Where to Begin?

We get this question a lot, so we thought it would be a good idea to answer it publicly.

When you make the decision to transform the decor of your home to shabby chic, it can be difficult to determine where to begin, especially if you've never decorated in this style before. The short answer is you should begin wherever you want! If you're excited about doing it, chances are it will come easily to you and you will have a lot of fun in the process.

For the more practical, the best room to start with is probably the room that you spend the most time in. If you don't have a lot of time in your week to spend decorating or shopping for accents for your home, then it only makes sense to begin decorating the room you spend the most time in, in order to get the most out of your time investment.

One of the most popular starting points is the kitchen. There are endless things that can be done to transform just about any kitchen into a warm, country cottage, shabby chic kitchen. Even changing things like dish towels and salt and pepper shakers can make an immediate difference. For detailed tips, check out our shabby chic kitchen guide.

Another popular area to revamp is the living room, especially for those who spend a lot of their time there. However, despite our advice that starting with the most "popular" room in your home is the best, some folks are still a little apprehensive. In that case, it can be especially difficult to take the leap and attempt to re-decorate your interior, especially in the room you spend the most of your time. Our solution? Well, do you have a guest room??

Think of your guest room as your sandbox. Since chances are your guest room is not often in use (or at least not as often as the other rooms of your home), you can use your guest room as sort of your practice area. It is not uncommon for guest rooms to have a decor that is separate from the rest of the home. The guest room gives you a perfect opportunity to experiment with different pieces and patterns until you find a shabby chic motif you can really be proud of. Then you can take the new found decorator confidence and apply it to the rest of your home!