Quick Design Tips Part 1

Hey all!! Happy Tuesday! I thought I'd share a few design tips with ya'll to really enhance the space you are working with!

1.) The least expensive way to change the look of the room is to paint...Even if its just an accent wall. The greatest part is if you don't like it, it's inexpensive to paint it back. Throw pillows are another great way to do the same thing. I have very neutral pieces of furniture but am able to completely change the look and theme of the room by changing the pillows.

My fireplace wall is chocolate brown and it makes a big impact on the room. The silver gilded frame adds a touch of elegance to the the room and, is a great contrast to my rustic and shabby pieces.

2.) Lighting and plants add dramatic impact. It is hard to have too many plants. People naturally feel better when they are around greenery, and they add a softness and great color to space. Plants also work as a great room divider.
Play with your lighting. Add lots of candles to set the mood for a dinner party, movie or date night. Also put your lights on dimmer switches. People look best in dimmer light and it creates great ambiance. It will make your guests feel like they are having a big night out.  I light candles and listen to jazz every evening while I am cooking or working. Setting the mood even if it's just for me makes my day seem special even if I am doing the most mundane of things.

Above, I used the plants to divide the kitchen and living area. The large palm in my family room creates movement for the eye and brings down the tall ceilings. The crystal wall sconces add glamour and great light to the room.

 

Here is a picture of my old home. The candles and larger chandelier add mood to the space.

4.) There is a big design myth out there that if your space is small you are supposed to put small scaled things in there to make it appear larger! Big lie! A small room needs large scaled looking things to make it appear bigger. Now, the piece could be small but, it should look bulky, not dinky.  Hang Curtains higher than the actual window. If your ceilings are much taller than the window then hang it about 8" above your window. If you have shorter ceilings, hang them an inch or two below the ceiling. This will make the room appear  taller and the window larger. The same rule goes for hanging drapes a bit outside the width of the window to make it appear wider. Unfortunately, I am unable to do this in my apartment because there are studs that completely surround the windows :(
 Large chandeliers, pictures, and drapes hung high will do the trick. Your place will look so grand if you follow this design rule.

This is my clients kitchen and it's extremely tiny. The large light fixture makes the space seem grand and the drapes hung a bit above the windows make the windows appear to be larger and the ceilings taller. Vertical Panels will give it that effect and a horizontal valence will bring the ceiling and window down.

3.) Put things in your home that make you happy and give it charm...You don't want your place to look like you ordered everything out of a catalogue and everyone in the country has the same thing. Find unique pieces at thrift shops, junk yards and yard sales and make it your own. Most things in your home should have a story to go along with it. Like I have said in the past... pull out your family treasures (NOT the old plaid recliner) and put them to good use!

This is a shelf in my room with special goodies. Everything on it has a story.

 

I just love my fruit crate night stands. they have a ton of  charm and were dirt cheap. Check out the Fruit Crate Nightstand post for more details. The headboard was built by my amazing hubby and our friend Jeff. It's made of painted moulding and fabric wrapped around foam core board. I found the headpiece for a couple bucks across the street from the Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco at a yard sale.  It was ripped out of an old Victorian mansion.  I love it!!

 

This is the top of a desk in one of my clients homes, and is filled with family treasures.

Here is my vintage stack of luggage. It stores things, works as a side table and its

holding party favors on top for a brunch I just hosted.

This is a side table at my clients and, it holds colorful toy trucks that were in the family, old school books, and a vintage mason jar filled with shells that were collected on family vacations.

5.) Having trouble picking out a color scheme? Base your room off of a picture, painting, rug or piece of fabric. Usually it will have all the colors (main and accent) pulled together for you. Another idea is to go to the paint store and they will have color combinations on swatches that already look fantastic together. It is a free and easy to carry around guide while you are shopping and looking for things for your home.  If you are picking out a bold color for your wall pick out your fabrics and rugs first!!!! It is much easier to match paint to a piece of fabric, rug or painting than it is to match all of that to a paint color.

I pulled colors from this picture when I designed my room.

Hope you enjoyed these tips and I have much more to come!

Be blessed and live beautifully!