interior decorating

To Match, Or Not To Match… Nightstands

February 9, 2019

Furniture sets are nice because of their convenience. But, in the world of an interior designer, that convenience comes at a price – “matchy matchy”. Furniture, furnishings and accents should be complementary, of course. However, when everything matches, it can yield an interior space that seems a little bland and devoid of personality; hotel rooms and other public spaces come to mind. Mixing your furnishings up can create more visual interest and mismatched nightstands are a great example of this.

Perhaps you are already a fan of shabby chic or non-matching furnishings, or maybe you have been the beneficiary of some pretty cool hand-me-downs. Either way, there are plenty of ways to make mismatched nightstands look entirely at home and stylish in your bedroom.

How to Make the Most of Mismatched Nightstands

Proportions

Even if the pieces aren’t matched, try to pair end tables, small dressers or whatever you are using that have similar proportions. If the height, widths and general shape of the tables are similar, they will hardly appear mismatched. Using some identical accents, like a pair of lamps or other identical accessories, will make the fact they are mismatched less noticeable.

Color

Tables that are painted the same color will go a long way towards “working,” even if their architecture is different. This is easy DIY project and if you are brave, it can be a fun way to introduce a bright or bold color that you might have shied away from otherwise.

Matching wood tones

Similarly, finding antique or contemporary pieces with matching wood colors and tones will help the pieces to harmonize. This is a great way to get an end table with extra function power. In this Orange County bedroom, one of the owners likes to write before bedtime, an action that is difficult with most traditional night stand styles since there’s no room for knees. By choosing a small antique writing table, and then finding a nightstand in a similar shade of wood for the other side, the couple have complementary nightstands without her sacrificing the nightly writing ritual.

The same but different

You can also select two different versions of the same thing. A shorter, taller, skinnier or fatter version of the accompanying nightstand can be a fun play on the same design and is also an interesting study in proportions. This can be helpful when a bed has to be placed off-center in a room. The skinnier or smaller table will work better against the wall, giving just enough space for a lamp, your smart phone, a glass of water, etc.

Embrace the difference

You can also take the opposite approach and celebrate the fact that your nightstands are mismatched. Don’t even worry about the fact that they’re different. Put a funky lamp on one and a more traditional lamp on the other. Let your pile of books runneth over while his simple alarm clock and small reading lamp stay neatly in place all year long. The rest of your bedroom decor can tie it all together.

Yes, working with mismatched furniture can be challenging at times, but once you get the hang of it, it’s a wonderful way to create a more interesting living space.

7 Questions To Ask Your Potential Interior Designer

January 28, 2019

Did you know you don’t have to hire the first interior designer you schedule a consultation with? Quite the opposite. Your consultations should be viewed more like professional interviews. It’s a chance for you and designer to sit down, talk about your hopes and visions, and get a feel for one another so you can determine whether or not it’s a good fit. You’ll be working very closely together – maybe for a long time depending on the scope of the work – so a personal connection is almost as important as the designer’s capabilities and talents.

Bonus for you: by scheduling three to five consultations, you’ll glean a host of free ideas that you can put to use when you get started on the official remodel or renovation.

7 Questions to Ask During Consultations With an Interior Designer

Here is a simple list of questions that will yield important information while simultaneously allowing you to learn more about the prospective designer, her philosophy and her general style.

Can you work with our budget? Unless funds are unlimited, you must have a budget for any given home improvement project. This figure should be set, fixed and firm to keep your sanity and make sure you don’t get in over your head. Build in a 10% to 15% emergency contingency. Once you have this figure set, you’ll be able to run it by your prospective designers to see if they can work with it or not.
How do you charge? In most cases, designers charge by the hour or by the room. Or, they may have an entirely different fee structure. This can greatly alter the total price of your design from designer to designer so make note of how they charge and determine which fee structure you feel the most comfortable with.
When are your fees due? It’s no surprise that money is often the most stressful aspect of a design (notice the first 3 questions are all about finances?), which is why it’s so important to have complete transparency. Does your interior designer want half now and the balance upon completion? Does she prefer to receive installment payments? Get all of the financial agreements in writing and signed so there is no room for misinterpretation.
What is your design forte? In theory, every professional interior designer would be able to create a perfect version of any design you desire. In truth, we’re human and we all have our own design fortes. If you are a hardcore modernist, you’re best off working with a designer who specializes in modern design. If you like things a little more eclectic, seek a designer with a portfolio laden with funky-chic designs.
Can you show me examples of my style/budget/ideas in your portfolio? And, of course, seeing is believing. Take time to review their portfolio. Can you see yourself living in any of their designs – especially those at your price point? If not, they may not be the designer for you.
Do you offer industry discount fees? The longer a designer has been in business, the more connections she gleans along the way. These connections often result in discount fees for furnishings and textiles that can be passed along to the client.
Can you provide professional references? Don’t neglect the power of references. It’s good to speak with people who have worked with the designer so you can get a better feel for how she operates, how she handles challenges or hiccups, and so on. This input often seals the deal on who a client hires.

