home design

What Color Says About You

November 25, 2019

Talking about favorite colors can feel like a rather empty, “getting to know you” type topic that doesn’t hold much weight. During the younger years, little girls often hold staunchly to pink while boys may advocate for blue. As they age, children will often use colors as if they were a weapon – sticking staunchly to an all-black wardrobe and make-up palette, for example. Over time, however, the colors we gravitate to really do have more meaning than we may think.

They may reflect a personality type or energetic vibration that characterizes who you are. Or, on the flip side, they may be a signal for the type of energy you need more of in your life. Of course, there is always the possibility that you simply like a color because you like it – plain and simple.

What Do Colors Say About You and Your Life?

It probably doesn’t surprise you to learn that, as a professional interior designer, my clients’ favorite colors are an important piece of information. I use their color preferences – and their functional remodeling desires – to help select the design and décor that will best suit their taste and lifestyle.

Here are some general psychological associations that are made between a person’s favorite colors – and what that says about them:

Red is a color of energy and tenacity

Red has long been a high-energy color associated with power. Wear a red dress, shirt, sweater or jacket into a room and you know you are going to be noticed. Therefore, those who choose red are often seen as self-confident too. Those who gravitate towards red as a favorite or preferred color are often tenacious and determined when it comes to work, life and goals.

Orange is fun, energetic and prone to clutter

Those who love orange tend to be lovers of life – and that includes lots of fun and socializing. While others may seem them as being a little too playful (bordering on flaky or irresponsible), those who like orange can be very hardworking as long as they’re interested in the task at hand or the work applies to their own interests and/or benefits. Those who like orange can be prone to clutter.

Yellow people are magnetic and engaged

People who like yellow are relatively optimistic and like to infuse the people and things around them with positive energy. They enjoy learning, as well as sharing their knowledge and experience with others. They are typically viewed as being cheerful.

Green is a color for those who are frank and down to earth

Those who prefer the color green are usually affectionate and loyal, and they also tell it like it is. They care about the impression they make on others and value their reputation.

Blue is associated with stability, organization and emotional depth

People who like the color blue tend to be sensitive and appreciate stability and grounding in their lives. They are reliable and care about the emotional well-being of others. They like things to be clean and organized.

Purple denotes with creativity as well as royalty

Purple has long been associated with royalty, and perhaps that is how it became linked with a certain level of arrogance as well. However, those who gravitate towards the color purple tend to be artistic and creative as well as sensitive. They have a great deal of respect for those they care about.

Brown is a color associated with steadfastness and humility

I will be honest and say that I haven’t met all that many people who claim their favorite color is brown. That being said, a notable percentage of my clients seem to gravitate towards neutral, brown hues when decorating their homes. When it comes to personality types, people who like the color brown tend to be humble and don’t like flashy or gaudy fashion or décor. They are known for being loyal and dependable and – like those who prefer blue – they like stability in their life.

Black is associated with sensitivity and artistry

On the outside, black can seem foreboding, uninviting and even scary. In fact, those who like black colors and accents tend to be very sensitive and artistic. Perhaps the image it presents helps them to mask their vulnerability and the tenderness within. While those who own predominantly black wardrobes are often seen as introverts, they are usually just more guarded and prefer to share intimate details of their life with people they trust.

So, what are your favorite colors? Do you find this general color analogy resonates with you?

A Splash Of Black

November 15, 2019

For many DIY designers, the color black is daunting. While it works easily in very modern designs, it can be trickier to implement in a traditional or transitional interior designs when the homeowner is one that prefers color. I find, however, that adding a splash of black here and there adds contrast, depth and sophistication in just about any room.

Adding Black to Your Interior Living Spaces

Here are some ideas on how you can add black in a way that makes a statement, but doesn’t steal the show or detract from lighter and brighter colors, or from a softer and more delicate style:

A Table. How about adding a black table to the room. A black dining room table provides a blank slate for table runners, centerpieces and striking table settings. However, the dining room chairs will prevent it from being overwhelming. Black is also a good choice for coffee tables or end tables. In many cases, rather than standing out, black tables actually fade into the background because of black’s ability to minimize a profile.

The Kitchen Island. I love the way it looks when homeowners decide choose black or another dark color for their kitchen island. Not only does it provide contrast in a space where walls of monochromatic cabinetry can be boring, it can help small kitchens to feel a bit larger because the black cabinet base almost disappears, leaving the illusion of a floating island countertop.

Coffered Ceiling Recesses. Coffered ceilings are a gorgeous addition to almost any room. Not only do they add interest and draw the eye upwards, they also help to make small room seem larger and short rooms to feel taller. Painting the recessed panels black will dramatize this effect.

Paint the Trim. Do you have a picture window – or a series of windows – that frame a desirable landscape scene? Painting the window trim black will showcase the outdoor scenery. If you like the effect, consider painting the baseboards, door trim and crown molding black as well – talk about defining a space. Plus, although black is a dramatic color – it’s a neutral color – and should blend with just about any color scheme in the room.

