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From the Design Files of Heather B – Moving from the Southwest to Minnesota

Monday, August 30th, 2010

Design Question

I’m from the sunny southwest and I love light and white and comfy inviting places. We’ve moved to *Minnesota!*.  The winters are long, cold, and mostly dark all the time. I miss the light and friends being able to pop over any time of day to drink some sweet sun tea (it’s a major ordeal to leave your house in the winter here).

We just bought our first house and it has good windows/natural light. The big entertainment center will go, the divider wall and entryway tile will go, and all the trim and windows are being installed white. There is gray/tan tile in the dining room and kitchen, and our floor plan is very open – you can see the dining room and kitchen from living room. We need to put down new flooring in the living area – which is where I need help, that and paint colors.

I want a wood floor in the living room and hallway. I can’t decide if I should go with a Scandinavian look with white walls and light wood floors, or do light walls and a dark wood floor. I like the look of both, and I have found lots of photos that seem to “decorate with light” and show white on white, but none with dark couches and dark floors that don’t look cave-like, or light floors with dark couches. I’m having a hard time deciding what would look best and not make my home look dark.

Design Answer

Congratulations on your new home. What a great space! I think you made the right choice to replace all the trim and the dark-framed windows with white. You should definitely make the most of them, especially as you mentioned, come winter time, you’ll be glad for whatever natural light you get in the space.

It is my understanding that you are keeping the tile that is currently in the kitchen and dining room. Because it includes lighter hues, my instinct tells me that light wood floors with white walls would work better with the tile than a dark wood floor. I think this would also be a better choice for the hallway, since from your photograph it appears dark and very closed in – the lighter color choice will help to “open” up the hallway and make it brighter. I know you said that you would be getting rid of the entertainment center, but in terms of color, it does work well with the furniture in the room. In terms of the lighter floor color, if or when you add wood furniture to the space, I wouldn’t go any darker than your dining table or the entertainment center.

If you do go with the lighter colors for both the floor and the walls, I would also consider bringing more color into space, especially warm colors like soft yellow, pale gold, even orange. You may even want to pick two accent colors, one for one wall in the dining room and another accent color for one of the walls in the living room. Because the dining room directly faces your front door, I would pick the wall with the window on it (in the dining room) for your accent color. By placing pictures on either side of the window, or a group of pictures just on one side or adding a piece of furniture like a corner curio cabinet creates a focal point for your visitors and helps to create a welcoming atmosphere.

Thanks for writing in. Let me know how it turns out. Good luck!

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Out in the Open – Transitional Style for Open Concept Living Spaces

Friday, August 27th, 2010

If you’ve just bought a condo or purchased a loft or moved into a bachelor/studio apartment for the first time, it might have never occurred to you before how are you going to decorate a space where all the “rooms” run one into another. Do you have to stick to one wall color? How do you arrange the living room furniture? Are you going to be stuck with the kitchen in your peripheral vision while you’re watching television? Even though you have considerably less space to work with when decorating a bachelor or studio apartment than you do when moving into a condo or a loft, the principles for making an open concept floor plan comfortable and inviting will be the same. Choosing an interior design style like transitional for an open concept home, will give your living space a contemporary synergy while honoring certain traditional elements that add sophistication and a chic sensibility.

 The good news is you can choose only one for the whole space or not; it’s really a personal preference. You do however, want avoid painting the same wall two different colors even if they are a part of two distinctly different areas, like the dining room and the living room, unless it makes “sense” visually. However, picking an accent wall and choosing to paint it another color, especially a bold one, will give your transitional style living space definition, while letting you introduce more color into your interior design.

