Chintz is back, well back in the public eye, thanks to the rise of maximalism and “grandmillennial” style. Although it never really went away for those in the design community. The intricate, floral patterns that have become ubiquitous with the word “chintz” transcend trends. In fact, Lee Jofa’s Hollyhock print has been in production continuously for around 100 years.
I stumbled upon Lee Jofa’s stunning fabrics and wallpapers not long after we bought our house. I quickly realized that my taste in home furnishings was more expensive than what my wallet could handle so I came to the conclusion that I would need to break out my sewing machine. This led to me spending many hours staring at fabric online. Unfortunately, even DIY’ing it, I could not justify spending around $200 / yd for fabric. So, I accepted that beautiful Hollyhock chintz throw pillows would be out of the question at this point in my life.
However, that all changed one night when I was scrolling through Facebook Marketplace. As, I was looking at side tables, I clicked on a seller’s additional listings and a custom, Lee Jofa Hollyhock, down-filled sofa was staring right back at me for $500. I couldn’t believe my luck when the seller told me it was still available. I had been casually looking for a sofa for our sunroom because it has basically been devoid of furniture since we renovated it last year.
In early January of this year, I finally decided to try to make some furnishing decisions. I made the concept board below and bought three yards of Michaelmas Daisy by William Morris. It paired perfectly with the paint colors I used in the room: Kitty Gray (Benjamin Moore), Capitol White (Benjamin Moore), and Mizzle (Farrow & Ball).
Even though I was fairly confident that this was the fabric I wanted for the window treatments, I didn’t feel comfortable about ordering nearly 30 yards of this fabric (or any fabric really) at one time. As a compromise, I only ordered enough fabric and lining for one curtain panel. I’m glad I did. With my newly acquired chintz sofa now in play, I’m not sure if I want another 30 yards of distinctly floral fabric right next to it.
Even though I already sewed the test curtain for the sunroom, I think I want to go in another direction. My new plan is to use more abstract prints as accents to Hollyhock. What do you think about this pink fabric or this blue one as accents? I absolutely adore so many of the patterns by Lacefield Designs and Danika Herrick.
We still don’t have any furniture in our sunroom, other than my “’80s sofa,” as my husband calls it, but I plan on trying to find pieces secondhand that are similar to those below. The only piece of furniture that we’ve purchased new since moving in, has been our living room sofa. Apart from that, everything has been acquired from estate sales, Facebook Marketplace, local vintage shops, and from our various family members’ homes.
