful.  The dark color can read as black or dark brown.

 

This toile covers a sofa that I'm not really using right now.  It's an oldie but goodie by Waverley.  I will probably soon recover it in a cream linen slipcover so that I could go back to this print if I want, since it is in such good shape. 

I'll soon be posting about toiles I love to use on my tabletops.

Follow me into the world of design one post at a time and leave me a comment about each one. I'd love to hear from you.

Happy blogging,

Linda

P.S.  Thanks for all the technical help, Amy!