The rage is on and it’s all about shabby chic. It’s a style that borrows from old charm with a certain degree of casual abundance, yet sophisticated and classy. It’s funky, it’s eclectic and it’s understated elegance, all in one. If you love the throwback feeling that shabby chic evokes, reminiscent of a trip to grandmother’s house where the paint on the chair is peeling and the watering can by the yard is a little rusty, you may want to use shabby chic art to help you recreate the homely lovely feeling. Pulling the effect together is easy with some if these easy tips:

Define Your Space

Want to define a space in your house? You want to keep it cozy and comfortable, inviting and relaxing? Whether it’s the kitchen or bathroom, shabby chic art can instantly pull the look together. Consider shabby chic art for the kitchen, from a simple depiction of fork and spoon to unwinding with wine to personalize the space to your taste.

What about the bathroom, a sanctuary of sorts? A place where you unwind, soak in the tub and allow yourself to forget about the cares of the world. Define this space well with an assortment of bathroom shabby chic art. Think bubbles, bath soaps and happiness – a bliss you can easily create by either using a single art piece or a group of art.

Play to Your Style

Shabby chic uses cream or pastel colors with differing layers of interesting texture to achieve the old charm. When using shabby chic art, considers the overall tone of the room. Take into consideration the color and the décor you already have. Making sure everything blends together in harmony will help to create the desired look. If you have white walls, you may want to bring some colors by choosing shabby chic art with some pomp and funk. Or go with the general color scheme. Choose art pieces that complement or contrast for effect. Placing a cleverly chosen piece of shabby chic art with a group of DIY (do it yourself) décor can be stunning and absolutely charming.

Orchestrate a Theme

Striving to pull together a theme for a room? Choosing pieces with similar theme will do it beautifully. Whether it’s world cultures, or high fashion or flowers, shabby chic art has them all covered.

Putting together a shabby chic room or house can be easy with the help of shabby chic art. For more information on how to use shabby chic art, contact us.

Finding art that truly suits your bathroom can be a challenge requiring a significant investment of both time and money. If you're looking for a smart alternative or for an easy way to complement the art you already own, consider decorating with framed mirrors. Adding mirrors to your bathroom can make the space feel both bigger and brighter. How? It's all about placement.

Make it bigger...

You may have noticed many upscale bars and restaurants with a mirror behind the bar. It's not just there for you to watch yourself and the people behind you. Looking into a mirror instead of a wall gives you a subconscious sensation of being in a larger space, or of looking out a window. Try it out in your own bathroom, and the results will amaze you.

make it brighter...

Think about the location of your mirrors in relationship to light sources. Position a mirror so it reflects the light from a window back into the room. The most direct approach: place it on a wall opposite the window. If you have a window near the corner of your room, you may also want to experiment with creating "double window" effect by placing a mirror on the wall at a 90 degree angle to your real window, reflecting the view from outside.

... and show your style!

Once you've chosen a wall, it's time to think about creating a composition. Consider a mix of different sizes and frames for bigger bathrooms. Placing smaller framed mirrors with the same frame color but different pattern (or reverse) is one way to show your personality rather than having one big mirror. If your style is one mirror, cover a large area with that single mirror. Experiment places to put that mirror to create the illusion of a deeper room.

Are you looking for art pieces that are classy and chic? They hold style and elegance and are perennially pleasing? Classy/chic art may not scream for attention but they draw you in with their understated charm. If you're looking to decorate with classy and chic art works, here are some pointers:

What’s Your Theme?

Do you have a theme in mind? You want a theme that withstands the test of time and doesn’t look jaded with the passing of time. Consider themes that are timeless – for instance, art pieces that celebrate the beauty of nature - flowers, plants, landscape, garden, seasons, or the beach. Bring the sun and surf into your house and allow the beach theme to dominate and transport you somewhere where breezes caress and the waves soothe. 

Color Scheme

While there are no strict rules for color scheme for your home, some colors will withstand the whims and fancies of time better than others. For instance, psychedelic may be reminiscent of the 60's, where funk and bold collided in a surge of cultural beauty. If you’re decorating a space to reflect that time period, it will work well. However, if you’re striving to decorate a space that will still look classy with time, opt for colors that are more neutral. With a basic neutral color, you can then choose to play it up with a main color or an accent color. Choose art pieces that complement or contrast your basic room color.

