I love French design and I see so many variations of this style. Some are more ornate, some more subdued, some with lots of color and some with muted tones. French style has varied over the years but this is the way I create my French style.
If you desire to create a similar look, let me show you how I created my French dinning room.
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First let’s talk about the room color. If you notice the room color is a subdued color. If you have a bold color on you walls, the look will be different; it can still be French but with a more bold color palette. Here I’ll be showing you a muted color pallet. The particular wall color here isn’t important, you can select any color pallet in whites, grays, creams, blues or greens as long it is a muted color and not a bold one.
Second, the furniture here is either painted white or it has a muted wood color with the exception of my dinning table. My dinning table is pine and it does have an orange tint to it but, by covering it with a tablecloth, the orange color dissipates keeping those muted colors throughout. Just covering a table with a tablecloth, the whole look changes, so invest in a tablecloth if a new table isn’t on the budget or if you’re not ready for a table d.i.y. as it is my case here. And to tell you a little secret, this tablecloth is actually a linen curtain panel. I love the linen look of this curtain and so why not use it as a tablecloth.
After you have all the canvas in the room muted, i.e., walls, furniture, tablecloth, then you can add a subtle color or none at all. Here’s is where you decide if a color will be used or none at all. Both choices work.
French design has curves. Notice the curves of the furniture, the curved legs, curved chair backs, tufted backs or cane back chairs. Remember this if you are on the market and looking for furniture pieces. But note that everything does not need to have curves, you will need a balance. If you have a table with curves then chairs can be more square, if you will, and vice versa. If you have too many pieces of furniture that are squared, then add a curved piece.
French style can also have slipcovers pieces, including dinning chairs and/or sofas. I have a few slipcovered chairs as well that I change around when I want a new look. I invested in some slipcovers just to change the look of my chairs.
Fabrics are important too. Select fabrics that reflect the French style like this toile on the back of the settee or the grain sack fabric on the seat. Linen fabrics are also used in French design like a linen tablecloth, linen napkins or linen table runner. If linen is out of your budget, cotton will do the job beautifully.
My recently reupholstered French settee here is being used as part of my dinning room sitting and because it has blue fabric on it, I decided to create a Fall French tablescape using this blue color.
Here’s the post for that reupholstered settee d.i.y., if you are interested.
This tablescape was created keeping in mind the muted colors I was talking about before. A blue linen table runner placed over your tablecloth (or curtain panel) works as an anchor to this tablescape. The blue color pops because the decor on top of it has no bold color and therefore it gives a serene look to the table.
This tablescape was created by using painted bookends and old books, with their covers removed, placed at either side. I added faux pumpkins here and there to bring the Fall French themed tablescape together and added pine cones as well to bring the color from the rusted bucket handle of the centerpiece onto the rest of the table. The bucket was found at a flea market but here's a great alternative for you.
Lavender sprigs are used as my centerpiece flowers. Nothing says French design like Lavender blooms.
The table settings were done using old vintage flea market plates, and notice that they do not all match. This is a look I truly love, vintage finds that bring nostalgia to the table.
The settings were all placed over gold chargers and gold flatware was used for symmetry, again notice the flatware does not matching either. My plates have some gold edging on them and that’s why I went with the gold motif here. If you find plates that have silver color on them, then use silverware instead of gold flatware on your table and use silver chargers instead. The colored wine glasses here do match and they brings simmetry again to the tablescape but clear wine glasses would work as well.
The cream candles on the buffet were grouped together in front of my trumeau mirror to create more drama and sophistication to the room. I used my brass candlesticks at different heights to create the look.
At dinner time, I lower the lights and the candles give a beautiful glow over dinner. I also added some tea lights on the table for that ambiance.
Add a French mirror or trumeau mirror to your space, it will truly change the look of your room with one. If budget is an issue, find yourself a dresser mirror, they usually have beautiful curves and, if painted, would look beautiful in a French room.
French design usually has a little glam in a space, so to add a little glam to my old chandelier, I added some crystals and magnets that stuck to the metal chandelier. When I want a simpler look, I simply remove them. Very easy and inexpensive trick to change the look of your chandelier without having to replace it.
French design also has lots of texture and so I like to add baskets anywhere I can, to add to this look. I love to have a basket in coffee tables, on top of armoires or just simply on the sides of a room. They are great for storage and they look so beautiful adding charm to the space.
Creating a Fall French style look isn’t as hard as you might think. Follow some of the steps I gave you to create a French room and/or a French tablescape.
Below are some sources for you to help you create this look. And I can’t wait to see what you create.
Thank you for stopping by,
Alicia