5 Tips for Mixing Wood Types and Finishes

January 27, 2019

Feel like your wood furniture reads more like a “wood finish sampler” than part of a cohesive interior design? Never fear. This is a common design conundrum and one that is easily solved without sacrificing any favorite pieces or spending money on expensive refinishing or painting.

So, whether you are a hoarder of gorgeous wood species or are a teak fan who just merged households with your oak and pine lovin’ counterpart – I have several solutions for you.

5 Ideas for Mixing and Matching Your Different Wood Types and Finishes

Think of it as pattern mixing. Different wood species mean different wood grains, and what are wood grains but one of Mother Nature’s most beautiful and fascinating patterns. Patterns can and should be layered to create depth and interest in your rooms. Think of different wood types as patterns waiting to be mixed up. Consider the undertones in the grains and place your pieces accordingly, using tables, hutches or sideboards that share similar hues or undertones. You can also approach this in a different way, keeping the grains consistent and throwing caution to the wind when it comes to finishes. Use other textiles and objects to create additional lines of communication between the pieces so they all feel related.
Make one of the pieces a focal point. Perhaps you have a particular table that is one shade while the rest of your wood furniture is another. Use the odd ball piece to create a focal point and surround it with the others so that it stands out. You can use surrounding accents to tie it in. For example, let’s say you have a table with a dark stain while the rest of your furniture is lighter pine or oak. Place that darker table in the middle of the room and use the lighter pieces around the edges. Then, use other objects or accents that match the focal point to tie it together.
Take advantage of area rugs. Area rugs can be a great neutralizer when you move into a home with gorgeous wood floors…that don’t match a single piece of your own wood furniture. Choose a neutral area rug that is large enough to house the bulk of the furniture, whether it be a dining room table and chairs or the coffee and end table set in your formal living room seating arrangement. Once you have the area rug in place, the furnishings will all come together with the area rug as a buffer.
Choose sides. You may realize that you have two distinct “sets” of wood furniture. One half is one type and/or shade while the other is another (typical when two homes merge as one). In this case, choose sides and keep all of the furniture with one shade in one section or side of the room with the rest on the other side. Perhaps they will be divided by a couch or seating area. Or, maybe one shade set becomes part of the reading nook while the other comprises the main seating area.
Use solid colors too. Even with the above tricks, it may be that you simply have too many wood pieces in varying shades. If this is the case, break them up using solid color furnishings so it doesn’t look too much like an episode of “Woods Gone Wild.” Simply painting one side of a butcher block or dresser white can help to tone down the effect.

Displaying Your Fabulous Collections

January 25, 2019

I once had a wonderful client who collected pigs. The last time I visited her home, she had more than 350 different porcine replicas of all shapes and sizes. When I met her, the bulk of them were jam packed into an entryway curio cabinet, while the rest were scattered about her home or stored in boxes.

While the curio cabinet was fascinating to study, it really wasn’t the best way to display her prized pigs because:

It was overcrowded.
They were mostly the same, small-ish figurine size.
None of the pigs, some of which were old, beautiful and/or valuable ever got to live in the limelight.

She has since passed on, but the lessons I learned while creating different ways to display her abundant collection have served my client roster for many years now.

10 Ways to Let Your Collection Shine

If you aren’t careful, the word Collection can become synonymous with Clutter. Here are 10 ways to make sure that doesn’t become the case with your prized collectibles!

Whittle It Down. There is a danger in letting anyone know you “collect” something; friends and family inundate you with apropos collectibles every holiday, birthday or as souvenirs from their recent travels. This makes for many (maybe even dozens) of items you never would have chosen on your own. Don’t keep a single thing you don’t really like. Go through your current collections and eliminate the ones you think are tacky or just don’t really jive with your preferences. This will keep your collections more stylish.
Use a divided case. Using a divided case is a good way to highlight individual pieces or a few pieces that share a theme. The segregated sections create a literal “frame” around the pieces, making it easier for the eye to take them in one at a time.
Go bonkers. The antidote to eliminating clutter is to display your clutter with style. Build shelves or cubbies to show off every single piece of your collection from floor to ceiling and wall to wall. Have a hat collection? Make a hat wall. All those baskets? Hang them all over the room. This is a particularly successful method in an office, a long foyer or entryway or down a long hallway.
Use cabinets with multiple shelves. If you choose to use curio cabinets, select versions that have different shelf heights or depths so the pieces don’t run into one another – creating a featureless sea.
Install upper-wall shelves. If your collectibles are on the bigger side – think lunch boxes, globes, antique hat boxes – create tasteful displays favorite pieces in one or more living spaces. Then, have upper-shelves installed just below the ceiling to display the rest. They end up creating visual interest in an area of wall space that is normally devoid of décor, while elevating the items up and out of the way so they don’t create clutter or take up valuable square footage.
Find a vintage display case. Display them in a case meant for displaying. Scour antique stores and flea marts and keep your eye out for a vintage or quirky display case, like the ones used in old general stores.
Rotate them. One of the ways we improved my aforementioned pig-collecting client’s collection was by rotating them. We cleared out about 75% of her entryway curio cabinet. She culled some of the lesser-loved and just-plain-faded or falling apart members, and then she kept the rest in a closet. Every few months, she rotated the figurines, which kept the collection fresh.
Donate your collection to each room. Rather than having a single space or two that’s devoted to your collection, create small displays in each room of your house, using whatever display method makes the most sense for each room. Perhaps those high-wall shelves make sense for the family room and kitchen, while a sideboard cluster makes sense in the dining room and the kitchen can enjoy an antique spice cabinet used as a display.
Don’t forget the bookshelves. Rows and rows of vertically aligned books are boring. Instead, break up your book collections by stacking some of the books horizontally. Then leave a nice sizable gap to display collectibles before resuming another run of books.
Use corner collections. Keep an eye out for tasteful corner shelves that suit your décor and fill them with your collection. Corners are notorious for being interior design “dead zones,” so move that houseplant elsewhere and create more room for your collection instead.

