It may sound a little quaint for stylists and designers to be raving about, but this trend is much more than frills and flowers. Also referred to as ‘grandmillenial’, Granny Chic is the newest way to blend the old with the new, mixing key elements of both traditional ‘grandma’ style and contemporary convenience.
Awash with pattern, colour, texture, and layers, it’s a trend that can be both playful and dramatic, or calm and subdued. With the freedom to pick and choose almost any item from an antique shop and mix it with whatever paints, wallpapers, soft furnishings, lighting, and tiles you desire, it’s as easy as anything to create your own Granny Chic space.
Patterns
Something floral is the perfect choice for Granny Chic. It can be a small, dainty motif, hand painted with a muted palette, or a large vibrant design with flashes of colour, or it can be both, layered together. Intricate, artwork-like Chinoiserie or quaint and lovely Chintz are two styles with Granny Chic written all over them.
Florals are essential for granny chic, adding a certain vibe that it’s hard to achieve without flowers of some kind, but they aren’t the only pattern to include. Flamestitch, gingham, basketweave, Ikat, herringbone, ogee, medallion, tartan, toile, and classic paisley are perfect partners to a layered grandmillenial style.
Materials
It’s important to play with fabrics to mix textures and pattern such as adding some raised Jacquard throws, metallic-touched brocade pillows, and vibrant Chintz curtains.
Wicker baskets, rattan furniture, and thick woven rugs blend comfort, practicality, and beauty, as well as offering the sought-after Granny Chic. Woods, both dark and light, can help set the tone of a space, whether they’re an ornate coffee table or the legs of a chaise lounge.
Metals also add a level of finesse, whether it’s the vibrancy of gold, the glitter of silver, or the moody, aged look of pewter. Porcelain vases, trinket dishes, plates, teacups, and plant-pots can be the perfect surface to play with patterns and layer textures,
Modern-look glass, lanterns, sofas, sconces, and side tables can all add to the look with antique touches placed in and amongst them.
Shapes
To perfect the blended look of old and new, playing with lines is important. Mix the curves of a Victorian-style sofa with square pillows or a modern cube lamp. Choose furniture pieces with arches and weaves and combine patterns like gingham or herringbone with softer, wavy florals.
Colours
Soft pastels offer a light feel, allowing a space to lean more towards the quaint whilst bright tones add a semi-chaotic look when layered in various patterns. Blending calm shades, bold colour, and earthy tones can balance a space allowing details to speak for themselves. There is no one rule for colour in Granny Chic, you just have to go where the mood takes you.
Details
Modern art mixed with framed cross-stitch or floral wallpaper can truly emphasise the marriage between old and new. Touches such as ribbons or tasseled curtain tie-backs, dried flowers or animal-shaped candle holders are simple additions that create layers and a blended vibe.
For tile enthusiasts like ourselves, simply add a textured tile trim in a bold shade, decorate a wood-look floor with floral rugs, or go for a funky splashback in a granny chic kitchen.
Suggested collections: Amara Azul, Shiraz Pearl, and Sunset Lily
