Romantic Red Faded Florals: Get The Look

Let's take a languorously long look at fabrics with vintage florals, this time in romantic red. Even the nostalgic qualities of the phrase 'faded red roses' seems to hang in the air long after the words have been uttered. Little wonder, then, is it that there have been enormous numbers of attempts to squish the essence of that phrase into fabric form.

The range of reds in faded floral fabrics is quite staggering. We'll see reds ranging from the softest umbers, through scarlet, raspberry. crimson, cherry and more...

Clockwise from top: Kate Forman Roses fabric is an absolute classic with its softly neutral background and gentle rose print; faded florals and stripes are a match made in Modern Country heaven...; Clarke and Clarke Marie is 100% linen and very reasonably priced; a stunning window seat with long puddled curtains - try Cabbages and Roses Catherine Rose for similar.

Coarse weaves and dainty rose prints are Modern Country must-haves.

Oooh, yes! 

Clockwise from top: Begin with a paint palette that draws out the richness of your chosen fabrics....try Susie Watson paint in Ramsbury Red, Fired Earth Alabaster, Susie Watson Evening Seas, Farrow and Ball Blue Gray; the wonderful things about reds is that there are so many to choose from, as with this delicious pile of vintage red fabrics stacked upon an old peeling glaucous grey chair; Cabbages and Roses Paris Rose in Raspberry, on a natural linen background; ebay can be a magical hunting ground for genuinely faded florals such as this lovely cotton remnant; the contrast is beautiful between the rich red throw with its soft satin border, and the pillow in Bennison Roses fabric, in their Lipstick colour-way on an Oyster background.

Perfect for the school run?

What a stunning Modern Country bedroom with its stark white walls and bed linen, combined with an over-sized headboard upholstered using Bennison Roses fabric in Lipstick.

Clockwise from top: Symmetry in the chairs and cushions brings a Modern edge to this Country scene; these two seats, both shabby and worn have a quiet charm when combined with faded red florals; Roger Oates does some fantastic runners that bring a timeless elegance to stairs; I adore Emily Bond fabrics - shown here are Wire-Haired Jack Russell on a grey linen union, a bold Red Dashchund on olive linen union and Horses Head in a warm pinkish red.

Even when they're old and worn, classic red prints, particularly in faded florals, keep on giving. This sofa clearly has seen better days but, don't you agree, that its squishy loveliness still looks inviting?

Don't be afraid of combining faded florals with real life garden scenes....more on that to come!

Gingham checks and toile combine to give a relaxed French Country feel; stick with similar reds for mixing patterns...and the world's your oyster!; painted white furniture and echoes of grain sack stripes make the best of this bold red quilted throw; Laura Ashley Roses cotton in Berry, and Tinsmiths Gingham check in Red will make you smile every day!

Peony and Sage are a relative new-comer but I love the romance old-fashioned of their fabrics.

Make the most of every corner in your home by creating small seating areas piled high with pillows in faded floral fabrics.

Clockwise from top: a perfect example of faded florals making an impact on three different levels -  the enormous drapes at the floor-to-ceiling window, the cosy armchair, with its darling little cushion - there's something in the budget for everyone; with pillows, you can dare to be a little bolder; Red gingham check lampshades from Jim Lawrence; a whole stack of grain sack pillows means there's spare seating for a sudden house full - and can rest in style when not in use; Cabbages and Roses Hatley....say no more!

Vanessa Arbutnott brings a slightly more Modern edge to the Faded Red Florals table, showing that, whether your preference is Modern or Country, or, a perfect blend of the two, there's a faded floral fabric for YOU - and not just one, but two, or three...or....!!

