6 TRANSCENDENT WAYS TO DECORATE WITH SHABBY CHIC WINDOWS
Whether you’re a farmhouse fanatic or a shabby chic couturier, shabby chic windows are a powerful design element worth considering for your home. A wide range of options, spanning from vintage gridded windows to gothic arched frames, means that there are a multitude of ways to reinvent shabby chic windows, too. Use them indoors to lend architectural ballast, or outdoors to create a unique, one-of-a-kind garden element. Just beginning to shop for shabby chic old windows and wondering where to start? Or already have a window and just need some inspiration on how to recast it as something entirely new? We’ve got you covered! We’re breaking down some of our favorite DIY ideas for shabby chic windows, plus giving you tips on the best shabby chic styles to consider. Ready to get reusing, recycling, and reinventing? Read on!
Shabby Chic Window Garden Screen
Whether you’ve been endowed with a not-so-attractive chain link fence, or you’re looking for a way to make a garden nook feel ever more private, fashioning a screen out of a trio or quarter of shabby chic windows can be an ideal solution. For instances where you’re trying to physically block a view (such as a fence), opt for shabby chic shuttered windows. Since shuttered windows have no glass, just overlapped slats, they can be used to effectively camouflage less-than-picturesque vistas. To turn shabby chic shuttered windows into a screen, merely align three to four window panels horizontally and affix them with hinges. Use your screen to anchor a seating area to make its presence feel more purposeful.
Shabby Chic Window Greenhouse
It may require a bit of manpower, but vintage shabby chic windows can be pieced together to create a showstopper greenhouse. How grand you go is entirely up to you. For beginners, two glass-paned shabby chic windows can merely be titled at a 45-degree angle and attached at the apex with screws. Affix to a base and you have a tabletop greenhouse perfect for sunning herbs, seedlings, and more. For the more ambitious set, dozens of shabby chic windows can be puzzled together to create greenhouse structures large enough to walk in. Use a mix of gridded and plain panel windows to curate a ramshackle chic look, or use uniform windows for a more cohesive look.
Shabby Chic Window Garden Trellis
Ideal for shabby chic windows that have long lost their glass, this concept requires nothing more than submerging a tall gridded shabby chic window frame in a flower or vegetable bed. Especially dramatic when used in tandem with climbing vines like sweet pea, morning glories, or nasturtium, this DIY produces a wild, cottage-like garden effect. If you’re hesitant to submerge a wood window frame in moist soil, consider hanging a shabby chic window frame on a fence over one of your beds, or suspending one from an arbor. Sunburst windows or shabby chic windows with arched tops can be used to procure an especially striking effect.
Shabby Chic Window Coffee Table
This one may require employing a carpenter, but we promise the effort will be well-worth the outcome. To create a shabby chic window table, first hunt down a window in a size you’re comfortable with for a coffee table. The window will act as the table’s top, which means you’ll need to find a vintage table with the same dimensions to replace the top on, or have a carpenter build you one from scratch. The benefit of the latter is that you can have a custom shadow box table built. Meaning, you can have a carpenter construct a coffee table with an open, box-like top. When you drop your shabby chic window on top, you’ll have essentially created a shadowbox. Have your carpenter attach your window with hinges and you can open your “box” to switch out the contents on display as often as you like.
Shabby Chic Window Headboard
Vintage french doors and tall shabby chic sunburst windows tend to work best for this treatment, but there’s no rule that says you can’t stack two sets of standard-sized windows to achieve the same effect. To get started, simply affix a set of shabby chic windows to the wall behind your bed. You’ll want to make sure that your windows span the entire width of your bed, but other than that, the aesthetics are up to you! If your shabby chic windows are painted white, consider it encouragement to go all out with cloud-like layers of white bedding. Have windows with a more rusted effect? Factoring in some copper or brass lighting accents can be a beautiful way to enhance the sheen.
Shabby Chic Window Picture Frame
Use a vintage shabby chic window to bring new life to favorite photos, or even aged lithographs or maps. To turn a vintage shabby chic window into a picture frame, first, select a frame that has a cut-out that matches your photo or art’s dimensions. You can also opt for several smaller photos that match the individual pane dimensions of a gridded window. If you do go this route, try to keep things cohesive and choose several images that look like a series. For instance, black and white headshots or a series of lithographs. Adhere your images behind the glass and you’re ready to hang!
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