I prefer the floral.

I have some of that floral made into pillows for my bedroom. It's really pretty. And it definitely suits your first style picture.

You sound like me. I love both of your style inspiration shots. Chairs are adorable. I am always drawn to florals. But this last year or so, I've been working towards a little more streamlined look, without so many florals or so much stuff out. It's hard, but I think that's more me in this year of 2007. The linen would be cool, but I don't think it will be the easy care no-show fabric you may be looking for. The chenille you show has a pattern which helps to mask spills and snafus. I have been choosing patterned chenilles more and more these past couple of years myself.

Right now, I'm working on recovering dining chair seats and again, was drawn to a floral. But I think I'm going to get a fabric similar to the one in your first picture. It will clean, and it will go better with more things that may get added later on. Here is a link to some shots of my home. See if you don't think we have similar taste.

Red

Here is a link that might be useful: house shots starting with DR

Oh, I love your home red. Soooo lovely.

The tone on tone actually isn't a chenille. It's a cotton/rayon and doesn't have teh raised texture of a chenille. Probably not very durable. The solid is sort of a cop out - if I can't decide I can do a solid and then change it up with pillows.

I like the floral, but it's not very current, is it? Does it need to be current? Aaaaaaahhhhh!!!!!

Thanks, budge.

Yes, the Waverly floral is very current. I saw it in our local decorator and fabric shop just this afternoon. so, if you really want that, then, go for it. Just know that a floral or any other busy print will limit your decorating possibilities later down the road.

And while you can certainly do a thinner drapery weight fabric for occasional use chairs, if you really want them to stand up to a LOT of use, something more upholstery weight will serve you better.

Red

I know what your saying about wear, red. I think I have come to the conclusion that I would rather have something I love that lasts for 5-10yrs rather than something I kind of llike for 20 years.

We've rearranged the room a wee bit so that the kids aren't going to be using these chairs for tv watching, etc. So they won't be getting the hard wear that we initially thought they would. Having said that, they won't be just for show.

I guess when I say the floral isn't really current, I mean it's not the sort of thing you'd see on Design Inc. or Divine Design.

I know I said I had narrowed it down to 3, but here is another floral I liked.

I think this last floral above seems more in keeping with your inspiration picture, being a lighter background, I like the botanical look of it.

BUT, the floral with the chocolate background is just lovely also, it has that english look I associate with those prints so I would choose that one between the 2; the stripe is just perfect with it.

Oh, I really like the brown floral, and florals are very much in style, btw. DOMINO magazine just did a spread on the revival of Mario Buatta-style chintz fabrics. Cabbage roses and opulent florals are back, although I tend to agree with Buatta when he said "I didnÂt know they had gone anywhere."

So yes, very current, although I think I'd keep looking for a coordinating fabric. I don't think the stripe you've chosen works to compliment that particular floral very well; however, I think something with a little rose & brown would be very pretty.

I like the fabric in the first picture best. That picture made me go "oooo!"

What did you do with your baseboards? It looks cool, and definitely different. Can you show us a closeup picture of it?

I love that chocolate brown floral - reminds me of a Ralph Lauren fabric. I really love the look of a big floral chair, but if it were me and my money, I'd probably end up doing the chairs in something rather neutral and plain, and then getting a big gorgeous down throw pillow done in the chocolate floral.

I think that beige damask type fabric you show could almost serve as a neutral though. I personally would not do an upholstered chair in a plain light linen - I think it would show dirt too easily. If it were slipcovered, then you could wash it.

And Red, I always love looking at pictures of your home - its so pretty! And of course, I love all the plants as I am a houseplant addict.

Hi,
Just to chime in...love your ideas and what you're considering. A couple years ago I re-upholstered a chair I adored, and just couldn't resist a wonderful dark red floral with sunflowers on it, piped in navy. I like it quite a bit, but now am wishing I'd gone with something in the same color families I used, but more classic like your first print or even a stripe and then used floral or striped pillows alternately to accent. I do love to mix fabrics in room, and think your look is really so pleasing. Classic is something we don't tire of nearly as quickly---and I agree, it would be really hard to keep the same for more than 5-7 yrs. Thanks to Red for the wonderful pictures of her home, too...so much fun to see truly beautiful places.

I've learned over the years that it's best to keep the "big" things in neutrals. By "big" I mean hard/expensive/labor-intensive if you change your mind. It's cheap and easy to change throw pillows or a throw, or even drapes compared to reupholstering. If you go with neutrals you can even do a summer look and a winter look. Same if you do slip covers.

