Do’s and Don’ts of Decorating

Decorating your home can be a little daunting for someone who has never done it before, but the exercise is well worth the time spent. You do not need to be a designer to decorate your space. Before you start on your home, go through design magazines and start collecting the pictures that you like. Shortlist the colors and textures that you like. Take a fresh look at what you have. Once you understand what kind of style appeals to you, take stock of the furniture you have. Decide what stays, what goes and what needs an overhauling.

Keep the following rules in your mind and you will be able to change your home so it looks like a page right out of designer book.

Do’s:

Do pick a signature piece to work around. It can be a beautiful piece of furniture, a fabric, an area rug, a picture or a piece of pottery. The item should dictate the color scheme of the room as well as the style and mood you wish to create.

Do identify the focal point of the room. It may be a fireplace, a painting, a work of art, even a bed or an armoire.

Do purchase large elements first (rugs, draperies, upholstered furniture) and coordinate all other styles and colors around these major pieces.

Do use various textures; touch is very important. The sofa and drapes can all be the same color yet look different just by changing some of the textures.

Do use neutrals on the walls. It makes the home look timeless, classy and open. Use same color palate throughout the house as it will give a sense of flow.

Do use the principle of repetition when planning shapes, colors, fabrics, and patterns. One red accent in a room may look like an afterthought whereas several red accents here and there will contribute to the color scheme.

Do buy furniture with clean classic lines. It will always be in style. However, you can mix styles, periods, and pieces of furniture.

Do personalize your space by keeping things that you love, things that make you happy.

Do buy the best quality fixtures and products. These fixtures are going to last a long time, maybe for generations. Spending money on good quality will save you headache and money down the line.

Do make a lot of storage. It will help you keep the house organized and clutter free.

Do keep a lot of plants inside the house and remember to tend to them. Not only do they improve air quality in the house, they also give it a fresh look, they are the most natural and inexpensive decorative items you can buy.

Do upgrade the lighting in the house. Keep lamps in the living room. Recessed lighting will take the look of your room from common to classy.

Don’ts:

Don’t have any clutter in the house. Just by de-cluttering the house you can make it more livable, spacious. Do not keep family pictures all around the living room. The hall is a better place for them.

Don’t use artificial flowers anywhere in the house (not even in the bathroom). They look cheap and tacky. Instead go out and break some twigs and put them in the water. One real flower is classier than a bunch of artificial flowers.

Don’t try to match everything.

Don’t forget to consider lighting. It is the most important factor in the house.

Don’t buy everything from the same store. Take your time and instead of matching, coordinate.

The Art of Arranging Art

Text by Pat Gerbrandt

Artwork for your walls is vital to creating a living space that expresses your tastes and invites you to be comfortable. Displaying that art is in itself a means of expression. Each room’s mood and theme can be accentuated by originals or prints, textile pieces or photography. Your kitchen, office or den, bedrooms and bathrooms should not be overlooked.

Just as the pieces you choose fit your tastes and your décor, they also need to fit in their own space.

The larger the piece of furniture over which the piece is hung, or the larger the expanse of wall, the larger should be the artwork. That does not eliminate using smaller pieces, appropriately grouped, matted and framed, from working in larger spaces. Scale is a key component. Wrong scale is as uncomfortable as an ill-fitting garment.

Tiny pieces will be lost on a large expanse of wall unless they are appropriately displayed. Rather than framing each print individually, you can group similar photos, such as a collection of wedding pictures, in a larger frame with custom-cut mat. Arrange the photos asymmetrically or in a balanced pattern, trying a variety of arrangements to get the best possible configuration.

Photos, water colours, prints and artwork work well together when a common thread connects them.

Where natural lighting is not adequate, explore other options to ensure that you can enjoy your art. A small investment in directional lighting or soft pot lights will reward you and is particularly effective if the display is in a niche, created between wall studs.
If you are displaying art in a hall or along a stairway, place lighter coloured images and frames toward the top.

Jacquie Richardson of The Framing & Art Centre suggests patterns for an art display over a couch, mantle or credenza.

