Interior Design

Making The Most Of Your Open Floor Plan

October 1, 2019

I’ll be honest; I’m particularly fond of the open floor plan trend that just keeps on trending. To be sure, there are advantages to compartmentalization – especially when it comes to privacy and/or hiding the mess from guests. However, in my experience, the pros of open floor plans far outweigh the cons.

Ideas For Getting the Most Out of Your Open Floor Plan

Open floor plans offer several advantages: they are spacious or can provide the idea of space in smaller homes, they are great for families – allowing parents to keep their eyes and ears on children of all ages – and open floor plans are the best idea for serial entertainers.

With all of those benefits in mind, the following ideas will help you to enjoy an open floor plan design to its fullest and will make future redecorating easier.

Be proactive and practical. Before you get started choosing colors, furniture and fixtures, you need think about the practical realities of the space you have to work with. What areas do you need to have (food prep, dining, toys, living room, pet areas, etc.). How many people will be using these spaces on a regular basis? What’s the square footage of the available space? Which dimensions need to be respected in terms of moving around the kitchen comfortably, scooting chairs back to eat while leaving enough room for others to pass by, the general walking flow of the space? The more practical you are at the outset, the better use of space, function and flow you will enjoy when the design is complete.
What are you living with now? Changing major structural components like load bearing walls or posts, windows, exterior doors, etc., can be quite costly. Unless you have an unlimited budget, it’s best to identify structural limitations now so you can design an open floor plan that integrates with existing features. An experienced interior designer can be a lifesaver if you are struggling to “make it work,” because she has the ability to picture various configurations in her mind and, odds are the designer has created an open floor plan with similar features or limitations in the past. Even if you don’t plan to hire an interior designer for the long-term, paying for a consultation or two is well-worth the investment.
What are your priorities for the future? Now that you’ve listed your practical reality, it’s time to live in the dream world. What are your priorities for these spaces in the current moment? How will your household change in the next five years? What about the next 10 or 20 years? What type of energy, space, or functional/playful aspects would you like the home’s living spaces to facilitate? Your open floor plan will evolve more fluidly if you design flexibly and in a way that minimizes any modifications or transitions that may arise in the future.
Unified but segregated. Here’s where things get really fun. In an open floor plan, everything is visible and sort of layered against everything else. This means there needs to be a certain level of continuity or agreement between the colors, patterns, textiles and furnishings in the individual spaces. At the same time, clearly defining each area from the rest helps to set the tone and mood. A monochromatic paint scheme is one way to accomplish this, using textiles and furnishings to add a different tone or subtle energy differences to each space. Or, you can choose complementary colors that look great together but set color boundaries between the kitchen and family room, and between the living area and formal dining room.
Focus on transitions. How will the spaces transition from one to the next? One of my favorite ways to do this is to have a unified hard surface flooring material for the entire space. Then, area rugs and even layered area rugs can be used to anchor specific seating areas, to define spaces and to create different moods or tones – soft, warm, cool, contemporary, traditional, cozy, formal, etc.
Layouts and arrangements. Most rooms are laid out or organized along either linear or axial arrangements. Linear arrangements will create zones or living areas that are arranged along a straight line. These are quite flexible and the key is to keep it all in alignment with that invisible guideline so things remain balanced and proportional. Axial organization means arrangements that use two or more differing center-points. For example, the kitchen and dining room are arranged around one line while the family, reading or toy areas are arranged in alignment with another. Axial arrangements can be a bit trickier but work well in larg spaces. The path and access ways between the two become a focal point on their own

Are you interested in creating an open floor plan in your older bay area home? Or, perhaps you’d like assistance redesigning the one you have. Contact me here at Kristina Wolf Design so we can schedule a consultation.

How To Make Choosing The Perfect Wallpaper A Non-Issue

September 22, 2019

Don’t neglect the idea of wallpaper when you’re looking for a way to add color, pattern or visual interest to a living space. Unlike paint, which is typically applied in a single color – or requires significantly accurate measuring and taping to create a perfect pattern – wallpaper is available in a seemingly infinite array of colors, patterns, styles – and even textures.

Tips for Choosing Just-Right Wallpaper For Your Space

Here are tips for selecting the right paper for your walls.

