Interior Redesign and Home Staging Blog

Textural Decorating Tips

Texture refers to the way that an object feels when it’s touched or rubbed against. However in decorating, texture is also a visual element. That is because when you look at an object, your mind brings up a lot of different information about it. This includes the way it feels when you touch it or hold it. Thus, when you walk into a space, you are not only seeing the various surfaces, you are also imagining the way they feel, and thus, to a lesser extent, experiencing that textural sensation, without even having to reach.

This can be exemplified by imagining a cold, blustery, winters evening. You step into the house and the first thing that you see is a thick fuzzy blanket, lying drooped across the couch. As soon as your gaze falls on this object, your mind is going to access memories of being nestled under the covers, its going to bring up thoughts of softness, and warmth, and in a way just viewing this item will make you feel a little less cold.

In general fuzzy items are going to make a space feel warmer. This can be as simple as adding pillows or throws to a room, but can also extend into features such as thick velvet curtains, or soft fluffy throw rugs. Couch and seat liners can also be used to add a little cozy comfort to the rooms seating arrangements.

The opposite effect can be achieved by using smooth, sleek surfaces. The flatter and more solid an item, the less heat it will tend to retain, making these objects inherently colder than their fuzzy counterparts. Just think about the cool smooth texture of glass, steel, or polished marble decor. These materials have a formal, chilly energy, that will make a room seem more remote and less hot, a trick which can be used to good effect during warm summer months.

Sleek polished textures also tend to indicate a more modern style when used in the home. The natural world is often rough and rustic, and it’s only in recent decades that we have developed the ability to mass produce perfectly formed designs. That means that anything which looks like it was manufactured by a machine is going to have a contemporary feel, which can lend a modern sensibility to your home.

By contrast items with a rougher or more rugged texture will tend to connect a space back to the natural living world. The infinite imperfections which make up the texture of brick, wood, or concrete, will align with things in nature such as trees, rocks, and earth. Slate coasters will simulate the look of a mountain, while wrought iron will reconnect the space with your rustic roots.  This can be a good way to give your space a distinct personality, which will be more unique because of the imperfections that give it its appearance.

Texture is a vital element when trying to create a deep and intriguing decorative atmosphere. It can engage the senses, creating an atmosphere of warmth or chill, formality or comfort.

Tags: polished marble, slate coasters

Getting Rid of Kitchen Clutter

An ideal kitchen is neat, organized, and efficient. It is filled with a variety of tools and accessories but those objects are not clutter, because they are all necessary, and placed in an appropriate spot, where they can easily be reached without getting in the way. Such a kitchen will work with the chef, wrapping around them, lending them whatever appliance they might need without any fuss or confusion.

That’s the ideal, but throughout the course of our lives, the ideal often falls apart. As we are seduced by objects of beauty and promise, decorating ideas that seem brilliant at the time, appliances that will make our lives easier, and tools that seem so very chic, we slowly destroy the perfect dream of a completely efficient kitchen, filling the space instead with clutter, chaos, and needless items that detract from the purpose of the overall space.

However you can oppose the forces of chaos that seek to destroy your perfect kitchen. You just have to have a discerning eye, and the ability to make choices. Some items will have to be removed; others will have to be discarded. Not everything has a place when room is limited, or efficiency is at stake.

One way to make this process a little easier is to regulate it. Set it up so that every 3 months, you take a few minutes, and look at your kitchen with a discerning eye. Take a look at the various objects within the space, and try to figure out if there is anything that you haven’t actually used in the last 90 days. Those are the objects that should be placed in a box, and then set aside.

You don’t necessarily have to start throwing things out right away. Once you’ve set the nonessentials in a box, and hidden that receptacle in a closet or on a shelf, you should make a list of everything that you removed and hang it from the fridge. Then, each day as you prepare your families meals, you can look at the list and decide if there is anything that you want to pull out of storage. When the next 3 month period has passed, anything that you haven’t used from that box should go on ebay, be set aside for a yard sale, or should simply be tossed.

Removing clutter is about more than just getting rid of things. There is also an important organizational component to this process. Even if you only have a scant smattering of accessories and appliance, if they aren’t organized in a neat and efficient manner, their going to end up just being piles of useless junk that you have to sift through to find anything that you need.

Racks, shelves, dividers, and bins should all be used to separate items by necessity and function. Small kitchen tables should be utilized as work and storage space, both above and below. Once organized, everything will fit more neatly and easily into the space, instantly eliminating any clutter problems that you might have been having.

It is important to institute a system of organization in the kitchen, which not only eliminates useless, and semi useless objects, but which also takes necessities, and places them in spots where they can easily be retrieved. In this way you can maximize the efficiency in this space, while also removing any unnecessary items which might otherwise get in your way.