To determine where to hang art, professionals generally use this simple formula because “eye level” is somewhat subjective. Start 60 inches from the floor, add half the height of the framed picture, then subtract the height of the triangle formed by the wire when the picture will hang. The resulting point is the ideal spot for the picture hanger.
When suitable wall space is not available, or for a novel effect, Jacquie suggests, “consider ‘unusual’ areas for display. Lean framed art on a table, shelf or fireplace mantel for a dramatic effect.”

The right mats and frames, in colours and proportions that are well suited to the art, display your choices. Mats also protect the surface of the art and keep it from lying directly on the glass. Look to the colours in your art for clues to mat colours. Multiple mats add to the beauty of the finished piece.

Proportion of mat and frame is another important consideration. A wide frame requires more matting than a narrow frame and a solid background requires a wider frame for balance.

Take tips from the professionals such as Jacquie of The Framing and Art Centre, and allow your creativity to find expression as you explore the best ways of decorating with your art choices.

Today’s designers looking worldwide for new styling touches

Design today is being influenced by styles from all over the world with influences in particular from Asia, Europe and the Middle East. Anything that adds interest is welcome, says design industry sources. If designers can pull off adding foreign influences while maintaining a cohesive interior, it’s a lot more interesting and adds to the story.

There are a number of countries in particular from which Canadian designers are borrowing ideas and looks.

Italy is important for its Murano glass (in many forms and colours) and its furniture. The Italian Provincial look, with its triangular lines, began to become popular in the 1980s and remains so today. Italian Provincial is characterized by natural and nostalgic motifs. The typical look would include pine or oak wood, floral prints, round cushions, plaid fabric covers and woven plaids, textured fabrics, outdoor-themed accessories and braided rugs.

Italian Provincial furniture is based on royal or court furniture. The goal is to reproduce the royal designs, but because the results are more primitive looking, the style is also referred to as peasant furniture. The designs incorporate Middle Eastern, Gothic and Greek styles reflecting Italy’s position as a Mediterranean crossroads.

The Tuscan look is characterized by earth colours, wooden surfaces, a plastered ceiling, walls painted soft white or gray and accented with colour or natural wood or stone, rough-sawn simple wood furniture, a long wooden kitchen table and open shelves for storage and to highlight ceramic and pottery pieces.

The French Provincial or Country style, with its rustic, old-world look and riot of flowers is another popular style. A French Provincial design would include wood ceiling and wall beams, stained or painted plaster walls, carved wood details, a natural stone floor and stone fireplace furnished with rustic metal furniture and light fixtures.

Sweden is best known for its simple lines and a preponderance of blues and yellows. Blue is the most popular colour in the Swedish lexicon. A Swedish interior features pale, light and airy furnishings and pale walls and floors to better reflect the light inside that offsets the many months of darkness outside. Blonde woods are common and a long bench typifies every Swedish home.

Icelandic style emphasizes very clean lines, bright colours and simplicity a la Scandinavia.

Farther afield are lingering influences from British India. The style, reflecting India’s British-ruled past, is characterized by heavy, wooden walls and thick, strong tables and chairs with handcrafted Indian woodcarvings and statues as accessories. Elephant statues and carvings were particularly popular. No British-India theme is complete without a chest, ivories, draperies and throw rugs.

Chinese-themed interiors have highly stylized furnishings with hand painted designs on lacquer finishes. Red – which represents good luck to the Chinese – is the dominant colour. The style is further characterized by dark wood tones and high gloss finishes. You might also want to add ornamental statues of animals or mythological creatures.

The Japanese look would feature natural fiber floor coverings and bamboo and stone colours to create an atmosphere of serenity, with shoji screens, futons and low tables paired with cushions for seating. Japanese rooms have a lot of natural light supplemented by low-wattage bulbs in rice paper lamps.

The Polynesian tropical appearance features bamboo furniture, grass cloth matting covering the walls, tropical prints on the shades and south sea colours such as coral, turquoise, green and sand.