Identify your goal. What is your goal for the space? There are so many stunning prints out there these days, that it’s easy to get swept away by all the possibilities when you’re standing amidst the selections. Instead, identify your main goals so you can focus on the right possibilities when you get there. Are you trying to add texture? Depth? Reflective value? Want to set a tone or tell a story? Would you like to add some wow factor? Bring these goals with you as you shop for wallpaper and cull through the samples.
Did we say paper? Yes, it’s called wallpaper, but we should really use the term wall covering because there are so many different materials out there. Today’s wall coverings are made from a range of materials, like Japanese silk, sisal, cork or grass cloth. They are printed to look like a mural or the finest artistic renderings. You can select wall coverings that are perfectly illustrated and textured to mimic natural stone or wood. Make sure you’ve looked at, felt and imagined all of the above before making your choice.
Sample, sample, sample. Just like carpet, cabinet doors or tiles, you can get wallpaper samples to try out in your home. I highly recommend you do so, putting the samples in place and living with them for a while so you can see how they feel, whether you love them consistently, and how they are affected by changes in light or by the view from other rooms. That brings us to the next tip…
Imagine it from other surroundings. Do you have an open floor plan or is a section of your prospective wall-papered space visible from another room or area? If so, consider all of the surroundings. You may find that the wallpaper you’re planning as an accent wall in your dining or living room doesn’t look so hot when viewed from an adjacent room with a different color or pattern scheme. It might clash, appear over-busy or be visually jarring.
Don’t limit yourself. If you love a busy pattern or a bold color but feel it will be overwhelming, consider creative alternatives. For example, it might make more sense to use the wallpaper on only one wall, as a half wall, or in panels with beautiful wood trim around them. That way you get to have the pattern or color you want, while retaining the ability to tone the effect down a bit using the blank space(s) around it.
Go professional all the way. One of the reasons wallpaper can feel so daunting is that it isn’t as easy to “do-over” when compared to paint. Yes, you can do it on your own, and if you’ve successfully applied wallpaper in the past, then go for it. I, on the other hand, feel that it’s worth every penny to work with a professional wallpaper installer. First, the installer will know exactly how much paper you’ll need, saving you from wasting money on paper you won’t use, or being just a few inches shy of completing the job. Also, the finished job will be done right – patterns properly aligned, no gaps, wrinkles or crooked spots, and the paper will stay put as it’s meant to.

Are you feeling a little intimidated by the idea of using wallpaper in your home? Don’t be. Contact me here at Kristina Wolf Design and let me assist you in selecting the just right wall coverings for your home.

Choosing The Perfect Kitchen Cabinet Color

September 21, 2019

Kitchen cabinets comprise the largest area of visual square footage in your kitchen. The right design style and color choices have a huge impact on your completed kitchen design. The wrong choice – well, it’s enough to make you wish you could start the design process all over again.

Tips for Choosing the Right Kitchen Cabinet Finish the First Time Around

Here are tips for selecting a cabinet finish that you’ll be happy with for longer than typical design trends hang around.

Think about your future kitchen

A handful of years back, kitchen design magazines and websites, like Houzz.com, were all about “pops” of color. Vibrant colors were very trendy then, so we saw lots of green and tangerine – even on kitchen cabinets. Beware attaching color trends to cabinets. The minute the trend has evaporated, you’re stuck with dozens of square feet of outdated cabinets that cost a chunk of change to repaint, reface or replace.

Instead, think about installing more timeless door styles and neutral colors that will weather changes in the trends a bit better. Save more transient kitchen accents to get those “pops” when you want them.

Choose a color that complements your open floor plan

If you have a galley kitchen, this is less relevant. However, most homeowners have some version of an open floor plan these days. In that case, it’s important to choose a cabinet door finish that works with other, visible living spaces. A prime example is this Suburban Oasis in San Francisco. See how the cabinetry is white, forming a nice but subtle contrast between the living and kitchen area? Smartly, the owners selected a gray finish for the kitchen island base, which echoes the effect of the gray walls in the family room- check and check!

Look around and see what colors or wood finishes make the most sense for uniting or complimenting visually adjacent living spaces. For example, if you have a built-in entertainment center or library in one room, it might make sense to have a block of kitchen cabinets in a similar finish to tie it together. Take a peek into this Palo Alto Family Home to see what I mean. Notice how the natural wood finish on the kitchen island plays homage to the wood accents in the living room.

On the flip side, if your living room or family room accents are more colorful, you may simply choose to go with white or very pale, neutral cabinet colors so the kitchen cabinets blend in, rather than stand out.

Work with existing countertop colors

Which comes first? The cabinet or the countertops? Good question. The answer is whichever one is most important to you. Where countertops were once primarily functional, they now serve as showpieces too. If you have your heart set on a particular countertop surface, I recommend choosing the countertops first.