Do you feel like your collection has grown beyond your ability to display it attractively? Never fear. I firmly believe that “where there’s a will, there’s a way!”

The Tiny House Movement

January 24, 2019

The tiny house movement is holding steady. Birthed amidst a trifecta of events – tiny houses were inspired by the market crash of 2008, the uprising of new college grads that refuse to take on large mortgage debt when already up to their ears in school loans, and parallel conservation trends that look for ways to live large with less.

Want to work less and play more? Want to sacrifice some material goods in an effort to live sustainably? Interested in having a comfortable place to live while you slowly build a mortgage-free home? The tiny house movement makes all this possible.

Tiny House vs Big House – Fun Facts and Comparisons

Before we start fantasizing about HGTV-worthy tiny houses – and boy are they cute – let’s look at a few interesting facts.

According to thetinylife.com:

The cost of owning an average, single-family home (2100 sq ft) over 30-years is roughly $1,073,000 (that includes purchase price, loan interest, repairs, and maintenance, etc.
The cost of owning a tiny house for 30-years – assuming you buy a piece of land to put it on – can run about half the cost of a conventional home, but over the course of 30-years, you save hundreds of thousands of dollars in property taxes, HO insurance, utilities, and repairs.
68% of tiny house homeowners are mortgage-free, compared with only 29.3% of all homeowners.
89% of tiny house owners have less credit card debt than the average American, and 65% of them are living debt free.

As you would assume from the name and the concept, those who get on board the tiny house train are innately drawn to getting more for less out of life – and keeping themselves detached from the American credit/debt consumption cycle.

Tiny Home Living Requires a Different Way of Being

Now, all that financial benefit is fantastic, but it comes at a price. For most of us, that is a complete restructuring of how we live our lives. The average tiny home is about 189-square feet, while the average American home is 2100 square feet. There are examples of families living in tiny homes, but realistically this way of life works best for singletons and couples. A moderate climate is also a good thing to aim for so substantial outdoor deck space can compensate for the lack of indoor square footage.

And, perhaps, what it really means is that we have to go back to how we lived before. When you consider that most people on the planet live in significantly less than 2100 square feet, perhaps the tiny house movement isn’t the movement at all – it’s the way things have mostly been; it is actually the “big house” movement that began sweeping the world by storm – specifically during the post-war era.

Even so, going from big to small requires a different way of planning, thinking and being. Here are things to consider if you’re thinking about building or buying a tiny house:

Does your city or town allow tiny houses?

If you want to build a tiny house as a guest space, office or studio, you may be able to fudge it without permits. However, if you plan to live in one, you want to make sure they are legal – or can be permitted – where you live. Otherwise, you can run into trouble with the building department.

Do you have a way to transport it legally?

While they do fall under recreational motor vehicles (the same way a motorhome or RV does) they aren’t designed to move around on a regular basis. And, after construction, yours may be slightly wider than the legal DMV width limit. Make sure you’ve dotted your “i”s and crossed your “t”s with the DMV before you haul yours on a major roadway.

Choose the smartest interior design you can find

Living in a tiny home is like living in a ship; there’s a place for everything, everything in its place, and it has to be very efficiently designed or you’ll have wasted precious inches that could have been more thoughtfully put to use. Spend a lot of time looking at various tiny house designs, like the ones here on tinyhousebuild.com, to find a plan that makes the most efficient use of space in a way that’s best for you.

I’m fascinated by the tiny house life – and I love the idea of owning one as a means of having a smaller primary home with additional space that is only consuming heating/cooling and other resources when in use. As for a primary living space – it’s not the answer for our household. It’s sure fun to fantasize, though.