It’s important to mark out individual areas of an open concept home: having clearing defined areas, each with a specific purpose, prevents the furniture from appearing “lost” or “jumbled.” Transitional style living room furniture and dining furniture include traditional decorative and architectural elements as interpreted by contemporary design principles is a great way to decorate a condo, loft or studio apartment, because you can select furniture for the different open areas, that while still transitional in style, possess a slightly different look or feel. Even though everything is out in the open, some other ways to create the sense of separate rooms are:

  • Use a different area rug for you dining area than the one chosen for the living room
  • “Divide” up the space with strategically placed open shelf bookcases or decorative folding screens
  • Hang artwork on the walls that emphasizes what the particular space is being used for (pictures of Parisian cafes or outdoor bistros in the dining area)

When choosing furniture for an open area living space, select furniture pieces like a coffee table or an entertainment center that includes hidden storage. Dual or multi-purpose furnishings such a hallway bench or an ottoman coffee table will increase your storage options in the long run, giving you more place to tidy things away – something that is ultra important in an open design condo, loft or apartment.

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Mix and Match or Mishmash? – Eclectic Style Dining Room

Friday, August 13th, 2010

Eclectic style is appealing to many people because it isn’t just one style, but rather a pleasant mix and match of a number of different elements and influences. And because it’s the one style that is unashamedly not bound by rules, it is a good place to start if you’re consciously decorating a room or living space for the first time. While there may not be prescribed rules for eclectic style, when planning a dining room interior design, there are some general guidelines to keep in mind so that everything works together and even though different elements are involved, the overall effect ends up harmonious.

Balance

A dining room can often end up naturally eclectic. When furnishing a dining room, of course the most important piece of furniture is the dining set. You chose contemporary style for your dining area because the lines were casual and relaxed, and you could easily blend it with the kitchen which had been already decorated. Once the dining table and matching chairs have been bought and used for awhile, you might want to repurpose a dresser as a sideboard or add an armoire or china cabinet that was given to you by a favorite aunt. The styles don’t match, but that’s okay. It’s eclectic. The first trick to eclectic style decorating is balance – balance the contemporary dining table with your aunt’s traditional china cabinet; the oversized traditional cabinet with a transitional sideboard; the bold wall color with earth-toned or neutral upholstered dining chairs.

Furniture

Furniture for an eclectic dining room should include a variety of profiles, lines and finishes. But again, keep balance in mind. While you want to mix and match more contemporary furnishings with traditional reproduction pieces, you will want to do so in moderation. Yes, there are no rules, but for eclectic style to really work, moderation and even restraint can save your dining room interior design from becoming too busy or even making the space feel claustrophobic.

Finishing Off

Eclectic style allows you to create the exact mood that you want for your dining room – it can be formal in the traditional sense; chic with a causal vibe; laid-back or dramatically sophisticated. Layering is important: a clever blend of textures, colors and finishes give an eclectic style dining room meaning and depth. When accessorizing, don’t forget to pair a collectible pottery jug with an antique-style porcelain piece; window treatments, rugs and furniture fabrics are a mix of materials like silk and wool; and a variety of finishes like distressed wood finishes matched with wrought iron and brass lamp bases.

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Country Living Cottage Style – Cottage Style Dining Room Ideas

Friday, July 30th, 2010

Today in the last part of this 3-part mini series “Country Living Cottage Style,” we’re focusing on the dining room. A cottage style dining room reflects lazy days spent by the lake or a place to come back to after a long trek through the woods or down a winding  lane in farm country. It’s comfortable, cozy and completely charming. If done “right,” it will give you the impression that time is not so important and this wonderful evening with family and friends is not going to end any time soon. Cottage style is eclectic and can be as casual (taking its cues from country) or as sophisticated (incorporating more traditional influences) as you want it to be.

When choosing a color palette for you cottage style dining room, pick earth tones, preferably more intense shades than lighter – the yellows and golds of autumn leaves; the greens found in moss, forests and grasses; and the browns and reds of the earth itself.

Another option is to start with antique white or soft cream. Then add a bold accent color or paper one wall with classic floral wallpaper in a bright hue. This will provide an ideal background for a two-tone dining table like the one that is part of the Jofran 7 pc.Round to Oval Dining Set. While two-tone finishes are often found in country style dining rooms, it also works well in a cottage style dining room interior décor design, adding visual interest and texture.

