Your Guide To A Preppy Chic Home

Your Guide To A Preppy Chic Home

Conservative and endlessly chic, preppy translates from your wardrobe to your decor with collegiate inspired fabrics from Schumacher, Kravet, Duralee, and Ralph Lauren. Invest in this timeless look and save money as your house remains in vogue while your neighbors redecorate with every new trend. Follow design pro Barbara Karpf’s three easy tips and your home will become a classic installment of intellect and style.

Tip 1. Preppy Chic With Clean Lines & Muted Plaids

The keys to successful prep-styled decor are clean lines, high-quality textiles, simple prints, and updated traditional plaids. Upholstered in a solid texture, the updated shape of this headboard counters the rich plaid duvet with a distinctly modern starkness. Pinch pleat drapes hang gently behind the headboard and the small herringbone pattern gives an edge to the plaid.

Get the modern preppy look with masculine bedding using Greenhouse’s “75075-Chocolate” tartan plaid with Schumacher’s luxurious “Dillon Velvet Houndstooth.” Don’t be afraid to layer patterns, just be sure to vary the print scale and keep the colors simple.

Just in time for Fall, Schumacher‘s new Luxe Lodge Wovens collection offers a contemporary interpretation of plaid, houndstooth, and herringbone fabrics. For a uniquely preppy drape try “Colorado,” a reversible weave that combines windowpane plaid and oversized herringbone.

Top off the look with Schumacher‘s new “Bancroft Wool Throw,” perfect for keeping warm during cool fall evenings.

Visit our New York City Design Room and shop Schumacher‘s Luxe Lodge Wovens in person!

Want the look?

Left to Right: 75075 – Chocolate | Bancroft Wool Plaid – Fog | Montana Wool Plaid – Oxford Grey | Colorado – Aqua/Celadon | Dillon Velvet Houndstooth – Antelope | Bancroft Wool Throw – Malt

Tip 2. Go Ivy League With Durable Denim & Bright Plaid

Madras plaids, denim, and coordinating stripes will transition seamlessly from a baby to a child’s room, and later teenager’s den. Inspire your budding Ivy Leaguers with clean cut surroundings that will grow with them and save you money so you can spend less on new drapes and more on their college funds.

Create a classic preppy yet kid friendly look using durable and colorful fabrics. Keep the walls simple and focus on the details. Here are a few helpful hints:

Select a dark denim base fabric that can be trimmed with plaid for curtains or upholstered onto a headboard. Balance a dark indigo base with a light denim welt on the headboard, pillows, and curtains.

Plaid bedding translates from a crib to a twin bed with a few additions. Use the same plaid fabric from the drapes to create a bedspread with stripes on one side and plaid on the other. Reintroduce the light denim as welting and pillow shams and the dark denim as ribbon trim on the duvet and pillows.

Coordinating stripes accentuate the plaid and highlight the denim. Pair Kravet’s “31652-516” with Duralee’s “31873 – Lemon” for a boy’s room and Stout’s “Calder – Candy” with Duralee‘s “31873 – Pink” for a girl’s room. Stripes also look great as accent pillows or upholstery on chairs.

Want the look?

Left to Right: K 17440-50 | Watermill – Denim | K 31652-516 | D 31873 – Lemon | Calder – Candy | 31873 – Pink

Tip 3. Live Like A Lady With Flowers & Stripes

Plaid may be the first pattern that comes to mind when considering a preppy look, but it does not have to dominate your room. Capture the essence of preppy-chic with delicate florals and stripes for large furniture and drapes with plaid accents that introduce bright colors.

Achieve a lady-like atmosphere with these suggestions:

Upholster your favorite love seat with Ralph Lauren’s Garden Harbor Floral to create a focal point. Enhance the effect with chairs upholstered in a corresponding stripe. Pull in the plaid with bright pillows and soften with a textured solid, such as Kravet’s 31594-15, a pale blue cotton herringbone, that looks great as an ottoman and welting.

Don’t forget the drapes! A small blue and white paisley or polka dot unites the solids and the floral and creates an elegant backdrop. We love both Kravet’s Kemi paisley and Schumacher’s Camilla Eyelet.

Want the look?

Left to Right: Garden Harbor Floral – Sky | D 32080 – 122 Blossom | Avon Gingham Plaid – Raspberry/Ivory | K 31594-15 | Kemi – 15 | Camilla Eyelet – White

Click here to view our PREPPY CHIC book!