Blue & White Interiors - Traditional to Contemporary

Blue and white is a timeless combination, and works well most interiors, I have a number of pieces of  blue and white china I collected while living in Asia and have grouped these together on top of my Korean cabinet (see below). A blue and white palette can be used to create a classic, country, cottage,or coastal look to an interior. Today I want to share some varying styles using this palette, from soft turquoise blues to the more traditional French Blue, I hope these inspire you to experiment a little with blue and white.

 A soft country look with linens and naive pottery.

Fellow blogger Kim from Savvy Southern Style's  delightful sun room. I love the blue and white plates displayed on her walls.

A corner of the sunroom where Kim she sits with her laptop and writes for her blog "Savvy Southern Style". Visit Kim's blog to see her home tour.

 The blue ceramic jars add impact to this uncluttered space with a  distinct Mediterranean look. 

 Stripes and soft blues work wonderfully against a background of white for a coastal look.

 Lots of interest in this room with a mix of shades of blue and earth tones.

I love the wall sconce's what a great way to show off  your most precious items.

I also wanted to share a few shots of my own blue and white collection...

 This lovely old Korean cabinet was purchased in Abu Dhabi of all places and made its way back to NZ in my shipment.

 Inexpensive blue and white can look effective when grouped together.

My favourite ginger jar, unfortunately not a genuine antique but a very good reproduction as it is hand painted and not transfers... I would love to know the story behind the figures painted on it.

If you enjoyed this post you can view a previous slide show of blue and white rooms "here"...

or lots more blue and white inspiration via my Pinterest Board


Sharing with:

I Should Be Mopping The Floor

Wow Us Wednesdays at Savvy Southern Style
Ivy and Elephants

Transformation Thursday at Shabby Creek Cottage

Open House Party at No Minimalist Here

Time Travel Thursday at the Brambleberry Cottage

Show and tell Friday at My Romantic Home

At The Picket Fence

Image credits:

l. Pinterest, 2. Savvy Southern Style,3. Savvy Southern Style,4.Pinterest,5.Pinterest,6. Pinterest,7. Pinterest,8. Lee Caroline - A World of Inspiration,9. Lee Caroline - A World of Inspiration,10 Lee Caroline - A World of Inspiration

Lee

&

Poppy oxo

Mix of Rustic and French Style In A Designers Cottage

First I'd like to thank everyone for their kind words and condolences on the loss of my mum. I'm now trying to get back some sort of normality after caring for mum so long, but I know this will take a long time as I miss her terribly.  I hope to begin painting again soon and use it as part of the healing process. My mother asked me to throw myself into painting and I plan to do this for her, she will be my inspiration and my first exhibition to be held in New Zealand (now 2013), will be in her memory. For my first post for a few weeks, I'd like to share an inspiring interior with you.

This beautiful 1936 renovated cottage belongs to designer Jill Sharp Brinson and her husband. The house has wonderful bones, just look at those fabulous beamed ceilings.  Beams give immense character to a home and can help determine your interior design style.  I love the way Jill's incorporated iron into her decor such as the industrial table in the dining room, the gorgeous arched feature window and patio door and smaller items such as the suspended wrought iron lanterns above the dining table. All these chosen pieces perfectly compliment the rustic beams and iron balustrade in the living area.

Look for the special 'designer' touches in this home, the wooden carved doves placed along the rustic shelf  in the entrance way, the display of white porcelain on the shelf above the arched door.  For me my favourite room is the dining area with it's fitted display cabinets, I love the chicken wire detail, doesn't the wicker chair in the dining area look perfect with these cabinets. All in all, an eclectic little cottage with an distinctively "French" feel to it

I'm going to steal this lovely idea above and place a shelf above my front entrance door to display some lovely items of my mums.

Photography by Simon Upton, images via House Beautiful.

Lee

&

Poppy oxo

Cottage Fresh Interiors & Peony and Sage

This week I had the good fortune to be followed on Twitter by a company called Peony and Sage. Peonies as my readers know, are my favourite painting subject, and Sage, well...I adore the smell of sage! So, for me there was no hesitation in visiting Peony & Sage's website to see what inspiration I might discover.

Peony and Sage is run by Interior Designer Kimberley Bell, quote...

“I wanted to create beautiful linens and tweeds, inspired by vintage and french fabrics and an eclectic mix of all the things I love” Kimberley Bell, British Interior Designer. 

Kimberley not only offers an interior design service, she's created a range of her own fabric designs such as the beautiful "hare" cushions from her "Country Life" range as seen below. Kimberley also has a range of accessories for the home and stocks a selection of other fabrics such as GP&J Baker and Colefax and Fowler. I personally love Kimberley's own designs, from her whimsical animal prints to her traditional cottage florals,  they would all look fabulous in a cottage or French style interior.

Cottage style interiors are truly back in fashion, in fact I doubt they have ever gone out of style. However, I do feel it's important not to "overdo" this look. Keep it subtle, mix gentle patterns with neutral tones of beige and white. Bring fresh florals into bedrooms but don't overdo the florals in your living areas or your cottage look may appear more "shabby Chic." I like to see stripes and other designs in the living or family room  and prefer to keep small  floral prints in the bedroom or use them very minimally in the living areas. (a personal opinion only).  

Today I'm sharing what I loved about Kimberley's range.  I think I would have to say by far my favourite is the "Hare" cushion, doesn't it look superb against the French upholstered chair.

 Hare design by Kimberley, delightfully named "Hare - Fudge" can also be printed with pretty dots in the background.

For me this image epitomises the cottage look, a subtle mix of patterns on a neutral palette. I love the ottoman used as a table.  A while ago I posted about Ottoman ideas, including  a link to Jenny Steffen Hobick's DIY ottoman instructions.

This gorgeous Rose and Sweet Pea design fabric has been printed on antiqued linen. I was thinking how beautiful it would look made up as a duvet cover.

Beautiful soft traditional eiderdowns

Little spots, traditional toile and pretty floral designs printed onto aged linen.

I love the idea of the old doors for headboards.  You can see more "headboard" inspiration "here".

More pretty designs by Kimberley.

I love this little cushion, a simple strawberry printed onto linen, with the sweet smell of lavender. Fabulous to hang amongst your clothes or on a towel ladder.

Thank you Kimberley for allowing me to share your lovely images and products.  I do hope my readers get a chance to spend some time visiting Peony & Sage to see more of their beautiful fabrics and accessories including, cards, tea towels, eiderdowns, lampshades and more...oh and a "clearance basket" of  some of their wonderful  fabrics.

Peony and Sage Blog

Photographs reproduced on Lee Caroline - A World of Inspiration with permission from Peony & Sage

Photography & Styling:

Piers Philo & Amanda Knox, Christina Wilson, Marie Delice Karlsson www.bymildred.se, Dreamy Whites California, Mhairi Seymour, Viv Clarke

Sharing this week with:

Monday:

Lines Across
I Should Be Mopping The Floor

Wednesday:

Wow Us Wednesdays at Savvy Southern Style

Thursday: 

Transformation Thursday at Shabby Creek Cottage

Open House Party at No Minimalist Here

Time Travel Thursday at the Brambleberry Cottage

Friday:

Show and tell Friday at My Romantic Home

At The Picket Fence