A Chinoiserie Powder Room & Help Solve a Chinoiserie Mystery

Brunschwig & Fils - Xian

Xian by Brunschwig & Fils is a favorite chinoiserie wallpaper and fabric of mine. The detail is wonderful. It's especially great if you want to jazz up a cold and sterile white bathroom or powder room. Imagine the space above without it. 

I have it in a different colorway on my breakfast barstools. There are two sleeping pups in the background.

Ikat & Chinoiserie

Brunschwig & Fils

 

This is so pretty and so many favorites here - ikat, gorgeous trim on the sofa, my favorite chinoiserie fabric Xian, a tortoiseshell coffee table, and the beautiful palette of blue and green. I love mixing patterns and ikat and chinoiserie are such a winning combination.

The Chinoiserie Powder Room

Grace Brackman Design

 This is THE powder room for the lover of chinoiserie. The walls are covered in Brunschwig & Fils Xian, a favorite classic chinoiserie pattern. There is a faux bamboo vanity, a faux bamboo pagoda mirror, and even a tiny blue and white Chinese porcelain vase. 

Chinoiserie & Color

Pinterest

These showed up in my Pinterest feed and they are both such lovely examples of the beautiful colors of chinoiserie. The fabric above is a favorite of mine - Brunschwig & Fils Xian. These are the colors I love to live with.

Pinterest

 

Chinoiserie Gone Wrong

Instagram

I have not posted a "Chinoiserie Gone Wrong" in months, but this showed up in my Instagram feed yesterday and I couldn't resist. I'm not even going to begin to outline all I hate about this kitchen; it would take all day. But these are my fave Ballard Designs (now discontinued) Chinese Chippendale stools in this ghastly kitchen. They even left the original ugly fabric cushions on them.

Here are mine in Brunschwig & Fils Xian. The fabric was plasticized and I have been using them daily for years and years and they look like they are brand new.

CCC

OK, what is the story with those hideous floral arrangements?
 

Reflections

I asked a couple of weeks ago for ideas on raising the height of these counter stools and determined it really is not feasible. I've been using them as is and have decided they are great just the way they are. And they are sort of symbolic of my life right now and how far I have come.

I bought the stools years ago at Ballard Designs. I was fortunate to find on eBay Brunschwig & Fils Xian fabric that had been plasticized by an interior designer for a project and had a yard or so left over. Plasticizing is quite expensive to have done and requires a several yard minimum, but it makes the fabric impervious to spills and soil and the cushions last forever. I had them in Alexandria for years and almost did not bring them to Florida because the Sarasota house required four counter stools.

I had this feeling I should hang on to them. So if you recall, I had them safely stored in the Sarasota house and discovered that Sandbagger had purposefully piled on top of them old crates and junk and almost ruined them.

When I showed him how he had crushed and creased the cushions he told me it was completely my fault that he has no respect for my things. I was able to rescue them. If you look very closely, there is slight damage to the cushions, but nobody would notice but me.

So I've decided to leave them just as they are. I have always loved them and they are a great reminder that like the stools, Sandbagger tried to crush and ruin me, and if you look closely I have been damaged by him, but I am happy and safe in my new home away from him.

The Chinoiserie Bathroom

Brunschwig & Fils Xian

One of my favorite Chinoiserie patterns of all time - Brunschwig & Fils Xian. I have a pair of curtains in this fabric and a pair of Chinese Chippendale counter stools covered in it - looking for spots in the house for them. This bathroom is darling -  the gold mirror, the vanity, and the shelves are all wonderful. I wonder why they left the shelves bare though??? But with a pattern as dramatic as this, one can go pretty minimalist.

On a side note, does anyone have a favorite source for rare/unusual plants? I have a landscape degree and am a master gardener and I'm getting really getting into horticulture down here in Florida - I have been to three botanical gardens in the past two weeks. But of course what I fall in love with are obscure hard to find plants. Would love any favorite sources you might share.

Classic Chinoiserie Updated

Brunschwig & Fils

One of my all time favorite Chinoiserie prints - Brunschwig & Fils Xian - in new colorways,  paired here with Brunscwig & Fils Bromo velvet.

