The Basics
You can choose whether you make things yourself or look for items on the high street which look as though you have been slaving away for hours either at your stove or at your sewing machine. There are plenty of things around that you can use.
The best place to start though is with a blank canvas. Paint your walls in an off white colour and for your floors the best options are plain or painted wooden floorboards and add simple woven rugs for warmth and texture. If you are putting this scheme into your kitchen a tiled floor is best, if you are lucky enough to have original quarry tiles or flagstones these are great!
Fabrics and Furniture
Furniture should be sturdy and useful and made in oak, pine (natural not bright orange!) or painted in white or cream. A wooden dresser is an essential piece of furniture as somewhere to display your crockery. Some iron furniture may be introduced, for instance in a metal bedstead. Sofas and armchairs should be squashy and comfortable.
When you have your basics in place you can have fun with choosing your country style fabrics. Natural fabrics are best - such as cotton, linen and wool. Fabrics can have designs of florals, checks, spots and even birds, all in soft colours such as pastel blues, pinks and greens. Fabrics don't have to match, in fact it's better if they don't but they do need to complement each other and be of a similar scale. Use as a curtain fabric, upholstery fabric or for blinds and cushions.
Bedroom and Kitchen
In the bedroom use a pretty floral fabric at the windows, dress the bed with a patchwork quilt and add a woollen throw. You could also wallpaper a feature wall with a pretty floral print.
In the kitchen use a ticking fabric or gingham fabric for curtains, cushions and blinds or for a pretty tablecloth. Fill your dresser with crockery that you may have picked up at a car boot sale or antiques market - blue and white china is timeless and perfect for this look. Add woven baskets and fresh flowers to complete the look.
This pretty vintage look harps back to a bygone era and is a very comfortable and relaxing look to bring into your home whatever the age of your property or whether it is urban or rural, this look can work for you.
