If you’ve been following my makeover journeys for very long, you know I rarely play it safe with color. It’s all a scheme that I’ve orchestrated to give you more confidence in using color in your own homes. And this vintage settee makeover? It might just be my favorite thing I’ve ever done for my own home.

Let me tell you about the settee that changed everything.

I Found Her at an Online Auction

A few weeks ago, I spotted a beautiful Louis XVI-style settee at an online auction. She had gorgeous carved details — fluted legs, a delicate bow carved right into the crest rail — and the most elegant straight lines. Those straight lines were actually the main reason I bid on her. When you’re planning a vintage settee makeover with a bold stripe fabric, straight lines are your best friend. The upholstery at the time was a patterned rust and beige. She had good bones, but she needed a whole new life.

I won the bid, brought her home, stripped her down, and the transformation began.

Choosing the Fabric First (Always!)

If you’ve taken my DIY Upholstery for Beginners course, you know my process: fabric first, everything else follows. I already knew I wanted a wide candy stripe for this vintage settee makeover — something bold, graphic, and a little bit playful. I found the perfect pink and white stripe on Spoonflower, printed on their linen-cotton canvas. It’s a wide-width stripe that gives the piece that classic French country meets maximalist cottagecore vibe I was going for. And the price? So affordable.

The fabric was set. Now came the fun part.

The Paint Dilemma: What Color for the Frame?

Here’s where I had to really think. The settee was going on a wall in my living room that already had the most dreamy blue and white hollyhock wallpaper.  The pink and white stripe fabric was already chosen. So what on earth do you do with the carved wood frame?

I could have left the frame as natural wood. That would have been pretty.

Or I could have gone with classic white — always safe, always pretty.

Gold was another option that would have felt very French and formal.

I even played around with the idea of painting the frame pink to match the fabric.

But then I had a flash of an idea.

Orange. Bright, Bold, Joyful Orange.

I know — stay with me here.

Here’s the design logic: the wallpaper is blue. Orange and blue are directly opposite each other on the color wheel. Complementary colors create energy and excitement. They pop against each other in the best possible way.

I went hunting for just the right orange — not a pumpkin, not a burnt orange, and definitely not basic orange-orange. I wanted something with a tiny touch of sherbet, something cheerful and sun-kissed. The best choice was Benjamin Moore Fiesta Orange. The second I saw it, I knew.

The Finished Vintage Settee Makeover Is Everything

Once I had the frame painted in Fiesta Orange and the pink and white Spoonflower linen stripe wrapped around that gorgeous carved silhouette, I stepped back and practically shrieked with joy. The orange frame against the pink and white stripes is chef’s kiss. And against the blue hollyhock wallpaper? Pure magic.

I also added a green gingham pillow with a scalloped edge for a little extra pattern mixing — different scale, different texture, totally collected and not matchy-matchy. That’s Fabric Mixology 101 right there.

There’s also a stunning new piece of art by @CarolynSchultzArt hanging above the settee — but that deserves its own full blog post, so stay tuned for that.

And the baskets underneath hold our shoes for easy organization.

The Lesson: Go Bold. Take the Risk.

Every vintage settee makeover comes with a moment of doubt. I almost talked myself out of the orange. I kept second-guessing it. What if it’s too much? What if it clashes?

It’s not too much. It doesn’t clash. It sings.

Color is brave. And when you take the time to understand why colors work together — like complementary colors on the color wheel — you can stop guessing and start creating with confidence.

Here’s the fabrics that are inspiring my living room makeover…the settee is just the start. More to come on all this very soon!

If you’ve been staring at an ugly chair (or settee!) and dreaming about what it could be, this is your sign. You can do this. I can show you how.

Join the Ugly Chair Challenge and I’ll walk you through the whole design process, step by step.