The term "shabby chic" was made popular by Rachel Ashwell's 1996 book, "Shabby Chic," and it refers to a distressed, vintage look. This type of home décor can be described as original yet traditional; plain yet decorative; relaxed yet stylish; scruffy yet orderly. Cottage Style decorating adorns your home with household accessories, furniture, and other flourishes from 1900 to 1950. The style is reminiscent of how your grandmother used to decorate. Rather than buying new articles of the furniture or embellishments for the house, most decorations were made by hand or passed down from older generations.

However, some decorators remember the style and the term from decades ago. The style glorifies the less-than-perfect. It's is characterized by discarded and vintage furniture and accessories. Tables with peeling paint and worn rugs are often used to decorate the shabby chic home. The style is also characterized by such colors as white, off-white, muted greens, faded grays, and pastel pinks.

If you follow your heart while decorating, it is only a matter of deciding where to put your accent pieces. And that is simply what it is about, following your heart in designing your interior decor. If you have a wooden country style dining table and chair set, then adding a well placed distressed chandelier will add that last touch of glamour you are looking for. In a room with a white background reflected in the furniture and slip covers with floral designs here and there, you can always raise the tranquility by adding a shabby elegance mirror and shelf set on the wall. We have many of these items in different designs that will suit your decorating needs perfectly. There are different categories to choose from which would simplify your interior design adventure.

Shabby chic is a design style deliberately using worn and deteriorated items. The term was coined by The World of Interiors magazine in the 1980s and has since been used as a name for a US company founded by Rachel Ashwell. The extent to which shabby chic styles have become mainstream can be seen in Target's line of "Simply Shabby Chic" merchandise, in partnership with Ashwell. The extent to which the very word "shabby" has become overused can be seen by doing a keyword search on Ebay.

Shabby chic is also a general term which can be used to refer to a person who is stylish rather than fashionable, where their style reflects quality as opposed to newness.

The style started in Great Britain and evokes the type of decoration found in large country houses where there are worn and faded old chintz sofas and curtains, old paintwork and unassuming 'good' taste. The end result of shabby chic is to achieve an elegant overall effect, as opposed to the sentimentally cute Pop-Victorian. Neither is it an expression of caring for the environment through recycling, even though recycling old furniture and fabrics is an important aspect of it.

The early forms of shabby chic were rather grand but the style has evolved taking inspiration from many forms of decoration. These range from 18th century Swedish painted decoration, the French Chateau as well as the American Shakers where simplicity and plainness was essential.

Shabby chic is mainly popular in interior design where furniture and furnishings are either chosen for their age and signs of wear and tear or new items are distressed to look old.

Shabby chic items are often heavily painted with many layers showing through obviously worn areas. The style is imitated by painting then rubbing and sanding away the top coat to show the wood or base coats. Fabrics tend to be cottons and linens, with linen being particularly popular, inspired by old French linens. Whites and worn or bleached out pastels are favorite colours. Fabric is often stained with tea to give it the look of old fabric. Bleached and faded are terms often applied to the style.

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