How *Shabby Chic* Shaped Me

*Some photos link to my ebay partner links or to amazon affiliates. I might make a few pennies off of these links. Right now I'm just testing the waters. Anyway...Enjoy this blog that took 4 hours to compose ;)

I need this book!

Before there was Cottagecore. Before there was Coquette. There was Shabby Chic. I'd say that Shabby Chic is like if both of the previously mentioned aesthetics married; but it actually predates them by decades thanks to it's creator Rachel Ashwell bringing her personal style to the masses all the way back in the late 80s. I was introduced to her at the turn of the millennium when my mother noticed this little British woman on the (now defunct) Style Network, hosting a show where she would pick up junk at the thrift store or southern California swap meet and upcycle those items into one-of-a-kind treasures. It was like every chip of paint was intentional, patina was kept in tact to look well-loved but not dirty, and some fresh paint would be used with new finishes that often included her signature floral patterned fabrics which were custom printed to look washed out and worn in. Think of those Ralph Lauren linens (of which I have a small 2nd hand collection), but sun-bleached and sandblasted to airy perfection. I had never seen anything quite like it. And although there have been countless imitations ever since the show aired, nothing quite compares to the original product line.

I have my eye on this one...

Rachel had a way of softening rough edges on anything she found to flip with a feminine touch that I was instantly in awe of. Of course my mom and I would chuckle as we watched the show and she would take us to the swap meet with her and her partner Mark because she would grab things, ask if he could completely rewire or refinish these beyond old items (seemed a little dangerous what with the antique wires and what I can only assume was more than a little bit of lead paint but Mark never backed down and always wore PPE!), and he kinda just would smile and nod and go along with it- even if it was hard for the audience to "see the vision" Rachel had. But as soon as Mark would finish up a piece with those exact Shabby Chic specifications, and I mean exactttt, it would always be impressive and worth the work he put in. After he finished fixing their finds up, she would then add these flipped pieces to her retail shop. Lord knows how much she was marking them up but hey girl, that's supply and demand. And boy did she HAVE the goods! Again, I had never seen anyone else do this before nor did it seem like a sound business plan but as we continued to watch the show, it all made sense. It was a brilliant example of some true entrepreneurial genius. She wasn't a GirlBoss, she was the queen of her OWN core aesthetic. Absolutely unprecedented.

Okay, I also need THIS book...

Rachel Ashwell's aesthetic and lifestyle immediately spoke to me because she saw things that maybe others might have regarded as useless, headed for the trash, even ugly; and see it's potential as something to be treasured. These days, thrifting and flipping is extremely commonplace but as I look back on old episodes of this thrilling little television program of yesteryear, what she was doing feels like it was WAY ahead of it's time. I had not yet begun to thrift as I was watching the Style network, but once I was old enough to understand how it all works, my mom and I found a little shop in town called The Lamb's Loft (RIP, WAHHHHH) and we'd have a field day digging through all the glorious treasures. By that time I was looking for 60s and 70s style items what with my obsession of the Beatles growing by the day, but Shabby Chic never really left my psyche; and it was only a matter of time before I found ways to incorporate that aesthetic into my mid-century mayhem. I'm not saying it's been an easy thing, but eventually you get into a groove and find color stories and themes running through all the junk you've collected through the years and it starts making sense for you and your space.

I know folks get a lot of BIG FEELINGS™ about antique flipping, and I'm personally more into restoration than transforming old pieces into something that looks "modern"; but if I see a crappy piece of furniture that's not a true antique or heirloom, or a clunky ol' jewelry box... look out because i'm going in with the floral decoupage paper, the pink chalk paint, some gold leaf and absolutely no shame. Hell, you've all seen my Angelcore TV/VCR...I like to think that Miss Rachel would be proud of me for taking a piece of old tech that is so clunky and making it breezy white and a little romantic and girly. My main feeling is if it's headed to the landfill anyway, you may as well rescue it and do with it what you want. Just don't paint it some sad shade of gray :D Here's an early example of me flipping a busted jewelry box. Not my best work, but I've been meaning to chip off a bit more paint and fill the brass with gold leaf.

