There are some design terms that I've heard since I was a little girl...{I grew up with an Antiques Auctioneer as a father and "Chinoisserie" and "Trompe l'ouile" were things that were regular vocabulary words around our house). But every now and then a design term comes up that throws me for a loop and sometimes as I'm saying the name of something, I wonder if I'm pronouncing it correctly. So I've reviewed and rounded up a few for us all.
Ever wondered if you're pronouncing "Matalesse" correctly?
Have you murdered "Ikat"?
NOW YOU'LL KNOW!
Armoire: NOT "
arm-wah" but "
ahrm-wahr".
 |
| French Armoire |
Aubusson: "Oh-be-ssonn"
 |
| Traditional design Aubusson Rug |
Bergere: "Bear-zhjere"
 |
| Traditional style of a Bergere Chair |
Chaise Lounge: "
Shayze Lounge"
 |
| Deco Tufted Chaise Lounge |
Chenille: "Shuh- neel"
 |
| Diamond Chenille Pillow |
Chinoisserie: "Sheen-waz-air-ee"
 |
| Chinoisserie Patterned Fabric |
Chintz: "
Chints"
 |
| Chintz slipcovered sofa |
Damask: "dam-ask" {from Damascus}
 |
| Damask Wallpaper |
Demilune:
"Demi-loon" {half-moon, half-round}
 |
| Demilune Varieties |
Dupioni: "Doo-pee-oh-nee"
 |
| Dupioni Silk |
Duvet: "Doo-VAY"
 |
| Floral Duvet Cover |
Etagere: "e-taj-air"
 |
| Etagere |
Faux Bois: "foh-BWAH"
 |
| Faux Bois Area Rug |
Grisaille: "griz-EYE" {rhymes with POPEYE}
 |
| Gresaille = Monochromatic landscape |
Ikat: "ee-kot"
 |
| Ikat Pillows |
Kilim: "Kil-leem"
 |
| Kilim Rugs and Pillows |
Klismos: "kliz-moss"
 |
| Klismos chair |
Luxe: "lucks"
 |
| "Luxe" is anything that is "elegantly sumputious", "LUXURIOUS" |
Matalesse: "Mat-luh-say"
Niche: "Nitch" or "Neesh", either is acceptable
 |
| You may find that you have a knack for knowing what to put in your niche. |
Patina: Pa-teen-a
 |
| Here is an example of a beautiful weathered patina on this metal door knocker |
Pique: "Pee-KAY"
 |
| Cotton Pique Bedskirt |
Striae: "stree-AY'
 |
| Striae Teal Wallpaper |
Tartan: "tart-n" not
"TAR-TAN"
 |
| Tartan Pillow |
Toile: "twall"
 |
| Toile fabric skirted sink |
Tolix: "toll-ix"
 |
| Tolix Chair |
Trompe l'ouile: "tromp-LU-ihl"
 |
| Trompe 'louile Tee-shirt (tricked you with painted on depth/objects)- tricked and faked with paint |
and/or
 |
Charles Peale Trompe 'louile "Staircase" painting, 1795
(um, there isn't really a dude in knickers and a staircase there, it's just a wall). |
Tulle: "tool"
 |
| no matter your age, any gal loves a tulle skirt |
Vitrine: "Veh-TREEN"
 |
| Vitrines are cabinets used to store or display |
Wainscoting: "Wains-COT" or "Wains-COATing", either is acceptable
 |
Board and Batten, Beadboard, and many other types of wall treatments fall under
the "WAINSCOTING" woodwork category |
And just to let you know I double checked all on Wiki and a fab design industry site:
Plinth & Chintz
So have you ever been guilty of mis-pronouncing any of these words?
Are there any that I've left out that you'd like to add to the list?
Leave them in the comments :)
XXXOOO
Totally did not know how to pronounce some of these! Love that chaise! So want it! Jenna @ Rain on a Tin Roof
ReplyDeleteyay!! so glad that you liked it and that it may have been helpful!! I had fun finding pictures and that tufted chaise has been a fav of mine for a while now!!
DeleteThis was such a good idea! One to add maybe is Valance. I hear a lot of "va-LANCE". I need some help with Tromp 'louile. I've been saying Tromp- loy. How do you say it right again? I don't get that pronunciation key. I don't know about you, but I sometimes feel like a goober saying things like -"I'll put this in a Vahz in the neesh of the foy-yah!" but it does make me feel more designer-y. LOL!
ReplyDeleteYES!!! Valance!!! The "va-LANCE" pronunciation drives me NUTS! So, Tromp 'louile is a weird one. Most of the design terms have latin and french bases, so sound snooty when you say it and it will sound correct. It sort of goes like this "Tromp LOY"... but you sort of roll your tongue when you say "LOY". I just googled a pronunciation so you can listen to it!! http://www.howjsay.com/index.php?word=trompe-l'oeil
DeleteSO glad you stopped in and left your comment- I always feel like I'm playing grown up when I pronounce these words- at least I feel more confident saying them now :) Stop back in soon!!!
Love this post! I was wondering about a few of those myself, and now I know! Thanks!
ReplyDeleteHi Lisa! Thanks so much for coming over and for your sweet comment! Love your blog and so glad to get to know you! XXXOOO!
DeleteSuch a informative blog you have written. I want to suggest you all something that recently i have purchased the bedding products from aanyalinen.com and they are worth buying.
ReplyDelete