It started when I sank into the planet’s most comfortable white slipcovered sofa in the Shabby Chic shop in New York’s SoHo at 1999. I have hooked on Shabby Chic. I saw that the TV show, I slept to the supersoft sheets and that I emulated everything Rachel Ashwell, who coined and trademarked the term and style, did.

However, as time passed, I discovered myself changing my furniture and style — I pared down the drapes sanded down the peeling paint, spray painted my seats and wicker chairs semigloss black, replaced the pastels with bolder colors and decorated so crucial pieces and my growing outsider art collection would stick out.

Shabby Chic grew from a mashup between Ashwell’s love of cozy flower-bedecked English cottages and her modern lifestyle on the California shore. Not hemmed in by strict principles, Ashwell started to integrate what she dubbed Zen interiors into her aesthetic, as well as looks for “the Shabby Chic man” by the conclusion of the TV series’s run, talking up warm woods and natural objects such as stones.

After all these years, “Shabby Chic” still continues to be one of the greatest search phrases when it comes to home design. But how do you accommodate this look for the 21st century? If, like me, you still have a soft place in your heart for your shabby but are trying toward more posh, the ideas in these rooms may strike your fancy.

Dreamy Whites

Think French farmhouse. This chamber is the closest of those here to the first Shabby Chic style. Its aesthetic is spare, which allows its weathered pieces, crystal chandelier and weathered-door headboard stick out.

Theresa Fine

Look into modern rustic. The slipcovers remain but are ruffle free. A crisp rug with thick stripes grounds the space. Farmhouse touches such as wide-planked pine flooring and a paneled ceiling with rough-hewn beams grab our attention. The textures of these classic pieces stand out thanks to each the white and the careful editing.

See more modern rustic looks

Moger Mehrhof Architects

Take contemporary turns. Again, colors of the Shabby Chic look come in via slipcovered chairs along with the whitewashed walls and ceiling, but the look is updated with a contemporary dining table plus industrial chandelier. Hydrangea blossoms bring from the romantic touch that attracted us to Shabby Chic at the first place.

Moger Mehrhof Architects

Insert industrial touches. The area joins crisp new finishes with well-worn antiques. Think about upgrading sweet floral bedding with some thing more geometric.

Splendid Willow

Channel Parisian apartment style. Antiqued patinas and traditional furnishings are still celebrated here, however a restricted colour palette of ivory and gray with brown and gold accents brings elegance and polish into the space.

Lisa Tharp Design

Check out Belgian style. Shabby Chic sofas and armchairs are typically overstuffed, with rolled arms; the lines of the pieces are slimmer and straighter. Linen and burlap fabrics replace lace.

See more Belgian style

Martha O’Hara Interiors

Twist in warm neutrals. This sunporch has a lot in common with the first Shabby Chic look, but creamy ivories and tans tone down the white. A wood ceiling and stylish footstools add to the fresh take.

Giannetti Home

Read up on “patina” style. A term coined by interior designer Brooke Giannetti along with her husband, architect Steve Giannetti, patina style celebrates seeing the background of a piece of furniture at its aged end, weathering and nicks and scratches. In this bathroom stainless steel sinks and charm keep the style fresh and current.

Learn more about patina style

Van Wicklen Design

Keep a strict colour palette of white plus one main colour. Choose one bold accent colour to highlight during a mostly white area. Turquoise stands out in this Texas farmhouse’s guest house.

Penguin Random House, LLC

Go coastal modern. Warm neutrals replace Shabby Chic’s soft pinks and greens; while the couches have profound, cushy upholstery, the thick stripes give them direct lines. For more notes about the look, check out more from coastal modern connoisseur Tim Clarke.

SchappacherWhite Architecture D.P.C.

Add powerful lines with crisp black and white. Ditch the floral needlepoint carpet to get a black and white striped one. This beach house in the Hamptons, New York, appreciates the comfort and light of a Shabby Chic space, while black accents create contrast. Clean lines balance the overstuffed upholstered couch and chairs.

Shannon Malone

Highlight located objects from nature. Ashwell used items such as seashells and bird’s nests as accessories; make your own mini museum of natural history. The muted colour palette creates a pleasing background for antlers, hives and nests.

Olga Adler

Mix in earthy tones. Browns, greens and tans give these Shabby Chic–style couches and chairs a more contemporary look.

Inform us Were you a fellow Shabby Chic display addict? Remember when Ashwell decorated J.Lo’s restaurant during the height of “Bennifer?” Please leave a comment below and let us know how you incorporate the look within your own new way.

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