Paint the Back of Your Bookcases. Do you use your bookcases for more than just a book house? Book cases and shelving offer a space to display collections and collectibles. Painting the back of the bookcase black is like dropping a black velvet curtain behind your belongings, which will make them stand out even more.

Use Black Flooring. Just as a black dining room table, or black bookcase backs, highlight the items displayed against them, black floors do the same. For example, I enjoy the contrast created when a traditional, white farmhouse kitchen design lives on a black slate floor. Live in an older, bay area home with beat up floors? Consider painting them black and watch as your furnishings gain new life and definition.

Invest in Art. There are two ways you can use black when it comes to art. The first, like the bookcase and flooring ideas above, is to paint an accent wall black and then show off your favorite canvases. That’s what we did in this metropolitan condo and you can see how black highlights, rather than detracts, from the art on the walls. Or, you can invest in a piece of art that features black, like the striking this San Francisco living room design.

Don’t be afraid of black. Instead, learn how to embrace the sophisticated ways it can dress up and enhance your interior design.

Getting That Kitchen Organized

November 13, 2019

Last month, we did a piece in homage of the generations’ old spring cleaning and organizing tradition. For most of us, the kitchen is one of the most cluttered area of the home. Even if things look suspiciously neat and tidy from on the surface, opening just a cabinet or two will be enough to reveal the monstrous pile of “stuff” that has collected over the years.

How Can Having the Right Appliances Help in Organizing My Kitchen?

Having the right kitchen appliances can greatly assist in organizing your kitchen. With the help of appliances such as dishwashers, ovens, and refrigerators, you can ensure that everything has its designated place. This eases the process of storing and preparing food, while maintaining cleanliness and maximizing efficiency in your kitchen space.

Kitchen Design Organization Tips

The following tips will help you to organize your kitchen, whether you want to work with what you have or you’re in the process of designing a kitchen remodel or renovation.

De-Clutter. Today’s kitchen design websites are all about maximizing storage space, and this can certainly be helpful. However, after a thorough kitchen de-cluttering session, you may find you don’t need as much storage as you thought. In the latter case, this provides the opportunity to eliminate space-hogging cabinets to free up kitchen square footage and/or to make room for some open shelving. On the flip side, once you’ve inventoried kitchen items, you’ll provide your kitchen designer with a more comprehensive idea of what your storage needs really are, which will yield to a more customized kitchen design.
Re-Organize. I work with retired homeowners on a regular basis. As age increases, the desire to crawl around on the floor to access lower cabinets, or to spend time on stepping stools decreases. For this reason, I’ve always recommend that older clients re-organize kitchen cabinets, placing frequently-used items in the most accessible spots. Now, I advise all of my clients – regardless of age – to do the same. It’s a smart move that makes kitchens more functional for people of all ages, sizes and abilities.
Go Custom. Wherever you can, opt for custom-designed storage spaces. When you do this, you will have a much more efficient storage system, eliminating wasted dead space created by standard cabinet shelving spaces. Think about customized spice racks, pot/pan drawers, appliance storage, etc., to make every square-inch count. Again, focusing on optimizing your storage spaces may allow you to remove enough cabinetry to add a kitchen peninsula, dine-in area or small home office (more on that in #4). The more you can eliminate, the more spacious the kitchen will feel.
Slide it Out. Wherever you can, switch out fixed cabinet drawers for slide-out options. Once you do, you’ll wish you would have done it long ago. Slide-out shelving features mean no more crawling around on hands-and-knees to access lower cabinets. They are more accessible and you can design custom slide-out features for corner-cabinets and/or those with awkward dimensions or access.
Add a Message Center. The contemporary kitchen is the resting place and charging ground for a range of electronic gadgets. Not only that, but with the trend toward open floor plans, and kitchens that are as much living rooms as they are food prep areas, countertops and islands are a default dumping ground for everyone’s stuff. One great solution for all of the above? Incorporate a small home office in the kitchen area. This provides shelving, room for a charging station (hide those electrical outlets and gadget in a drawer or two!) and a comfortable space where you and/or kids/grandkids can work in an organized space. If you don’t have room for a small home office space, find a corner or end-cabinet that can be transitioned into a message .
Fall in Love Again…With lazy Susans. Rotating lazy Susans work great great for corner cabinets but why stop there? Use smaller, countertop versions in the corner of your cabinets in order to house those same, random items that are forever cluttering things up: honey bottles, sugar for coffee, the salt shaker and pepper grinder, a few of your go-to spices and pantry items, etc. No muss, no fuss and very convenient.

You’ll be amazed at the space you’ll gain – both storage and otherwise – when you reorganize your kitchen space.

Decorating with Love

November 2, 2019

Ah, Valentine’s Day. February is the month that makes hearts pitter-patter and you can take advantage of it by adding a little Valentine “love” into your modern interior design. Perhaps one of the best things about Valentine’s Day (from an interior designer’s perspective) is that it is the last of the full winter months and a time when a little burst from warm reds and pinks is most welcome.