Tags: kitchen clutter, kitchen decor

Finding the Beauty in an Organized Home

A chaotic home can lead to a disorderly mind. If your spaces are filled with teeming mounds of useless frivolity, it’s going to be difficult to find peace. Organization is the art of segmenting your possessions, displaying those which create an attractive atmosphere, and then sorting, categorizing, and storing everything else, in such a way that you will be able to find it whenever you need it. It’s an act which can turn a chaotic mess, into a serene, and peaceful space, which will automatically relax you and cause your thoughts to be more logical, ordered, and at peace.

There are a lot of people who scoff at the idea of  decorative organization. Self professed “slobs” these people don’t bother themselves with the effort of sorting, or categorizing their possessions. Instead they prefer to stuff everything in a box, shove it in a corner, or leave it in little chaotic mounds of mish-mosh.

While it’s not inherently immoral to be disorganized, it is detrimental to your ability to succeed in the real world. Living amongst chaos will reflect in the way you interact with people on a social and professional level. It’ll be easier to forget important events, to let things slip through the cracks, and to get things mixed up. Chaos will creep into every aspect of your world, leaving your life an unpredictable ruin of confusion and clutter.

On the other hand, imagine the alternative. Straight lines, neat rows, everything at your fingertips quickly and easily. You will look around you, and know what everything is, where everything is. You’ll be able to reach out and grab any notebook, any kitchen appliance, old beverage coasters, lightly used clothing; it will all be available to you, because you actually know where it is. The space itself will feel less crowded, less claustrophobic, with more room to stretch out and actually enjoy your home. Organization is more than just a decorative tenant; it’s a way of life, one which can make everything from complex tasks, to day to day chores, easier and simpler.

Part of the beauty that is inherent in organization is the idea of design. If you take a bunch of sticks and drop them at random on the floor, it will make a mess. But if you carefully place each of those sticks in a place that means something, a place where it will be a part of a greater whole, then that big messy pile, can instead be a work of art. Chaos denotes randomness, whereas organization denotes a plan, a purpose for everything, whether it is functional, or decorative. In this way a clean, strict, sorted home will be inherently more attractive then one plagued by clutter.

These properties mean that an organized home will not only look like its being cared for, but will also have less of the claustrophobic feeling that a disorderly space will. Even if you have the same amount of possessions, organizing them into some sort of pattern will instantly create the feeling of there being more room inside of your home. This is partially an illusion, but it is also an effect of the fact that you are organizing not only the items themselves, but the empty places in between them as well. This allows you to create rows, walk ways, and clearings within the home, places of nothingness where you will be free to live.

Organization is a part of design. It is the act of taking your possessions, and actually choosing where they go rather than just letting random chance determine it. This can lead to cleaner, more open spaces, as well as a sense of logic that will carry through to the rest of your life.

Breathing New Life Into Your Home’s Décor

Every space has a personality, a unique atmosphere that makes it different from any other in the world. This is created from a variety of constituent elements including smells, temperature, architecture, and visual decorations. However, over time, a space can grow stagnant and stale. The same old look and feel, unchanging, refusing to evolve with stylistic trends or the needs of its occupants, can leave an area feeling bland and uninspired. Luckily all it takes are a few decorative touches, and a little creativity, to breathe new life into a tired and familiar space.

Unless you’re going to overhaul the entire space, you need any home décor elements which you bring in to flow naturally with the style and colors of the other pieces in the room. This means that you have to step back, and take a broad look at the overall nature of the space. Then, once you understand it as a whole, start imagining new items which can be incorporated in, or used to replace older, worn out pieces. In this way you will be able to match any new decorative endeavors to the already existing fixtures in the area.

If the room has a focal point, changing this can be an easy way to completely makeover the feel of the space. A focal point is usually an object that is either very large, or very prominently displayed within a setting. Some common elements include locks, portraits, works of art, or oversized furniture pieces, depending on where and how they are displayed within a space. These objects tend to draw the eyes, prompting people to be more aware of their presence then they are of other pieces in the room. This makes them instantly important, allowing them to set the tone for the entire atmosphere in some cases.

Walls are one of the easiest and most dramatic ways to breathe life into a room. You can elect to paint them, or use wallpaper, to bathe the area in an entirely new glow. On the other hand, works of art, unique wall clocks, or interesting hangings, can also be used to change the nature of a space. The fact that these pieces are on the wall allows them to be placed high up, and in a position where it’s easy to see them as soon as you enter the space.

If you have hardwood or natural stone flooring in the room, then a carpet or throw rug can be a good way to shake things up a bit. More subtle than the walls, floor pieces can stretch out across wider spaces, allowing you to infuse an entirely new color, or pattern, into the area.

All it really takes is one prominent piece of home décor to really change the nature of a space. Something that draws the eye, that speaks to you and others. It could be anything, but if it is powerful, and prominent, it can make the entire room feel like it is brand new.

