One of toile's charms is the sense of nostalgia evoked by the patterns.

Tip: This hot-air balloon toile is a good option for a dining room wall, with its neutral but tawny parchment background shot with blue and red.

Toile isn't just about nostalgia and whimsy. Used in the right coloration, in the right room, and in the right way, it can actually elevate a space's sophistication.

Tip: Used as a wall covering, a black-on-crème toile complements the elegance of a room's ebony floor and white woodwork. It completes the graphic effect of the contrasting neutrals, but with a slight, pleasing softening. This colorway's neutrality makes it an ideal candidate for public rooms such as the living and dining spaces.

A sophisticated kitchen pays homage to a European influence with toile-covered barstools that suggest the French countryside.

Tip: Consider toile as an upholstery choice for small accent pieces like barstools, when the goal is to make a subtle French statement.

When toile covers the walls, a break may feel good at the windows. This window treatment is especially effective because it repeats the subtle hues of the toile for visual continuity, but in a demure striped fabric that provides a respite from too much toile.

Toile doesn't have to saturate a room for a design to succeed. Red-and-white toile curtain panels make a dramatic statement flowing from ceiling to floor, eliminating the need for even a single toile pillow. The toile curtains are integrated into the room through color, not pattern-the red throw, red table skirt, and red pillows.

Toile's complex designs can visually crowd a room when displayed on every surface. A favorite for the bedroom, toile can be easily reined in by something as simple as choosing a neutral palette. Then feel free to slather it on everywhere.

Toile creates intimacy in a bedroom with soaring ceilings and abundant square footage when taken all the way to the beams and repeated on a bed canopy.

Another way to update a room designed with classic toile is to introduce a second pattern with more currency, such as the leopard rug in this bedroom.

For a visual break from the monochromatic palette of a neutral-hued toile, add the same pattern in a different, brighter color as a small accent-like the toile coverlet and bathroom curtain added to this brown-on-cream toile bedroom.

Toile often is stereotyped as a feminine fabric. For a more masculine feel, select a pattern in a dark tone that features a more active theme, like these horses.

When used as an accent like the pillow shown here, toile is an assured standout in a bright red bird motif. For the greatest impact, pop the warm pillow against a cool-colored backdrop, like the green-and-white-striped chair.

Take your favorite toile pattern and reinvent it in paint to make a plain white cabinet a piece de resistance.