The Ultimate Guide To Parisian Style Decor
-
Loading... - Kathrine Palmer
- 18 Jan 2022
- 466 Views
- 0 Like
- 0 Comment
The Parisian style decor is just spectacular. With high ceilings, tall windows, carved moldings (“moulures”), marble fireplaces, herringbone parquet floors, and wall panelings (“boiseries”), Parisian apartments have truly charming architectural details. And Parisians know exactly how to sublime these exquisite architectural elements with just a few decor pieces and by following specific interior styling rules. Sophisticated and elegant, the Parisian style decor is timeless.
To achieve this look in your home, you don’t have to be a millionaire, live in a beautiful Haussmannian building on the Rive Gauche, or decorate your home with priceless antiques. Being French, I’ve lived in the 4th Arrondissement of Paris on the Île Saint-Louis, and in this article, I’ll show you how to recreate this look in your home. First, I’ll explain what characterizes the Parisian style decor and what makes Parisian interiors truly unique. Then, I’ll reveal my best interior styling tips to achieve this look in your home.
8 Best Interior Styling Tips To Decorate Parisian Style
What Is Parisian Style Decor?
Parisians are quite modern when it comes to interior design. While they appreciate their classic, historic apartments situated in the city center, Parisians master that classic and contemporary mix and that constant balance between design and antique. And even if they adore design furniture, antiques, and contemporary arts, there is nothing flashy about the Parisian chic interiors. Simplicity is valued; art is often large and singular, or simply not there at all, and furniture is given room to breathe.
1. Parisian Apartments Architectural Features
A typical Parisian-style apartment would have white walls, floor-to-ceiling wall paneling, old herringbone parquet floor, tall windows, sometimes double windows with iron balcony, moldings, and marble mantels both in the living room and the bedrooms.
2. The Color Palette
In a typical Parisian apartment, walls are generally painted white. The color white allows to bring out the details of the historic ornaments and to get as much natural light as possible. To add contrasts and depth to a room, deep colors such as blue-grey, beige-grey, grey, and black are sometimes used on a wall or on a door.
Jewel-toned colors like emerald green, sapphire blue, ruby red, amethyst purple, or even citrine yellow also play a role. These colors just need to be an accent like an armchair, a sofa, a cushion, or a lamp. These jewel-toned colors match perfectly well the herringbone parquet, the white walls, and the wall panelings of Parisian apartments.
3. Flooring
To recreate this Parisian style decor in your home, you’ll need to opt for parquet flooring. From chevron and herringbone, parquet de Versailles, Bordeaux, to Chantilly, you can choose from many different parquet patterns. Maybe I’ll recommend avoiding the mosaic hardwood flooring which looks a little bit dated.
For the kitchen, the bathroom, and the laundry room (“les pieces d’eau”) opt for cement tiles (“carreaux de ciments”) —which are very popular right now, or alternatively ceramic tales which are less pricey. Think marble, waxed concrete, mosaic tiles, French terracotta tiles —which are called “tomettes” in French, and even parquet flooring. For more interior styling tips, check out my article on how to create a French bistro-style kitchen.
Also, don’t forget to sublime your flooring with beautiful rugs. For the living room, Parisians generally go for traditional Persian rugs with jewel-toned colors —even better if it’s vintage. While in the bedroom, traditional Moroccan or Egyptian rugs made in wool are preferred. For more interior styling tips, read my article on how to create a Parisian-style bedroom.
4. Lighting
The chandelier is the magic decor piece of the Parisian style decor. All Parisian apartments feature one of these sparkling beauties. You can choose from many different styles: mid-century lighting chandeliers, crystal chandeliers, or more contemporary lighting pieces. If your home already features very classic and adorned moldings, floor-to-ceiling wall paneling, and parquet flooring, it can be interesting to add a more contemporary chandelier to balance out the older, more antique-looking items. Whatever you choose, you’ll be surprised what a big difference it makes when you swap out a basic fixture for a chandelier. Read More…
