Have Some Decorum: Carolyne Roehm

I did not write a blog posting yesterday because honestly, I had nothing nice to say. Not that that has stopped me before but yesterday was exceptional. Sorry but it’s unrealistic to be expected to be happy every day, right? So today, to get my mind off my grumpiness I thought it would be a good idea to focus on something more positive… Like chinoiserie. Maybe some lovely deGournay chinoiserie wallpaper will get my mind off of my friends who are fat fucks. Maybe a charming little chinoiserie garden stool will get my mind off the fact that most of my family needs to be institutionalized. Maybe an antique chinoiserie armoire will get my mind off the fact that my caregivers are in the wrong line of work. So, let’s see, let’s look at beautiful inspiring chinoiserie and see if my mood changes…

What is chinoiserie you ask? According to Wikipedia, “Chinoiserie (pronounced [ʃinwazʁi], French for "Chinese-esque") is a recurring theme in European artistic styles since the seventeenth century, which reflect Chinese artistic influences. It is characterized by the use of fanciful imagery of an imaginary China, by asymmetry in format and whimsical contrasts of scale, and by the attempts to imitate Chinese porcelain and the use of lacquerlike materials and decoration.

"Chinoiserie in a broader scope refers to a mixture of Eastern and Western stylistic elements for both the decoration and shape. The style held particular favour during the Rococo period and the court of Louis XV, with which its fanciful, ornate and idyllic imagery is commonly associated.”

I have been following a certain blog for a while now. It is called Chinoiserie Chic. It is fabulous. The woman who writes the blog, Beth Connolly, is an absolute expert in chinoiserie. Definitely worth looking at if you are a fan of chinoiserie… And if you are not a fan of chinoiserie, well, you should be.