Images via: Cabbages and Roses, Modern Country Style Moodboard 1 (Kate Forman, Pinterest, Clarke and Clarke, Cabbages and Roses), Modern Country Style, Clarke and Clarke, Modern Country Style Moodboard 2 (zsazsabellagio, Cabbages and Roses, ebay, Country Living), Pinterest, Natalie Finham for Bennison Fabrics, Modern Country Moodboard 3 (Pinterest, Cabbages and Roses, Roger Oates, Emily Bond, Cabbages and Roses), The Nester, Hill House Diaries, Modern Country Moodboard 4 (Cabbages and Roses, Ana Rose Tumblr, Pinterest, Laura Ashley, Tinsmiths), Peony and Sage, Cabbages and Roses, Modern Country Moodboard 5 (Kate Forman, Cabbages and Roses, Jim Lawrence, Pinterest, Cabbages and Roses), Vanessa Arbuthnott

Faded Florals In Soft Neutrals: Get The Look

All that looking at Cabbages and Roses book review loveliness got me thinking about the enormous versatility of lovely fabrics, particularly neutral faded florals, which, it has to be said, Cabbages and Roses does to perfection.

Somehow, they manage to overcome the whole faux-vintage horror that many shops fall prey to. Cabbages and Roses neatly sidestep any pretence, or any pretension by skilfully combining their gorgeous faded florals in a range of soft neutrals with a variety of backdrops - the modern, the country and the divinely Modern Country.

{This curtain fabric is Cabbages and Roses Alderney Grey.}

Don't be put off by these sumptuously-styled rooms, look how simple it is to Get The Look...

Clockwise from top: A girl can never have too many bags, right?! Particularly ones as lovely as these (in Tulips and Roses, Paris Rose and Hatley), which remind me of this posts about making your own Cabbages and Roses bucket bag; faded florals and washed-till-soft grain-sacks are a match made in heaven - use, as here, by flinging one over a scrubbed pine table for a feast fit for a princess; big wall clocks bring a definite charm to any room, and, when combined with these plump feather cushions in soft reds and gently greyed linen, you can knowingly relax in Modern Country Nirvana; making your own faded-floral-lined bag is easy-peasy but, if you're rushed off your feet then there's a whole range available from boutiques on Etsy; bring in a pop of cheerfulness to your neutrals with Farrow and Ball Pale Powder, Fired Earth Garden Folly; Little Greene Grace; Farrow and Ball Blazer

Here's one I made earlier!

A simple blind can be tucked in at any window (this one is in Cabbages and Roses French Toile)...concealing an unwanted view.

Clockwise from top: Painted brick and a huge chandelier, over an iron roll-top bath in battleship grey, creates a calm, warm but firmly Modern Country vibe; a neutral greige palette of Little Greene French Grey, Fired Earth anvas, Farrow and Ball Elephant's Breath and Fired Earth Alabaster; beautifully-made roman blinds and soft, curtains that drape elegantly takes the eye away from this low, cottage ceiling...and can frame a heavenly view such as this verdant garden. 

I love the sparse, neutral simplicity of these official Cabbages and Roses images....these curtains are in New Penny....and this blind is in Burleigh Grey.

Using Neutral Faded Floral fabrics gives a sophisticated, time-worn ambinence to even the newest of rooms. Now...I wonder if the same can be said for the reds...shall we find out? 

On Wednesday, you say? 

{It's a date!]

Images via: Cabbages and Roses; Cabbages and Roses; MCS Moodboard 1: Pinterest, Un Soire Automne, Cabbages and Roses, Ana Cuca; Modern Country Style; Cabbages and Roses; MCS Moodboard 2: We Heart It, Eye For Design LFD, Cabbages and Roses, Cabbages and Roses; Cabbages and Roses; Cabbages and Roses

Living Life Beautifully by Christina Strutt: Book Review

It's been a little while since any book reviews were seen on the pages of Modern Country Style and there are some real corkers out there at the moment. Let's start with a book review of Living Life Beautifully (click on the links to be taken straight to Amazon...what a temptress I am!!), which is the new book from Christina Strutt, of Cabbages and Roses fame, published by CICO books.  

Cabbages and Roses are synonymous with simplicity, nostalgia, and almost edibly beautiful faded floral fabrics, and it is these qualities that the book seeks to imbue its pages with.

Living Life Beautifully begins by talking through the history of the Cabbages and Roses, from its humble beginnings to its global success today. This is my favourite section of writing, and I longed for it to go on and on!

However, as a consolation, we're taken on a succession of utterly gorgeous home tours, including that of Brigette Buchanan, who started out as Christina Strutt's business partner, before going on to start her own company, called, delightfully, Odd.  