From North America, Mexican terra cotta tiles for floors and roofs are popular. Other elements of a Mexican look are distressed-looking furniture, bright and colourful lamps, and striped Mexican blankets for window shades.

For designers today, the world is their oyster. So much material is available and accessible. The best products can be easily sourced and shipped from anywhere in the world.

Text by Myron Love

Face Lift for Windows

Text by H. Friesen

With spring around the corner, perhaps you are thinking of giving your windows a face lift. There are ideal solutions for each window in a home, whether it be for a formal dining room or a casual recreational center.

When it comes to window coverings there are a lot of options. The window covering specialist welcomes customers at her office or meets you at your home or office. With samples and advice for each window, she can decorate the complete home or individual rooms. Free estimates are available and includes installation of blinds with the purchase of their produce. Its customers range from commercial buildings to residential home makeovers or new buildings..

Some of the new products on the market are:

Cellular/Honeycomb shades present a distinctive honeycomb pattern, are energy efficient and serve to insulate the home. They are available in single, double, or triple cell design and also in a wide variety of room darkening and light filtering fabrics.

Pleated shades propose a stylish presentation with crisp pleats in a wide variety of colors.

Roller shades offer a popular choice in their simplicity and many attractive fabrics. Light filtering and darkening fabrics are available. Roller shades are ideal for kitchens and dining rooms as they are easy to clean.
Sheer verticals with two sheer fabric facings over pvc vanes offer a refined and elegant window treatment.

Walking on Luxury

Text by Alison Macpherson

A beautiful area rug is the quickest way to add some major panache to a room. If the thought of transforming your space with colour, texture and comfort under your feet holds appeal, feast your eyes on some area rugs. For those who are prone to love at first sight when shopping for a bit of luxury, be forewarned that there’s much to learn before you head out, especially if you’re thinking heirloom quality.

Many factors affect the beauty, durability and price of area rugs. For starters, the basic construction of the rug, how it’s woven, the way it’s knotted, the materials used for the pile and where it is made are some attributes worth investigating. Know your stuff before you go shopping so you don’t get dazzled with talk of “knot density” and “vegetable dyes” without knowing how this affects your needs.

There are thousands of designs to choose from to make a statement in any decor from Victorian to Art Deco. If commercially available rugs don’t have just the right look and fit, an excellent option is having a rug made to your specifications. Abe Friesen of Custom Design Rugs advises that “People sometimes look for years and never find exactly what they want”. Having a professional come to your home and consult with you on colours and patterns provides freedom of choice. Friesen adds, “ A custom rug does not have to be expensive.” Going the tailor made route usually carries a price tag under $2,000. This option also offers the flexibility of unique shapes and sizes for a one of a kind solution to fit your space.

An area rug placed in the dining room should extend about three feet on all sides of your dining table, with the chairs pushed in. Ideally leave enough space so that other furniture in the room doesn’t rest on the area rug and allows for an open perimeter around the rug to “frame” it, like a matte frames a picture.

If your living room or family room is spacious, area rugs are perfect for defining different zones. An 8’ x 10’ rug with furniture that creates a conversation area can be offset by a smaller octagon shaped rug, chair and table grouping to define a comfy reading nook. Visually separating rooms with rugs works well for open concept floor plans where the living and dining rooms are not divided by a wall or where the kitchen and family room blend together.

In a bedroom, a large rug with the bed sitting on top of it is only one option. Smaller matching rugs on each side of the bed and/or a runner at the end of the bed might suit your room best. If the bedroom has broadloom, a smaller round or oval rug in a corner with a lounge chair is a nice touch. Spend some time visualizing these configurations before deciding.

For a hallway or staircase, leaving a few inches on each side of the rug gives a spacious feel to the area and allows you to show off the floor texture beneath it. On the staircase, properly installed stair rods to keep the rug from slipping are a must.

Although instant panache might be the goal, in any room you can address several design challenges with a carefully chosen area rug. Adding colour, defining a space, softening the look and feel of a room, and harmonizing your decor, can all be achieved with this single addition to your home