Cottage style furniture is typically made of wood, but as demonstrated by the Stanley Furniture Portofino Ivory Wood and Metal Table, iron is a natural element to throw into the mix. The metal base of the dining table includes traditional scrollwork that looks great when paired with wood. Popular woods used in the construction of cottage style dining furniture are pine, oak and ceder. Common finishes include pine, antique white, distressed and washed. It’s not uncommon for cottage style case goods such as sideboards, buffets, dresses, china cabinets or hutches to have beadboard panels or louvered doors.

Consider adding a large dresser to your dining room – it will perfectly emphasize the comfortable and versatile nature of cottage style while giving you an ideal place for storing tableware and displaying items like jugs, baskets and decorative plates. It is also an ideal way to re-purpose a now unused dresser from a redecorated bedroom.

A cottage style dining room is ideal for a home with children because it is an eclectic style, allowing you the freedom to be a laid-back or as formal as you want it to be. It’s easy to get that certain look that will make your dining room the place to entertain (with or without the kids around). Just remember to mix and match collectibles with more traditional reproduction pieces; when dressing windows use at least two different patterned fabrics like pairing gingham with floral; and finally, when accessorizing, don’t forget to include some natural, organic elements such as ceramic bowls, pottery jugs, heavy iron or stone candlesticks.

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Global Warmth – Global style dining room

Friday, June 25th, 2010

If travel appeals to or you like to memorabilia from around the world, global style might be the interior design for you when decorating a dining room. Like shabby chic or French country, global style is an eclectic decorating style that takes its influences from around the globe. And for this reason, it is also known as international or world style. A global style dining room can reflect a trip to a Moroccan bazaar, market day in a village in India or a street market in Sri Lanka.

Gobal style is a growing interior design trend because it appeals to our sense of adventure, exploration and curiosity about the world around us. This trend’s popularity is also due to the “global village” our world has become – no corner of the globe seems beyond our reach. And as we move from one place to another, irregardless of borders, the cultural mosaic of any one particular geographic area is constantly evolving. Inspiration for a dining set like the Stanley Furniture Sunset Key 7 Piece Cinnamon Bay Dining Set tables can be found in objects from some exotic location of the world. And because of this, global style is rich in textures, colors and shapes. Decorative motifs like palm leaves, pineapple tops and exotic animals or tropical flowers are common.

When choosing dining furniture for your global style dining room, think natural fibers for upholstered dining chairs, window treatments and area rugs; teak, mahogany and other tropical woods for furniture pieces like a dining table, buffet or china cabinet; bamboo, rattan and tortoise shell as accent materials for tabletops, case goods and chair back inserts. While the overall appearance of global style furniture can range from the sophisticated to the rustic, its predominate characteristic is a hand-crafted look that comes from the use of a distressed finish, natural materials such as cane or rattan or matched veneers in a distinctive pattern.

Wall colors can be as bold or as muted as you desire. Reds, purples, oranges and golds would be a good starter palette for inspiration for a global style dining room. Accessorizing is easy – choose framed prints (or select pictures from your own collection of photographs) of exotic locales. Upholstered chairs can be made of brightly colored woven fabrics; fabrics for window treatments might be made of silk, brocade or damask. Layer the room throughout with objects de arte like ceramic elephants, Indonesian masks and oversized iron candlesticks. As with any eclectic style, and global style is no exception, the way you design and decorate your global style dining room will be totally unique to you.

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From Coast to Coast – Coastal Dining Room

Friday, June 4th, 2010

Coastal style is a growing trend in interior design for many reasons. Neutrals are paired with punches of color; more formal or traditional furniture pieces blend happily with items crafted from organic materials; and a mix of fabrics that are both casual and dressy typically balance each other to create the atmosphere of a seaside resort. East coast living is different from the west coast lifestyle and for those living along tropical or Mediterranean coastlines, it’s different yet again. In other words, coastal style can be anything from totally casual to informal sophistication. If you want the feeling of the casual formality found homes with an ocean view, here are some ideas for decorating a coastal dining room that will be a place to relax with family and friends.