The variety of houses represented in the pages of Living Life Beautifully is excellent - from the quirky, country home of the Buchanan's, to the teeny-tiny London apartment of Brigette's daughter Violet, who still works for Christina. Though the diminutive flat is very small indeed, it is no less lovely for it and, in fact, shows how wonderfully Cabbages and Roses' fabrics work in any space. 

Their son's somewhat sparser Notting Hill flat is also included, making the book a definite family affair!

Living Life Beautifully finishes by including two of Christina's houses - one, a large country pile, but with a definite cottagey vibe, and the other, her London residence, which is decorated with Cabbages and Roses' fabrics in blacks, for a crisper, smarter look.

The book is a Modern Country dream to browse through for house inspiration, or to delve deeper and enjoy the close familiarity that these successful business woman so obviously still enjoy.

Get The Look: Barn Conversion Chic

Wasn't that Barn Conversion house tour utterly scrumptious? Now it's time to weave that Modern Country magic I promised you...let's break the interior right down, so that you can see how easy it is to Get The Barn Conversion Chic Look in any house.

Did you notice how certain themes ran all the way through from the exterior to the interior? 

The neutral paint choice on the front door and window frame resonates throughout the barn's beautiful interior. 

Clockwise from top: Even if you own a new-build, white walls and French grey cabinets is a scheme that suits any period of house...perfectly Modern Country; if you live in a more contemporary home, stick to simple, clean lines in your kitchenware; I love this palette of Little Greene Shirting, Benjamin Moore Doily, Little Greene French Grey, Earthborn Gregory's Den; Classic Country pieces in an unfussy, modern white bring this scheme to life.

Even the accent colours are inspired by outside. The lush green of the grass and trees, and the deep grey-blue of the ornamental path leading to the large front doors is repeated internally in muted sage greens, deep charcoal and muted blues. Yum!

Clockwise from top: The Barn Conversion Chic look suits country-style properties too. Paint a dresser in toning paint to that of your kitchen cabinets for a timeless, free-standing kitchen feel; try Farrow and Ball Railings, Farrow and French Gray, Zoffany Architect's White and Benjamin Moore Pewter for some contemporary chic paint colours to enhance the Modern Country glow.

The continuity of colour throughout the barn conversion means that your eye can travel smoothly from room to room - such an easy look to emulate; just continue your chosen scheme throughout your ground floor.

Clockwise from top: Often stone walls of the barns' exteriors are revealed in the living room but, if this isn't the case in your home, then you can purposefully echo the natural properties of your house in your choice of stone tiles and flag stones; This palette takes its inspiration from the outside: Farrow and Ball London Clay, Farrow and Ball Mouse's Back, Dulux Bleached Lichen, Zoffany Quarter Linen; if you live in a new- build, get the look by including lots of rustic materials...glass, metal, wood...; how can these gorgeous flagstones, laid in a contemporary herringbone pattern, fail to add character to any property?

You see? *sigh of relief* The Barn Conversion Chic look can be yours whether you have a derelict barn on waiting in the wings to be decorated or in the tiniest of cottages, or the grandest of modern homes.

Images via: Fine and Country, Modern Country Style moodboard 1 (Sims Hilditch, The New General Store, Le Creuset), Fine and Country, Modern Country Style moodboard 2 (Border Oak, Pinterest, Garden Trading), Fine and Country, Modern Country Style moodboard 3 (Country Homes and Interiors, unknown, Archiexpo)

House Tour: Barn Conversion Heaven

Something to consider when you choose front door paint or paint colours for your house exterior is how well it will help to give your whole home a feeling of harmony Take a look at the way this incredible barn conversion takes the whole neutral look from the outside in....

Tissues at the ready...you will be drooling!

Isn't it stunningly Modern Country?

Now the question that I can feel burning in your heart from all the way over here is this: 'how can I get the look'? I'm all about how to make Modern Country looks work for you, whether you have your own barn conversion or not......sooooooo, come back at the start of next week and I'll see what Modern Country magic I can weave in your life. 

How can you get this heavenly neutral-with-a-twist scheme to work for YOU? Don't forget to subscribe!

Images via Fine and Country