Decor for my colonial home - Link in post!

wealldeservepretty

Hi all!  We are closing soon on a dutch colonial -- I have posted some pics of the house before, and now, I'm starting to think on a decorating scheme.  I love shabby chic, but the white won't work in the house -- all the moldings are the original dark wood (love it!) and doors are mahogany.  Wood floors.  I'm thinking to go for a farm house type of look to go with the natural charm of the home.  I want it to "flow" -- thoughts, suggestions?

 

ETA:  http://www.inventingus.com/ -- here are a bunch of pics of the house.

MommyLiberty5013

I have pondered this too at one point. Do you switch your decor tastes and style based on the architectural type of home you live in?

I guess I still come back to the point that it's your home, so you can do what you want! And, have fun!

But, to answer your specific question, IMO just because the style of your home comes from centuries ago, doesn't mean that your interior has to look like it came out of Colonial Williamsburg (unless you want it to and you want to give up on shabby chic to try something new).

Have you tried googling shabby chic in a colonial home? 

TheBridesMom

I think sometimes people over think things like this.  It is your home, and you can (and should) decorate it the way that makes you feel like it is your home. 

A room can have the shabby chic feel that you love without every element in the room having to fit into the ideal.  Use color, fabric, and accent pieces to further the feel that you want. Sometimes it is as simple as choosing a wall color (even if it is white), with an undertone that works with the trim instead of fighting with it.

I saw an amazing space somewhere online, that was light and airy feeling, but all of the doors, trims, etc. were black.  I think there were built ins and furniture that was black as well, but the whites and light accents made the rooms feel light and open.

Sometimes decorating in a style very different from the architecture/age of the house looks a bit off, but most of the time the problem is more in the execution than the mixing of styles.  I have seen people pull off combinations that you would swear would never work together.  It worked because they designed a space that expressed their style and functioned well within the space and still allowed the architecture to speak for itself....they didn't pretend that it didn't exist.

GL and have fun with your new house.

MicheleLouise

Can you post the photos again?

wealldeservepretty

Posted above link to the pictures!

I do appreciate the suggestions.  I am overthinking this a little bit, but I do want to decorate to best enhance the architecture of the house.  I'm very into that stuff, especially since this is what drew me to the home. 

october2004

I think you can work some shabby chic into that house. I think the interior has more of a Craftsman influence than Colonial Revival, actually. I think some Stickley furniture would be great in there. The interior isn't highly stylized to begin with, so I think you can take it any way you want.

I love the house. Very charming. 

 

lachute

I agree with the previous poster this is by no means colonial revivial as much as craftsman with a bit of early turn of the 20th century/Victorian. Historically colonial homes did have painted trim. Thy being said if you google craftsman I think you'll get tons of ideas. 

wealldeservepretty

i can see what you guys are saying with the craftsman looking interior -- i don't know why i didn't make that connection before!  I'm going to research some of the craftsman style....