Since coastal style can be relaxed and casual, reminiscent of spending a day at the beach or a reflection of living by a lake or an ocean, choose a paint color for the walls that will bring water, sun, sand or sky into the room. Whether the palette leans more toward neutral tones or is brighter, will depend on the specific coast you have picked for your dining room’s focus. For example, vibrant hues such as coral, marine blue and primary yellow are reminiscent of the west coast, while sandy creams and softer grays say east coast.

A coastal dining room should have a cohesive and tranquil feel, even if you mix and match different furniture styles and/or coastal motifs. Wood is good; a wood dining table with a medium to dark wood finish or a white one with a washed or distressed finish is an excellent place to start. To create a relaxed dining environment, select furniture pieces with painted finishes such as white, lemon and cream that bring a sunny day spent by the ocean into your home. For a more exotic feel, pick a dining table like the Tommy Bahama Home Island Estate Cayman Pedestal Dining Table with matching chairs that has a richer finish and includes organic elements such as a cane inlay apron.

A coastal dining room is inspired by the diverse lifestyles, themes and activities associated with living by the sea or another type of body of water. Many interior designers feel that it’s those little touches that “make or break” a room: when accessorizing a coastal style dining area, choose items made of bamboo, rattan, cane or shells. Popular motifs for coastal style accessories are nautical stripes, anchors, coastal birds, seahorses and starfish. Tropical flowers and palm leaves are common patterns for upholstered dining chair fabric. Common decorative detailing for coastal accent pieces like a sideboard or a china cabinet include shutters, louvers or beadboard panels.

A coastal dining room is truly eclectic, utilizing a number of furniture styles such as country, traditional or even contemporary. It also incorporates natural elements like woven sea grass area rugs or objects like lamps, candlesticks and pictures made from shells. This style of dining room will make you feel as though every day is a holiday by the sea.

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Urban Sprawl – Urban Style for Smaller Living Spaces

Wednesday, June 2nd, 2010

 

Urban style is ideal for smaller living spaces like apartments and condominiums because furniture pieces are specifically designed in scale for an upbeat, metropolitan lifestyle. This style can have an edgy, minimalist feel that borders on modern but still has some decorative detail and tapered or more relaxed lines and profiles. For a contemporary urban style living space, think darker finishes; furniture pieces with metal accents, glass tops or ceramic inlays; and at least a leather recliner if not a sofa or a loveseat.

Urban Living Room

Determine if you want a deep or lighter color palette for the walls, window treatments, any area rugs and fabrics, but definitely keep it neutral or earth toned. Select a coffee table, end tables and an entertainment center that has a dark, smooth finish, either ebony, java or espresso. In this urban living room interior design, the Tema Atlas Entertainment Center is the definitive focal point. But in an urban style living room you don’t necessarily have to stick to just one. Even though the living space might be smaller, urban style welcomes those conversational groupings that often require one or more focal points in the same room. Choose a type of couch that will be a space saver, like a convertible sofa or a sleeper sofa. That’s another thing about urban style; it’s highly functional and multi-purpose.

Urban Dining Room

An urban style dining room is trendy, yet with an air of timeless sophistication. Furniture designs are compact; the profiles of accent pieces like sideboards, servers or china cabinets are crisp and clean; and lines are relaxed, slightly curved or gently tapered. The back of a dining chair might be curved while the legs of the dining table are elegantly shaped. Choose warm earth toned upholstered chairs like the ones that make up the Hillsdale Verona 5-Piece Square Dining Set and put them against a backdrop of rich color. In this way, even though the urban style dining furniture possesses a relatively simple design, the color works with the lighting and the furniture to create a unique look that grab’s your attention, while being inviting and warm.