One Room Challenge: A Good Beginning

Harrison Howard Art Framed in Gold Bamboo

 Happy 4th! Welcome to Week 2 of the One Room Challenge here at Chinoiserie Chic. I am pleased with my progress, although it was a short week with a freak storm here Friday that left us with no power for three days and 100 degree temperatures.

One plan I had was to add some great art to my kitchen. So few people use art in their kitchens and I can't understand why. This wonderful piece above is from the Chinoiseries Collection of a favorite artist Harrison Howard. I had it framed in gold bamboo with a raw silk mat in ivory. I am now working on a fantastic gallery wall for another spot.

I have also shown you my two faux bamboo counter stools upholstered in Brunschwig & Fils Xian that I had coated to be completely resistant to spills and stains. These are not new for the challenge, but they show you my inspiration for the room.

I decided to put a gorgeous antique ginger jar on top of the refrigerator, an area that in most kitchens is either for storage or left bare. Finally, I replaced the stainless steel microwave with a shiny black one that has the feel of black lacquer. On top is a white lacquered tray from West Elm I use for mail. You can spot my new Nespresso maker in that photo also - I adore my Nespresso!

Faux Bamboo Counter Stool with Brunschwig & Fils Xian

Faux Bamboo counter Stool with Brunschwig & Fils Xian

Antique Ginger Jar on Refrigerator

Black "Lacquer" Microwave

Check out what everyone else has been up to this week:

Beth - Chinoiserie Chic

Lauren - The Cottage Mix

Sherry - Design Indulgence

Lindsay - Everything LEB

Barbara - Hodge:Podge

Kim - Kim Macumber Interiors

Lisa- Lisa Mende Design

Tiffany - Living Savvy

Jessie - Mix & Chic

Linda - My Crafty Home Life 

Alison - My Little Happy Place

Danylle - Nana Moon

Nicole - Nicole Scott Designs

Julia - Pawleys Island Posh

Jennifer - The Pink Pagoda

Bethany- Powell Brower Home

Lindsay - The Pursuit of Style

Emily - Rue de Emily

Lindsay - Sadie + Stella

Lisa - Trapped in North Jersey

One Room Challenge: Before Chinoiserie

Here is my kitchen now. The good news is that I adore my kitchen - the cabinets, the countertops, the floor, the wall color, the layout. In fact, the kitchen is the original kitchen in this beautiful fifty year old Georgian colonial of mine. The second owners (we are the third) updated it, painting the original wood cabinets white and adding the tile floor, Corian countertops, island, glass cooktop, and white tiles. I love green and painted the previously white walls in a beautiful mint green and repainted the cabinets and trim in my favorite white.

All I want to do over the next six weeks is to have fun bringing in new lighting, window treatments, art, and accessories, with lots of Chinoiserie, of course. I am starting with two wonderful Chinoiserie pieces already - the pair of Chinese Chippendale counter stools in Brunschwig & Fils Xian that I had coated for the ultimate in kitchen use and spill protection. Please note the One Room Challenge button in my sidebar that you can click on anytime to link you to my original post and updates.

Brunschwig & Fils Xian

My Chinoiserie Home

Don't be afraid to use a large scale Chinoiserie toile on a small surface like a stool, ottoman, or pillow, especially one with pagodas like this favorite of mine, Brunschwig & Fils Xian.

My Chinoiserie Home

Perch Owner Caroline Robert's Home in Lonny

Friday From My Chinoiserie Home

My latest Chinoiserie addiction is blanc de Chine male figures, often fisherman. These are all from Etsy sellers. I love how they go with my counter stools covered in Brunschwig & Fils Xian.

Perch & Xian

The home of Caroline Robert, owner of a very favorite store of mine, Perch in New Orleans is featured in the current May/June issue of Lonny. I love the settee in green velvet, Cactus by Vervain, and especially the Chinoiserie pillow in one of my all time favorite fabrics, Brunschwig & Fils Xian. If you follow Chinoiserie Chic, you may recall that this is the fabric on my kitchen stools. Find two pillow covers of Xian in the yellow colorway on Etsy for only $24.99 each-an incredible steal on this high end fabric. The only reason they haven't been scooped up is that the seller has them misspelled "Xiang." Find them here and here. (Update-both are sold!)