“Secrets to a Sensational Room…using what you already
have!”...
by Sandy Dixon, Interior Arrangements, Inc. ©2004
Are you confused as to how to ‘pull a room together’? Do you want
your home to feel more spacious, warm and inviting? You might be tempted
to add another chair, piece of artwork or accessory hoping it will
magically transform the room---instead the space feels more disjointed
and cluttered. The thought of buying all new furnishings is not only
daunting from a time perspective, but a very costly endeavor.
The solution is literally surrounding you! By creatively using
the possessions you’ve accumulated over the years, you can make your
home more visually appealing and comfortable---a place where your family
will want to spend more time.
By showcasing your home’s best features and maximizing the furnishings,
artwork and accessories you already own, your home will reflect who you
are and provide an inviting and interesting environment for your
guests.
First things first: Dealing with your ‘stuff’:
To give a room a fresh, new look and feel, clear all surfaces AND clear
your mind as well…completely forgetting the way the space looked before.
Use an adjacent room’s floor or a large counter or table top to sort the
items you remove from the room. Sort ‘like’ items according to function,
theme, color, or substance. For example, put all candles together in one
area, all greenery in another and follow the same guidelines for
glassware, pottery, books, collections, lamps, etc.
Next, evaluate and remember… less is more! Use what you like and
what you have, but take a hard look at what you’ve got. Be critical. Ask
yourself which pieces you still really need and love---the remainder can
be donated, taken to a consignment store or sold at a yard sale.
Tips for ‘Rebuilding’ Your Room:
Group like items. Cluster like objects -- they’ll stand out more and
make a more dramatic impression. Group them according to color, finish,
or theme, instead of having items spread throughout the room.
“Tack” your lighting. Much like a sailboat needs its sails tacked
in a triangle in order to achieve balance and flow, your rooms will
benefit from a triangular placement of lamps in order to equally
distribute light throughout the room.
Free Zones. No matter how much stuff you have, you need to have
some surfaces free of objects---especially windowsills. To fully
appreciate your collections and treasures, there needs to be
alternating, empty areas to balance the accessorized areas. Create
important ‘pauses’ by utilizing negative space when hanging artwork and
arranging accessories. Place artwork or photos on every other wall, and
notice the increased focus on the objects.
Cluster plants and pillows. Instead of spreading plants
individually throughout the room, group them together for a more
dramatic effect. Gathering pillows together on sofas, beds and chairs
adds more color and interest to the room.
Furniture finesse. To maximize flow, resist the urge to push all
your furnishings against the wall. Pull the big pieces away from the
walls, you’ll be surprised how much more spacious it makes the room
feel.
Cross-utilize and rotate items. Just because something has always
been in a particular room, doesn’t mean it can’t be ‘reinvented’ and
revitalized in a new setting. Think outside the decorating box! A bench
found in the basement becomes a side table to accent the couch.
Bookshelves, once cluttered haphazardly with an assortment of
knickknacks, become a display area for a collection of teapots and jars.
In the next edition of Mountain Homes, my topic will be “Shelf
Esteem…creatively accessorizing bookshelves, mantels and display
cabinets”.
Sandy Dixon, owner of Interior Arrangements, Inc. is a Professional Real
Estate Stager and former Realtor. In addition to her redesign services,
she offers training workshops, business coaching and speaking
engagements nationwide. WB2 Television recently did a 2-part series on
one of Sandy’s Staging projects and she is frequently featured in
industry and real estate publications. Sandy can be reached at toll free
1.877.674.8667 or visit her website at
www.interiorarrangements.com
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