Urban Bedroom

Urban style bedroom furniture is beautiful to look at. While it has origins in contemporary design it goes one step further by being adaptable and flexible in specific urban environments such the condo or the apartment. The Modus Mondrian Leather Panel Platform Bed 4 Piece Bedroom Set has a casual, understated elegance that is typical of urban style. The lines are soothingly simple; the hardware displays a high-polished chic; and the leather panels of the bed give the room’s overall design a sense of cosmopolitan luxury. This is a bed you will want to ply with plenty of pillows in different textures and colors. Choosing to decorate your bedroom with an urban design will give it a contemporary urban flair that is unique to you.

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From the Design Files of Heather B – From Bachelor Pad to 3-Bedroom House

Monday, May 17th, 2010

Design Question

I just recently bought a home in [this city] and have moved from my one bedroom apartment into a 3 bed/2 bath/pool home, with hardwood floors and 1960s style bathrooms (all ceramic tile at weird angles). I have some cheap furniture which I brought in from my apartment but there is not much — literally, just have a small couch, chair, coffee table, bed, dresser — and I am not interested in keeping it.

I want to begin to furnish my home but I do not want to just start purchasing furniture without some sort of plan. I want to develop a theme for my home and furnish it accordingly. Interior design and decorating is not my forte, to say the least. I am a young sales professional and want to furnish my home to reflect this. Basically, I am looking for help with a theme or style. I tend to be minimalistic but also want my home to be comfortable. Thanks so much for your help.

Design Answer

I don’t know why, but when I read your question the words “1960s bathrooms” and “minimalistic” brought to mind jazz. Jazz music is all about improvisation, slick riffs and saxophones that have their own special language. But you don’t have to like jazz to create the look for your home that I have in mind. Minimalist is typically associated with modern style – it doesn’t have to “cold” or “bare.” Transitional style, a combination of traditional and contemporary styles sounds like it also might be a viable option for your living space.

Make a Plan

Make a plan for each room in your home. It sounds like there might be bathroom renos in your future. Don’t forget to incorporate any renos into the long-term vision for your interior design plan. It should include the following for each room you wish to redecorate and/or furnish:

Select a style or theme. An interior design style refers to the overall appearance of the furniture, while a theme is more the look and feel of the room based on a particular personal interest like a favorite sports team, sport you like to participate in or other hobby or interest. For that chill improv vibe whenever someone walks into your home

I would select transitional furniture or modern furniture in warm wood colors.

What needs to be done? If you’re not happy with the room’s wall color, while the space is relatively empty, now would be a good time to paint or wallpaper. In keeping with either modern or transitional styles, choose soothing neutrals such as beige, white or taupe or earth tones such as sand, light browns or sage. These color palettes will also apply when choosing window treatments, furniture and fabrics.

Measure each room so that you will know exactly how much space you have to work with.

Make a List

List the furniture pieces you would like to buy. For the bedroom, your list might include a platform bed, two nightstands, a double dresser, floor mirror, new area rug and new blinds.

Set a budget. Knowing how much you are willing to spend on each item you need to purchase will be easier on your wallet. It might also be useful to setup a timeline that corresponds to your budget so that you’re not purchasing everything at once. It sounds like you want to project a certain image – you will probably be looking for furniture items in the mid-price range. Consider buying what you need in sets, such as a bedroom set, sofa set or a dining set. It’s more economical than purchasing each piece separately.

Make it Happen

Once you know roughly what kinds of things you want for each room, it will be easier to comparison shop. Don’t forget about e-tailers – the internet furniture market has become very competitive, which is great for the consumer because you can find some really good deals online.

You mentioned a pool – if you can see the pool from, let’s say your living room or dining room window, and definitely plan on making it a focal point of the room.

When you are ready to place the furniture in each room, start with the largest items first. Don’t forget to take into account traffic flow and space for opening doors, drawers, etc.