Style of the Artist

Perhaps you’re a fan of a particular artist. Their art works speak to you and feel most like you. Find a number of pieces and build a collage with them or use that one piece to define a room or space. For instance, Cheri Blum, an American painter uses simple lines and shapes to create a sense of peaceful balance in her art. Another popular impressionist artist, Barbara Mock, puts her strong sense of design to good use when creating pieces that capture floral theme, charming birdhouses or delicate teacups and whimsical landscapes. And what about the contemporary artist, Carol Robinson? She offers renditions of beach scene, kitchen décor and landscape with style and splendor. Because their art pieces are classy and chic, you may get more mileage out of them in the long run.

For more information on how you can use art pieces that are both chic and classy, feel free to contact us.  

No country home is complete without country art!

So your home has that good old country vibe to it. You have cute country style drapes hanging over the kitchen window and you possibly have the horseshoe hanging over the door, but what good country home needs is some stylish country art. No country home is complete without some country paintings. For the living room or the family den, you may have styled to feel like it's the open range or the mountains. You have animal skins hanging up or maybe you have a cow print rug on the floor, well how about adding a painting like log cabin retreat to the scene. It gives off that sense of wilderness and the colors are vibrant. It would go well with any room you're trying to give off the nature vibe. Maybe you're looking for something that'll really capture your guests' attention when they're in the kitchen, you have yellow walls, maybe rooster or fruit drapes, well add a painting or two into the style.

 Bless our home would go well with any yellow decor or color scheme. It even has sunflowers and you can't top sunflowers. Maybe you want something that just totally stands out that just pops then check out Razzberry Creek crossing. The colors are very soft and it could really stand out in the kitchen. If you're finally fixing up that bathroom and you decided to go with a bear theme then add some bear art! Country bath would not only fit in with your bear and wilderness theme, but it's completely adorable! If you want something more cute than that, a big favorite is bear necessities. Not only will it give your bathroom a zing to its decor, but it'll remind your guests of the Disney movie The Jungle Book. So if you're look to spice up your country home then check out Fulcrum Gallery for all their latest country master pieces.

Bathroom art may require some specialized care according to the features of the bathroom in which it is hung. Light, humidity and heat all effect paper and thus artwork. Knowing how to counter these problems will help ensure your artwork remains undamaged over time.

Light

Often bathrooms do not have much of a problem with direct light falling on the artwork. Windows are usually covered or frosted for privacy. Most people are aware that direct sunlight fades colors, but many are not aware that artificial light can have the same effect. Very bright lights in the bathroom will damage artwork over time.

If your bathroom does get direct sunlight be sure to cover the windows during the day. Another option is to hang art where the sun will not be able to hit it directly. Check the bathroom throughout the day with the window uncovered to ensure you understand everywhere the sun hits. Avoid hanging art where direct sublight falls when possible.

Humidity

Humidity can damage prints quickly and of course any bathroom with a shower or tub in it will be prone to humidity. Help reduce the damage from frequent humidity by running a fan whenever someone is using hot water. This will vent the steam as quickly as possible and keep the paper from absorbing very much. Paper that absorbs humidity is prone to developing mold. Framing a print behind glass can also help reduce the damage from humidity as this protects and seals the art. Be sure to keep some space between the art and the glass when any artwork is framed, no matter what room it will be in.

Humidity is not as much of a problem if the bathroom does not have a tub or shower. It is still important to monitor the humidity in the house overall to ensure it stays above 40 percent to avoid drying the paper out. People who live in very arid conditions may actually need to add humidity to the air.

Heat

The temperature in the bathroom tends to fluctuate as it is used. Often a bathroom has no windows and is the warmest room in the home. Heat can combine with humidity to cause damage to artwork. It is important to try and avoid large fluctuations in temperature. Don't place artwork directly over a heating vent to help avoid heat damage.

Keeping bathroom art undamaged over time is simple when proper precautions are taken to avoid light, heat and humidity.