I’ve been living in Lausanne for a month and a half, and I already feel the need to redecorate. Since we’re only here for eight months, I’m not willing to put any money into the apartment, seeing that I won’t be able to bring much back with me. I decided to freshen up the existing decor with things I brought with me.

I have scarves, sarongs and pashminas, loads of them. I picked three gauzy, fringed numbers, all with a similar salmon-y pink color–one striped, one solid and another with an ethnic print on it–to wrap these lime green pillows on the couch.


For all three of these pillows, I placed the square green pillow in the middle of the scarf, sarong or pashmina, then followed these same steps for each one.

I wrapped the pillow like a present, folding in either side widthwise.

Then I folded the long sides of the scarf around the pillow so that they overlap at the center of the pillow.

I knotted this one at the back. The striped version is knotted in the front, and the ethnic print is knotted in the front as well, but I tucked the ends in to hide the fringe and make it more about the large-scale design. To summerize the brown leather modular sofa, I used my lightweight gray scarf as a throw under my refashioned pillows.

My scarf decorating didn’t stop in the living room. This is my very boring dining table.

Nothing says summer like a crisp red, white and blue palette, so I set a patriotic table with an elegant spin.

These red-and-white tea towels came with the apartment. I used a few gold bangles I packed as napkin rings and my favorite royal blue-and-white striped scarf serves as the tablecloth for this summer soiree setup.

The last room in desperate need of a refresh? The loo. It’s white tile and lacks any storage. Luckily, I brought my collection of pretty floral toiletry bags and double-sided adhesive squares (I brought pictures from home and knew I couldn’t hang anything on the walls).

Now these colorful cases corral the things I need to keep handy by the sink–hair ties, a comb and cotton facial pads–and add a pop of vivid print to the bathroom.

Posted by Wendy
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