Making Your Kitchen More Inviting

creating an inviting kitchen

The kitchen is a room with a very specific purpose, food. However it is also a source of warmth, good smells, savory treats, and all of the love that goes into the preparation of nourishment for the entire household. As such it often draws people towards it naturally, acting as a kind of social center for the home. This aspect can be enhanced using a variety of decorative and organizational tricks, which can make the space seem more comforting and inviting to the people throughout your home.

While the kitchen may be a highly functional area, there is some room for decorative endeavors. These small touches can serve to add personality to the space, changing it from a stark environment, to one with a bit of vibrancy and life.

You should be careful to limit any decorative pieces cluttering up the counter or floor space within this room however you do still have the walls to decorate in any way you see fit. Portraits, landscapes, or family images are very popular ways to add a personal touch to the space. Images of food, or other delicious, nourishing treats, can also reinforce the inherent nature of the space.

One way to add color to the space is through items such as throw rugs, or curtains. These inherently functional pieces are also quite visible, and actually add to the usage of the space. Some good kitchen colors include the whole range of earth tones, as well as various greens, and shades of white. Blue hues tend to repress hunger, and so should be avoided, and darker colors such as grays and blacks will just make the room feel claustrophobic and hot.

If you want a more dramatic effect, the walls themselves can be painted, or wall papered, to bathe the room in a particular pattern or color. However you have to be careful about which tones you use in the kitchen, as certain colors will tend to make the space feel warmer, which will in turn cause people to avoid the space, and can also interfere with the chef’s ability to work. Generally you should avoid black and red tones, as these will produce the greatest feeling of heat within the space.

Another great way to make this space seem more inviting is to add a kitchen table and chair set. This makes the kitchen a destination, not just a transient space to enter and leave. It gives people somewhere to sit, to congregate, so that they don’t have to wander aimlessly about the space, getting constantly in the way of the chef on duty. The very existence of such a set will invite people in, luring them with the promise of comfort and welcome, and giving them a place and reason to stay a little longer.

If you kitchen isn’t sized for a full table set, you can use lunch counters or a small bar setting to achieve much the same effect with only a minimum of space sacrificed. Place a couple of bar stools adjacent to these pieces and you have a destination where people can sit and eat, that doesn’t take up all that much room within the kitchens necessary floor space.

Creating an inviting kitchen is about developing an environment that makes people feel comfortable. Using color and decoration, you can give the space personality and make it feel more like a destination than just a place of work and toil. Providing a place for people to congregate and sit will also help set up the space as a functioning social center, where others are encouraged to come and enjoy one another’s company.

Decorating With Tranquil Colors

create a tranquil environment

Different colors have different meanings, and people will react to various shades and hues in vastly different ways. Some tones are more soothing, while others are energetic, and almost frenetic. By understanding the nature of color in relation to energy, you can decorate spaces that are soothing and comforting in some situations, or invigorating and exciting in others.

The first thing you should be aware of is the tone of the colors you use. Darker colors will tend to make a space feel more relaxed and subdued, while lighter colors will inevitably make the space seem more active and vigorous.

Lamps and other lighting sources are especially powerful in these situations, as the color tinted glow they cast will spread out like a blanket of hue across the room.

The exception to this rule comes in the form of contrast. When you have very dark colors paired up with very light ones, you end up with a kind of dynamic tension that causes the space to seem more energetic than it otherwise would. However if you use colors that match one another in shade, with only a slight difference in gradient, you can make even bright colors seem more relaxed and low key.

To some extent, the symbolic power of colors comes from the natural manifestations that they may represent. For instance, a deep blue might remind you of the depths of the ocean. That color represents a spirit of tranquility that will surround the room in a feeling of waves slowly washing across the endless surface of the depths, casting a quiet, relaxed ambiance across the setting.

Green tones are also generally considered to be soothing, with many shades simulating the look of the deep woods, or the serene heart of a teaming rainforest. However you have to be careful with green, as lighter hues can also give off a sickly, nauseating energy that can make an environment seem uncomfortably active, defeating the whole purpose of your color strategies.

By contrast, red tends to be an energetic color that evokes images of crimson warfare, fire and flames rising into the sky, and lava eruptions spewing forth from the peaks of mighty volcanoes. If you are trying to create a tranquil environment, red tones should generally be avoided as much as possible.

The one exception to this is in a slightly graded earth tone design. Earth tones consist of browns, reds, gold’s, and amber colors, which simulate the look of falling leaves in autumn. Here the gentle gradient allows you to use certain red colors in soothing settings, despite the dramatic overtones that they often have. The generally warm and comforting nature of the brown and tan colors in such a pattern will also tend to relax the nature of the design tempering the violent overtones of their red and golden counterparts.

Creating a tranquil environment will require you to understand the meaning and symbolism of various colors, as well as the nature of contrasting and complimentary tones. In order to do this you can look to the way colors manifest themselves in the most serene places in the natural world, and use this as a guide to using shades and tones within the home.