How to Use Leopard in Your Home

I, come to find out, have inherited quite a few things from my Grandma Doris Lee (she's my mom's mom). From her I witnessed the joy to be found in hosting a great party. I love jewelry and glitz. I like to pour through magazines and recreate looks for myself. And I love leopard.

My grandma started wearing and decorating with leopard and has never looked back. I don't blame her. Leopard print can often times be considered a neutral!

When I saw the two great chairs (shown below) at The Vintage Vine, at an amazing price by the way, I knew a blog post was brewing.

 

 

You might be thinking to yourself...leopard doesn't fit in my decorating style. Well, I hope this proves you wrong.

Let's start small. Consider leopard pillows as an accent. Here, we're shown how leopard can add some graphical interest in a peaceful, neutral setting. Keep it simple.

Photo Courtesy of Arianna Belle

Or in this case, the pillows are in a very bright, cheery space. Somewhat industrial and vintage in nature. They provide the eye with a soft place to land amidst the shocking orange. (PS orange and leopard is one of my favorite fashion combos too!)

Photo Courtesy of Niagara Novice

Now let's move into furniture upholstered with leopard fabric. Again, starting small, this lovely little frenchy chair has been painted green and the seat has been given a fun leopard fabric. Look how this is paired with simple wood floors, a white hutch and a large print rug. This adds just the right touch of whimsy in the simple space.

Photo source unknown

Now let's get a little bigger. This is a fully upholstered chair in a preppy, feminine space. This homeowner is not afraid to have some fun with her décor and doesn't take herself too seriously. I love the orange bench, all the wood tones and the touches of black. Again, if you really look at this picture, the leopard almost recedes in the space and just reads as a neutral color in the corner of the room.

Photo Courtesy of My Domaine

Let's end this leopard party with two of my personal favorite examples. I think these are probably the most realistic ways to use leopard chairs based on how I decorate my own home and the style I know many of my friends are going for.

The first is an example of how you'd use two leopard arm chairs in a seating area in a living room. The beauty of the two chairs we have at the store right now is (besides the price!) that they are a matched set. They are begging to be used together. Imagine the space below with the second chair and perhaps a little loveseat in your front sitting room. All that white is the perfect backdrop for some really funky chairs!

Photo Courtesy of Harper's Bazaar

And finally, what if you put the two chairs in your bedroom?! Have some fun and get a painted dresser. Make the room a little bit eclectic and boho. Like I said before, the leopard and black chairs will be a neutral in the room, so you can add orange or plum or green. Go feminine with light pink. Go bold with turquoise.

Photo Courtesy of Yes Missy

I hope this provided you with some inspiration! Now seriously, go down to the store and buy those chairs before I do. I think writing this post has just about convinced me to do so.  

All the best,
Karli