You may think of shabby chic as all-white interiors with a little aging on the wooden furniture, but this certainly isn't the case for every home. In fact, in recent times we have seen shabby chic move away from the stereotypical white and aged look, and into a more colourful but traditional style instead. A look you can find out all about how to achieve successfully in the post below. Upcycle with chalk paint. One of the most straightforward and easy ways that you can achieve this new shabby chic style in the home is to take wooden furniture you already have and upcycle it. In fact, by doing this, not only are you saving money but the environment as well, as less waste will end up in landfills. The good news here is that chalk painting older pieces of furniture that need a refresh is getting easier and easier. In fact, you can even get such paint in spray cans now, which means all you have to do is spray on a quick coat and 'hey presto' you have an item of furniture that fits the new shabby chic style almost instantly. Paint walls in heritage colours. Next to achieve a more updated shabby chic look you need to pick out some heritage colours with which to paint the walls. In fact, this is often a welcome change from the pure white that the original shabby chic style favoured. In particular, look out for deep Breton blues, mustard yellows, and even sage and moss greens. All of which will look great with the other elements of the new shabby chic design. Don't forget your bathroom. When updating your home in the style of the new shabby chic, it's also vital that you don't forget about your bathroom. Happily, achieving a (new) shabby chic bathroom isn't difficult at all, especially if you use materials like this traditional bathroom design guide to help you pick out the type of tiles, fixtures, and fitting you will use. After all, if the rest of your home has an old school vibe, your bathroom needs to as well; otherwise, it will look incongruous ad ruin the flow. Be sure to use natural wood features. When it comes to the new shabby chic style, wood plays an essential role. It's not the white finished wood that we have seen traditionally thought. Instead, any rustic style wood features include oak or pine floors will work. Oh, and don't be shy of using natural wood colours for furniture or cladding on the walls either, as this can really help to update this look. Image here Look for farmhouse decor and accents. Finally when looking to master the new shabby chic style, keep an eye out for more genuine farmhouse accents and decorations. What this means is the twee plaques and decorative boxes in white are out, and things like bunches of dried herbs and flowers hanging from rafters in the city or fireplaces are in. The key thing here being a realistic representation of a farmhouse style, rather than a sanitised and idealised version. K Elizabeth xoxox *Collaborative Post