Hope this is helpful in giving you a starting point. Thanks for writing in. Come back next Monday when we tackle another interior design question. Keep sending me those emails and don’t forget to include pictures if you can.

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Country Style Make-over: Modern Country for the Dining Room

Friday, May 7th, 2010

Modern country is like shabby chic but with the focus on mixing vintage country pieces with modern or contemporary design components. Essential traditional decorative elements are reused, reinvented and revitalized for a style that can be individualized in such a way that it is truly unique. In the third part of this series, we will look at how to give a dining room a modern country make-over.

Step #1 – Color

Choose one wall for the accent color. Start with one of these earth-toned shades by Benjamin Moore and pair it with this lush accent color. Classic country shades such a lemon and sunshine yellows, spring greens and soft blues that imitate the color of spring skies are pumped up and given a contemporary boost.

Step #2 – The Dining Set

 Modern country style dining furniture possesses flowing but sleek lines; decorative detail that’s been contained and refined; and organic elements used in surprising ways. For every rustic element, counter-balance it with contemporary or modern design principles – an unfinished pine tabletop with brushed steel door handles; leather or microfiber side chairs with wood table that has a classic two-toned finish, one dark, the other whitewashed. To create this particular look, take the Hillsdale Embassy Cherry Top Pedestal Table and pair it with the more contemporary styled Homelegance Europa Dark Brown Parson Chair.

 Step #3 – The Focal Point

Place the Lifestyle California Crestline Buffet and Hutch against the accent wall to create a focal point. This transitional flavored hutch brings a breath of contemporary into the mix to give this dining room its modern country look.

Step #4 – Mix and Match Assessories

Modern country is all about mixing classic country furniture pieces, nubby fabrics like wool and other organic elements like woven cane backrests with modern and contemporary accents. Vintage lamps with neutral colored silk shades; ultrasuede upholstered side chairs placed on top of an area rug woven of natural materials like jute or a chandelier that at first glance appears as if its traditional country but it’s made of a contemporary material like polished nickel are just a few of the different ways you can get a modern country look that will perfectly express your personality and lifestyle.

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The Buffet as Modern Art

Wednesday, May 5th, 2010

Buffets and sideboards make serving meals and entertaining easier and more enjoyable. While they both essentially serve the same purpose – storing meal-related items such as china, utensils and table linens – there are some subtle differences between the two. Typically, a sideboard resembles a table and includes a center drawer especially designed for either linens or silverware and an open or enclosed area for storing or displaying larger items. Buffets first emerged in the Middle Ages, but today they largely resemble a long, waist-high cabinet with one or a number of doors and/or drawers.

A focal point is generally the place or a specific item that the eye is naturally drawn to when first entering a room. It gives a particular room definition, creating visual interest by adding texture and “weight” to the space. But consider this: when planning a dining room, augmenting your existing dining furniture or improving the area by making it more functional, take a buffet of sideboard that is more similar to a piece of modern art than it is to dining furniture and make it the focal point of the room.

For that Contemporary Look

If your dining room has a contemporary décor, look for a buffet or sideboard that will match or complement the furniture currently in the dining room. If there are other furniture pieces with hardware, you might want to choose a buffet that has a similar kind of drawer pull or door handle. The veneer insets of the doors of the Coaster Buffet Server definitely qualify as artwork. It is also a great example of how the buffet’s design adds texture to the room.

 For that Transitional Look

Transitional is a happy combination of traditional and contemporary styles. Choose a buffet or sideboard that has restrained decoration – not too much and not too little. The hand-painted door and drawers fronts make of the transitional Ultimate Accents 58″ Sideboard an enchanting work of art. 

For that Modern Look

The Modloft Greenwich Sideboard is ultra-modern. Its lines are clean and angular; there are no decorative elements and stainless legs and hardware paired with grained woods are all hallmarks of modern style. The use of veneers and the “floating” appearance of the body of this sideboard gives it its modern art appeal.

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