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I've been scouring the interwebs for curtains for our "Blue Room" as we like to call it (I know.. we're so creative with our naming, aren't we?). It's technically our "formal" living room, but really, there ain't a lot of formal going on in our house. So it's just The Blue Room (ironically there are several other blue rooms in our house, but I digress).
We have some curtains that I'm not loving so much anymore and I wanted to find something with a fabulous pattern to bring some, well, pattern to the room. And some color. I knew I wanted to use vintage fabric, preferably vintage curtains so I wouldn't have to sew anything. (or rather my Mother-in-Law wouldn't have to sew anything. ;)
I didn't know if I wanted something very true to a Mid-Century Modern style, like pretty water-colory florals, or something 70's inspired with bold colors and geometric shapes. I didn't want the room to become overly sweet since there are a lot of sweet elements, like the pictures on the wall and other homespun elements like crocheted blankets and such. I was thinking that some really BOLD large scale pattern motifs from the 70's would cut the sweetness so to speak, and make the curtains sort of a statement piece.
I've put hours of internet browsing into this (ridiculous hours, I know you creative types know what I mean though, right?) searching for THE BEST option out there. BEST price, BEST solution.
Sources (from left to right, starting at the top): 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, Sewing pin digital elements from my digital kit here.
Well, we all know that it isn't that easy. The really fabulous Scandinavian bold geometric patterned fabrics from the 70's were too costly (see this amazing website, one of the best selections I've seen of this style! But you'll pay an arm and a leg). Or I might find a great Mid-Century floral... that wasn't the right size or not enough fabric (or again, too costly).
And that is when putting in all of those hours of searching helps, because you've exhausted your options for so long that you do eventually find the PERFECT pattern at the PERFECT price and the PERFECT solution. Which is a great feeling (which balances out the bad feeling you get from wasting so many hours searching. ; )
One thing that has always helped me is to create mock-ups in Photoshop. I've been using Photoshop for a loooong time. I consider it to be one of the most valueable things in my tool chest. You can use it for so many things! I think we Creative Types have a leg up on the average person in that we can visualize how something's going to look in our heads, right? But creating these mock-ups has helped me even more and yes, even kept me from making the wrong decision: because you really don't know until you see it in the interior environment.
Yes it's a bit crude looking. But it's such a fabulous way to really get a feel for how the patterns and colors gel with the rest of the room. You basically just copy the images from the product listings, do a little finageling in Photoshop, and you've got a mock-up of your room, with new curtains. As you can see above, there were lots of contenders.
I'm really happy with that 50's Mid-Century painterly blue and green floral on the left. It was the right price, not 70's geometric, but still a large-scale bold pattern. There will be two at each end of that large window.
The orange and yellow gingham floral pattern on the right is a bit more groovy 60's/70's. I hadn't planned on putting a curtain there, but when you open the blinds, you can see into our carport which is a big eyesore. It ended up working out to use that curtain (which is actually part of a pair) because the other one will be going in another room. So I'm getting good mileage out of the set! I like the mis-matchy-ness of both curtain patterns together.
All in, all of the curtains were about $50 plus shipping. Which makes me happy. I will have to do some cutting and sewing on one end or two to adjust, but I won't be working with raw fabric, so most of the seams will already be sewn for me. Win!
Would you like to learn how to do some interior mock-ups like this in Photoshop for your next decorating project? I could put together a tutorial. It's also helpful in visualizing wall arrangements (before you start putting holes in said wall).
Of course you could always print out the patterns and a photo of your room and sort of copy and paste the old fashioned way. Gets the job done!
I plan on using this photoshop method with the final corner of this room in which I want to cover a closet door with wallpaper (or the fabric corn-starch method - because fabric is generally cheaper than vintage wallpaper! And it also comes off without damaging the door.)
The couch and coffee table were a Craigslist find. They came together. The woman said they belonged to her parents and that the sofa was covered in plastic for a good while. You can tell, the upholstery's in great condition with only a bit of fading from the sun in some areas. Most importantly: it doesn't smell. Hallelujah.
The little white tables came with the coffee table. She said that they are supposed to go under the coffee table, and she and her cousins used to love pulling them out and sitting on them, or coloring on them. They too are in surprisingly good shape. I think the tops are calling for a pretty wallpapering maybe? They can be stacked.
The end table is a thrift store find and the lamp is a Craigslist find (I'm in love with that orange base and green shade!)
This room is turning out to be my favorite. I've been doing a lot of editing in our home, figuring out what pieces I like, and which ones I never really liked to begin with. Becoming a dedicated Craigslist browser (and seller) and an avid thrifter over the past year has opened up so many new options for me and I've become much more determined to curate a home with quality pieces that are true to what I like (at thrifty prices). It takes more time and effort, but it's totally worth it!
What about you? Is there any method to the madness when it comes to decorating your home?