My DVDs (on my thrifted RL bedding haha) both found on eBay <3

There are a couple old Shabby Chic episodes on youtube but my best find in the last few years was a DVD set I got on eBay (of course). There was an episode in particular that I was really hoping to find and it just happened to be included in these DVDs and that was one where Rachel dressed a dance troupe in 50s formal dresses she thrifted and added her own little touches to. Like giving each dancer a signature Shabby Chic Floppy Flower- which were just silk flowers; a bit sad looking from age and neglect, but that she just popped over a tea kettle and brought them right back to life with some steam. I had never seen anyone repurpose vintage like that, and as a dancer and aspiring designer, that singular idea truly changed the way I thought about not just my personal style, but my LIFEstyle. She even took the girls of the dance team to the thrift to look for vintage street clothes which, again, was not exactly the COOL thing to do in the early 2000s but looking back now, the things she found were absolutely timeless and exactly what gals hope to find today without breaking the bank. Little decorated cardigans, vintage jeans, those tulle dresses, the flowers...ahh. Just perfect.

The Opening of the Show That Changed My Life

The show must have been massively successful because for a while back there, you could find licensed "Simply" Shabby Chic housewares and linens at Target. I even had a friend remind me that Pamela Anderson did her whole entire Malibu beach house in Shabby Chic for her episode of MTV Cribs, so you KNOW this was the y2k ish! I believe she had a few shops outside of her flagship one in Santa Monica, but I never saw one. I regret never visiting during any of my trips to LA (she was also located in Malibu, and you know I love Malibu) but perhaps it just wasn't the right time for either of us. I know that there have been many eras to Shabby Chic and the aesthetic moved from yummy pastels when I was first discovering this world, to mostly clean and white once I turned 18 and was flying back and forth across the country for funsies. That was a time where only the flashiest most psychedelically bright things would catch my attention let alone anything void of color or flowers; and until I read I'm With the Band by Pamela Des Barres and discovered the downright Shabby Chic-esque way the GTOs were dressing in the 1960s, I was yet unsure of how to incorporate those antique-y pieces into my mod/hippie wardrobe. And so, as I regularly do, I have to say: Thanks, Miss P! Talk about another thrift shop trailblazer!

Rachel Ashwell did have her original retail goods online for as long as I can remember but the brand has definetly seen it's ups and downs and ins and outs. Although I have been planning this blog for many months now, it just so happens that the Queen herself has announced a break from business as usual. I don't know what that means exactly, but she explains on her socials so I suggest you give her a follow to keep up. As it is now, I'm just getting a kick out of finding and following her on instagram. She is very interactive and reads every comment, and I'm always out screaming that she is, to me anyway, the OG INFLUENCER when it comes to home decor and thrifting! She certainly influenced the heck out of me to appreciate the old and the beautiful, the pieces that are a little wonky but have so much character, to not fear a bit of rust, and to reach within and celebrate all my trinkets and treasures and girly things. That being hyper-focused on tiny details is not a character flaw- it's a bit of a superpower.

Rachel has her own blog that you can read by clicking here...I'm off to read it right now, myself.

I just watched a clip where she found a dresser at the swap meet and the only change she made to it (though I would imagine it was rather expensive because have you ever tried to buy a new full-sized mirror?? CRIES IN LATE STAGE CAPITALISM ) was to switch out the existing mirror from a flat one, to one that had a bevel as it came across to her as being more authentic. Now- would ANYONE else have noticed such a minor detail? I suspect not. But since she pointed it out- I would, now! I'm an extremely meticulous person when it comes to getting the fine details correct and so as I watched her I could see myself in this mystical person; never compromising on anything for the sake of rushing through a project, unafraid of being judged for being too persnickety. It's just how some of us are built. A little Dollie. A little Rocker. A little Shabby. And always...ALWAYS...so chic.

A few projects from my past that were inspired by the whimsical/ephemera side of Shabby Chic...My old room, a journal I covered, a tiny tutu, some peace pendants, a decorated pointe shoe, and an altered art heart box. To be continued...