Four Fabric Foray - Spring Zing

So, the Tranquil Teal fabric combination of my last post was just that… tranquil and spa-like… now as I continue to explore combining fabrics, I find myself bringing to life color schemes, pattern collages and moods of the warmer days ahead…

In spite of how slowly Spring is truly taking hold in nature here in New England, I am featuring a mix of zingy colors to create the aura of warm temperatures, sunny skies, and colorful gardens.  Hopefully they will bring a smile to your face & the enthusiasm to add some lively hues to your home…

The focal point holding all of these fabrics together is a floral, which of course is natural for spring.  But this one is different, a bit of Asian influence with rich textures, just a touch of metallic thread, and its vibrant colors, which are the inspiration for the palette.  

To juxtapose the organic floral, a geometric pattern in the same hues adds a wild touch.  

And to anchor these busy motifs, a lush striated velvet in a deep plum and a linear fuchsia chenille.  How to finish it all off… why with a multi-colored fringe of course!

If these don’t make you happy… nothing will… well at least when it comes to interior design!

Four Fabric Foray – Tranquil Teal

One of the most inspiring places to start an interior decorating scheme is with fabrics… certain hues and patterns have a way of drawing you in without you even realizing it.  As you move through a fabric showroom, you will find yourself feeling drawn to cool colors or warm, busy patterns or simple solids or tone-on-tones, smooth textures or more tactile surfaces.  As with a Ouija board, if you just let yourself go, you will end up right where you belong!  There are so many gorgeous fabrics making their way into the showrooms right now, it seems hard to go wrong! 

But what about combining fabrics?  How comfortable are you with doing this?  If you are a little nervous about it, the easiest approach is to find a color that you love, and then stick with it.  It doesn’t have to be boring, as long as you mix up the solids with the prints, the scale of the patterns, and the intensity of the colors and backgrounds.

Naturally, what you are using the fabrics for certainly makes a difference.  Certain fibers, weaves and weights are more desirable on a sofa, whereas others are more suitable to hang at the window.  And the scale of a pattern in small doses will have a completely different impact than circling a room in it.

Here is an example of a lovely combination of four fabrics in a soft teal color… there is a small-scale geometric print in taupe, soft teal and cream, a naturalist embroidered pattern of teal pussy willows with taupe stems, on a cream back ground, a woven that read like a solid, although it has teal and taupy threads, an over-all tile pattern with taupe ground and multi-toned teals.

What kind of mood do you think these fabrics create?  Would you combine them in your home?  If so, what would you use each fabric on?