From there, if the countertop is natural stone – or a surface such as quartz or Corian that mimics natural stone – we can begin to look at the accent colors inherent in the countertop and pull potential cabinet colors from there. Then, you can choose to design a backsplash that provides contrast or one that forms a harmonious transition between both surfaces, depending on the effect you want.

Remember you can choose more than one

Perhaps the biggest mistake homeowners make is settling on one cabinet color when they’re stuck between two, or waffling between the idea of subtle or more dramatic effects. Your kitchen can always boast more than one cabinet finish – as long as it does it well. And, I’ll be honest, the idea that “you can have both!” has helped save more partnerships than I care to count!

The most common way to go about multiple cabinet colors in the same space is to choose a separate color for upper and lower cabinets or to choose a color for one and a wood finish for the other. You can choose one color for one side of a kitchen and another color for the opposite side. For those of you who understand the reason behind avoiding bold colors – but who are dying to add that “pop” – I recommend using your bold color for the kitchen island cabinets. It will look great while you love it and is cheaper to paint when you’re ready for a change.

Not sure what the best move is for your kitchen cabinets? Enlist the help of an experienced interior designer. While working with an interior designer for the duration of the project will help it move more smoothly, a single consultation or two can be integral to making the right choices when it comes to the biggest budget – and most important – selections.

Kitchen Countertops 101

September 9, 2019

The success of your interior design is based largely on your ability to choose materials, finishes and textiles that satisfy both short and long-term design goals. If you do that, you’ll enjoy the updated home design year after year, and decade after decade.

Making the wrong material selection for a particular application can be a costly mistake. This is why I spend so much time making sure my clients’ kitchen and bathroom countertop choices are absolute – and not just a favorite flavor of the moment. Yes, countertops can be replaced – but it is both labor and budget intensive, and it’s not the most eco-friendly choice.

Which Countertop Selection(s) Make the Most Sense For Your Remodel?

Here is a quick rundown through some of the most common and popular countertop choices, as well as my two-cents about where they work best – and where you may not want them at all.

Quartz

You’ll read all over the place that, “quartz is the new granite…” and it is. In my opinion, quartz is the new and improved granite. Quartz countertops straddle the line between the natural and the fabricated. Using quartz (one of the planet’s most prolific minerals), pre- and post-consumer recycled products that are all held together with resin and polymers.

The result is a non-porous, extremely durable countertop surface that is virtually impervious to scratching, staining, cracking, dents or divots. You can find quartz that mimics natural stone, as well as those that come in funky or crazy colors and patterns.

It is more expensive than the average quartz slab but not as expensive as the highest-tier granite and marble options. It works well in both kitchens and bathrooms. Because it’s non-porous, it is considered ultra-hygienic and there is no sealing required. Quartz is easy to clean and maintain.

Granite

While I appreciate the beauty inherent in a natural stone slab – quarry practices are not always honorable, which makes it a tougher sell in these eco-conscious times. Also, I’ve seen clients purchase amazing slabs – with amazing price tags – only to have an invisible internal fissure manifest into a full-blown crack during installation.

That being said, granite is still a durable and high-end finish, and it works well in just about every application – from kitchens and bathrooms to walls and floors. It’s one of the most expensive countertop options, but pricing varies according to availability and pattern rarity – so the final price depends more on your taste than anything else. Because it’s porous, granite counters should be sealed annually to ensure the pores don’t absorb moisture or acids – which lead to staining, etching, mold growth and/or the expansion of the stone’s natural fissures.

Wood

Wood countertops are becoming increasingly popular – especially in modern kitchen designs, where wood adds a warm texture. While butcher block countertop surfaces have long been popular on islands or on a section of perimeter countertop, I’m installing more and more solid wood countertops in my clients’ homes.

If you’re interested in going the wood route, know right up front that they are more labor intensive. They need to be sealed on a regular basis because wood is very porous and it soaks everything up like a sponge. Best practices require that you seal a wood countertop with a food-grade wood oil or special butcher block treatment once a day for the first week, once a week for the next month and then about once every month for a few years. After that, you can experiment. Once wood pores have absorbed their fill, you may rarely need to seal them at all.

Your dedicated maintenance result will be a wood countertop that looks gorgeous and lasts – potentially for a lifetime.

Corian

Corian is as durable and maintenance-free as quartz. It is also available in a range of colors and patterns and is heat-resistant to boot. Since Corian sinks are also an option, this is a popular choice for transitional and modern kitchen designs where a streamlined look is desired.