6 Modern Decorating Tips for Valentine’s Day

While you don’t have to go crazy with hearts and flowers, there are plenty of ways to add Valentine warmth to your living spaces. Here are 6 simple ideas for your home.

Decorate the mantel. Use your mantel as a focal point and shower it with attention. You can do something as simple as an arrangement of pillar candles in red, pink and/or white or you can go all out with heart motifs as well. Here is an example of a Valentine mantle from BHG. The heart wreath is fun, the heart garland was made by hand using cardstock hearts and tissue paper. Perhaps my favorite element is the family photo. Odds are that was taken for the holidays but the red shirts and fashion accents work equally well for Valentine’s Day, allowing the family to show it off again.
Frame the word L-O-V-E. You can do this anyway you want. You can type it in a script you like from left to write and print it out. You can arrange the letters in a square, with “L” in the top left and concluding with “E” in the bottom right corners. You can print each letter individually and hang all four in an arrangement of your choosing. These can be done in color or black and white. Once framed, this one little word becomes a conservative but apropos accent for the season.
Simple centerpiece. Create a simple centerpiece for a table by using a glass vase filled with red hots or a Valentine-themed candy. Use this for the foundation of your flower arrangement. You can also use this idea with candles. Larger and smaller vessels (filled with Valentine candy of your choice) can be used in a cluster or set around end tables too. Now, you just have to keep your hands out of the candy jars!
Hang a Berry Wreath. Wreaths are a wonderful front door welcome for any season, and Valentine’s Day is no exception. This X and O wreath is made from dried berry stalk and is a more natural and minimal expression of the typical “floral explosion” version. I found this one on Etsy and the artist makes other beautiful versions as well. Etsy, by the way, is a fabulous place to find handmade Valentine’s decor if you aren’t the crafty type yourself.
Trade roses for tulips. Roses are traditional, but if you’re a modernist, you may want something a little different. How about trading the roses for tulips this year? Once Valentine’s day is over, you can round out the red/pink/white motif with additional fresh spring colors.
Create a unique shadow box. Here’s a fun and easy project you can do with little ones and still end up with an adult-worthy decoration. Purchase a shadow box and cut a series of red hearts from high-quality construction paper. You can use any color you like. Glue some of the hearts whole and others only by half so you can fold them a bit. It creates a fun and fluttery Valentine’s Day shadow box.

Modern Nursery Color Combos

October 24, 2019

Tired of the same girlie pinks and little boy blues that dominate the nursery scene? It’s not easy to escape those tried-and-true gender traditions but with a little work and an eye on the future, you can introduce modern nursery color combinations that will still yield a soothing and nurturing ambiance for your little darling’s bedroom space.

Check Out These Modern Baby Room Color Combos & Design Ideas

Perhaps the single most poignant piece of design advice I can give to soon-to-be parents is: take the “long view” approach when decorating the baby’s room. What do I mean by “long view?” I mean that the time you have to put into decorating now will be virtually non-existent once you become parents, and that sweet little baby transitions into a busy toddler faster than you can blink your sleep-deprived eyes. The more you can do to create a room your child can grow into without the need for another re-design, the better.

For this reason, using a modern color palette makes very good sense. Modern colors can be easily added to via big kid furniture and accessories to serve as more mature rooms down the road, and they can also be transitioned into guest bedrooms as needed.

Here are some of my favorite modern color combos for baby rooms:

Turquoise and Tangerine. Together, turquoise and tangerine form a vibrant and energetic combination without being too busy. My recommendation: leave the walls a warm neutral color and then bring in the turquoise and tangerine via area rugs, rocking chair cushions, a painted dresser-slash-changing table (again, thinking ahead to the future), window coverings, and bedding. This is also a gender-neutral combination, which can be nice for parents who opt to let their baby’s gender remain a surprise. If it’s a boy, throw in some brown accents; if it’s a girl, you can add splashes of pink or purple.

Yellow and Gray. The pairing of yellow and gray forms a balance; yellow is vibrant and gray is calming. The brighter the shade of yellow you select, the more energetic the effect will be. Again, this makes for a fabulous gender-neutral color scheme or a fair selection for fraternal boy/girl twins. Greens and blues can be added to this combination to good effect as well for a little more diversity.

Primary Colors. Did you know babies are the ablest to perceive black and white to start, and then vibrant primary colors after that? They also like geometric shapes and patterns. For those reasons, I’m a fan of this bedroom with a big map of the world on the wall – full of happy colors and plenty of shapes to keep curious eyes occupied. Pick your favorite colors – or theirs as they get older – to build the rest of the bedroom’s design.

No Color At All. This modern nursery in Los Angeles shows how beautiful and cozy a nursery can be without any particular or intentional color combination at all. The warm hardwood floors, rustic rocker frame, and dresser add a sense of traditional homeyness. You can use area rugs of all shapes and sizes, accent pillows, art, and other accessories to add splashes of color as they pertain to your child’s gender, interests, and personality. This is definitely a room a child can grow into, a guest will feel comfortable sleeping in and prospective buyers will see as just another bedroom without any need for repainting or redecorating.