I have recently been sourcing French furniture for a girlfriend who is restyling her bedroom. At the top of her list is a sumptuous French bed, some pretty white bed-linen and an armoire for storage of her clothes and enviable shoe collection.
In August and September we spent several gorgeous summer days visiting brocantes around where I live in Charente Maritime.
Quite by accident on our ‘brocante free beach day’ we happened to drive past a village brocante in an idyllic spot by a river which proved to be an absolute winner. Not least because there happened to be a lovely little brasserie where we had a very delicious lunch but my girlfriend also saw two fabulous French beds. One needed recovering – a demi-corbeille and a stunning French bed upholstered in a sunburst damask silk with an unusual curved headboard and matching curved footboard.
Trish opted to recover the demi-corbeille and asked for my guidance on the fabric and finish. Undecided as to whether she should opt for a shabby chic, vintage or glamour styled French bed I offered to have a look at some of the latest fabrics and trends.
I just love the linen upholstered beds (above). The top photo is a beautiful fabric ‘Blue Roses’ by Kate Forman. www.kateforman.co.uk Kate has some simply wonderful textiles on her website.
Earlier in the year I bought this bed (below) from a private seller. It was looking a bit tired and in need of some TLC. When my daughter came in August for a holiday she fell in love with it and has since repainted and reupholstered it and I think she did a great job.
After looking at many different textiles she narrowed the choice down to two. A favourite by Pierre Frey of Paris www.pierrefrey.com was a semi-plain linen from the Lauer Collection – Beige-Blanc.
However, she decided to use Dove Grey – ‘Roma Linara’ linen which I think suits both contemporary and traditionally classic décor schemes. Emma used Farrow & Ball ‘Wimborne White’ for the paintwork. The throw is from Zara Home and the paisley cushion is a Schumacher fabric – ‘Cambay Paisley’. I’m now on the lookout for two more similar beds for Emma’s friends!