The only downside to Corian is that it rarely resembles natural stone – so if you prefer a more natural stone look – quartz is a better non-porous option. Many of my clients enjoy the best of both worlds by selecting a Corian countertop and then using natural stone options for the backsplash.

It is priced in the higher tiers, but since it will last a lifetime, you can consider it a one-time-only expense.

Laminate

It may shock you, but laminate countertops are back – and with a vengeance. I’m a huge fan, especially for those on a smaller kitchen budget. The digital advancements of the modern era mean homeowners have access to laminate colors and patterns that seriously rival other natural and manufactured options –even patterns resembling real wood (you have to feel it, to believe it’s not real!). They are incredibly durable and – like quartz or Corian – they require no sealing.

Even high-end clients are using top-tier laminate countertop options because of the smooth and sleek finish laminate surfaces provide.

The good and bad news is that there are plenty of countertop surfaces out there – these just barely scratch the – well – surface. Work with an experienced kitchen designer to select a kitchen countertop material and finish that makes the most sense for your home design, taste and lifestyle.

Using Textiles To Dress Up Your Interior Design

September 5, 2019

If you’re exploring the idea of redecorating or remodeling your home, odds are you’ve seen the word textile crop up a time or ten in your reading and website explorations. Unless you live in a concrete home, with concrete finishes, and you live your life as a committed nudist – textiles are woven (pun intended) into virtually every aspect of your life.

Simply put, a textile is anything made from fibers, yarn, or fabric. Your rugs and carpets are textiles, your drapes and valances are textiles. The covers on your accent pillows are textiles, as are your sheets, towels, throws, blankets and duvet covers. Without textiles, the world would be a stark, cold and visually boring place.

Here are some of the most common ways you can use textiles to create more attractive, interesting and comfortable living spaces:

Just Add Color

Unlike coats of paint or more permanent infrastructure selections (like cabinet colors and countertops), most textiles are able to move with you when you go. Or, they can be easily traded, sold, or donated to make way for a whole new look. As such, textiles are a smart way to add color to your home, especially bolder colors, or louder prints, which may be your cup of tea now – but that are more transient in trend nature.

Explore the World of Patterns

Patterns are so fun to work with, but they can also be challenging. How much is too much, and how do you transition different patterns so they don’t become too busy? Working with textiles is a smart way to introduce patterns that you like, or that are trending, without worrying about a permanent effect.

Plus, since textiles are portable, you can play around and see what goes best where. I invite you to read, How Many Patterns Can Fit Into One Space, to learn more about decorating with patterned textiles. When in doubt, work with textiles that have variations in pattern within the same color or similar tones and then branch out from there.

Interior Design Hint: When you’re ready to repaint a room, or are looking to freshen up a room’s color palette, start paying attention to colorful patterns that draw your eye. Look at how the colors work together, and then use those colors to inspire your own interior design color choices.

Enjoy a Textured Design

Have you ever entered a home that seems “picture perfect” and yet, somehow, it still falls a little flat? Odds are, the homeowner or their designer didn’t include enough variations in texture. The world of textiles is your texture oyster, so have fun.

Take stock of each room in your house and notice if it needs a little texture and, if so, what kind? Does it need some softening? Look for textiles in soft fabrics – think curvy, billowy and fluffy. Or, perhaps you need something with depth, in which case a rich, shag area rug may be the ticket, or some throw pillows with large, 3-D adornments. If you need to rough it up a bit, look for blankets or window coverings with a chunkier, loose and/or raw-type weave. Check out, Texture and Interior Design, for more about the importance of using texture in your home.

Dress it Up or Down

What do you think of when you hear the words silk or velvet? What about muslin or plain cotton? The first two have associations with luxury, while the latter two are considered more natural and earthy. Just as their names are associated with a particular energy, the textiles you select can dress a room up or down.

Choose fabrics that make sense with the energy or feeling you want to create in a room. A luxury fabric like silk or velvet are ideal for a formal living room, dining room or the boudoir. Your muslin or plain cotton fabrics will work well in a casual family room or your shabby-chic décor.

Use Textiles as a Focal Point

Your textiles can also be used as works of art, serving as a focal point in the room. Investors pay tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars for antique oriental rugs or Navajo blankets. A textile with a stunning design can become an impressive wall hanging, for example. You can cover an entryway bench with an eye-catching table runner or highlight it by featuring an assemblage of throw pillows.

Would you like to introduce more captivating textiles into your interior design? Contact me here at Kristina Wolf Design to schedule an in-home consultation. (510) 848-8773.