I'm with everyone else that those off white chairs look so gorgeous when the decorators do them on TV but they only make sense to normal families if it's a slip cover you can toss in the washer and dryer.

Your home is just beautiful! I really like your choice of wall colors -- the room is like a big warm hug.

I choose the brown giant floral print up above (#2 photo). It looks warm and welcoming, and perfect! It's not something I would have thought to choose, but I really like it, and think it would be perfect on those chairs and in your space. I don't think you'd want to leave that room. Like, ever!!! :o)

mitchdesj, it's funny you say English style, because that is something I would really like to achieve. I think I've watched too many episodes of "Relocation, Relocation". Like Jenny says it is very RL.

Oceanna, the baseboards are actually hot water radiators. They give great heat and look kind of cool to boot. They are brass under the paint and DH keeps hinting he might eventually strip them. The wall colour has been great, but we've had it for almost 10 yrs now so we are ready for a change - back to neutral.

sujafr, I am really wrestling with that whole idea. I know I will love either of those florals for a few yrs but a neutral would be so much more practical. The dark floral is so distinct, it will really dictate how I can decorate. But then again, it is a style of chair that would lend itself to slipcovering down the line.

Rosewind, I really appreciate your comments on the big florals always being in style. It pushes me a little closer to choosing something more dramatic. Funny you should say that about the stripe. It is the stripe that is recommended to go with that floral, but I didn't like it much either. I preferred a much different one with wider stripes and a brighter green. I just ran across a Mario B. quote about how to achieve the English look - something about getting the perfect mix of fabric and antiques and then locking 2 poodles in the room for a weekend.

Thanks totallyblessed. I am really surprised so many like that print. I showed it to my DH (who actually has pretty good taste) and he absolutely hated it. But like a good husband, he has come around having seen how much I like it.

I love that little A & C table!

Is it an arts & craft table? Oh goody! My cousin gave it to me because she didn't have any room for it. A great uncle made it and she wanted it to stay in the family. We had it stashed in the basement for awhile and then DH looked the manor reborn photo above and ran and got it and it is perfect (at least I think so :-)

budge1: "Is it an arts & craft table? Oh goody! My cousin gave it to me because she didn't have any room for it. A great uncle made it and she wanted it to stay in the family. We had it stashed in the basement for awhile and then DH looked the manor reborn photo above and ran and got it and it is perfect (at least I think so :-)"

It looks like it has leather covering the top with large brass dome tacks or grommets, right? Very typical A & C treatment. I can't tell what the construction or joinery is really like from the photo, but they would be distinctive in A & C as well. It's a great piece and you're lucky to have a handcrafted one with some age to it!

Yes, it does have the leather top with grommets. Unfortunately, my 3 yr old was "helping" me clean the other day and sprayed the leather top with windex. The colour of the leather is very bleached out where she sprayed. I'm going to dry to shoe polish it back today.

Thanks so much for the info on A&C.

>>I just ran across a Mario B. quote about how to achieve the English look - something about getting the perfect mix of fabric and antiques and then locking 2 poodles in the room for a weekend.I love it! And it's so true. I'll definitely have to tell my Mom about this quote. She has lamented many times that, on the one hand, she wonders if she should have her (rather expensively upholstered) English and French furniture recovered, as some of it *is* a bit worn looking, but on the other hand justifies not doing so since it's perfectly acceptable for it to look this way in accordance with the English style.

Regarding the coordinating stripe... On my monitor the colors read brown, rust and light cocoa, which just do not seem right for that particular floral (however, if I saw the fabric in person, I might feel differently!). I've noticed that with small prints and narrow stripes, the colors often have a tendency to blend together unless you're looking at them closely, which is something I always ponder when choosing a fabric: Does this fabric look as pretty from a distance, say, as you're walking into the room, as it does when you're holding it in your hand? My first thought was that bolder stripe might work better as well but, again, I might feel differently seeing the present combination in person.

budge1: I've been following your thread as well--seems we are in similar delimna what to choose for our armchairs; but I think you have a better eye than I do. I actually like the brown floral also. I'm also stuggling with how neutral to keep things. I love your present paint color, though can understand why you might like a different look if it's been there for 10 years. That is my worry also with choosing arm chair fabric--what if I get tired of it? Somehow I'm finding it so much easier to figure out what I want in terms of my wood pieces, but fabrics leave me overhwelmed--I think because I've not seen the right combination yet. :)

Keep us posted on your progress and options. Perhaps it'll help me figure out what I want.