2011 Color Trend Forecast - Color is in!

Color Trends for 2011 are calling for more color this year. A fun, colorful room needs to be anchored and balanced by neutrals such as black, gray, cream or white. Try your hand at painting an old piece of worn out furniture to make a fun statement in the room. Choose a colorful rug or textile to set the color scheme for the room. Then fill in with coordinating solids and simple prints and accessories. Color your world pretty!

Extreme Makeover Home Edition - Houston!!

So here's and update on our experience at Extreme Makeover.  I was called in to help with the final staging at the house built in Houston's Third Ward.  The weather put the building way behind schedule and we waited several days for the call to come. 

When we arrived, it was a seeming circus.   But you didn't have to be there long to realize it was organized chaos.  Hundreds of volunteers coming and going, and was it ever hot! (I think I lost 5 lbs that day sweating)  Anyway, I thought when I arrived there would be a nice finished home with air conditioning.  Ha! Not hardly.  The home was still under construction inside and out.  There were no finished stairs, painting to be done, kitchen cabinets and appliances going in, tiling in the master bathroom - you name it. 

For the first 4 or 5 hours we did whatever we had to in order to get the rooms ready.  Finally, we could move in some accessories and smaller furniture.  The show designers were on set by this time, and I was paired up with Michael Maloney to work on the great room, dining room and eventually the kitchen.  The family was scheduled to come in that night to see the inside of the home.  However, when I left late that night, there was still much to be done.  We finished the living, dining and kitchen (sort of) before I left.  I will tell you that it's not as easy and simple as they make it look on the show. 

This was a fun experience and I met all the people on set.  I have a new appreciation for the show and what it takes to pull off this build in 7 days.  The Houston episode will air sometime this fall.  As soon as we hear when the airing will be, I'll post and update.  Look for me, I'll probably be in the episode cleaning a window (really funny story).  At least I can prove that I'm totally qualified to clean a window!

Top Ten Decorating Mistakes - #3 Ignoring the Focal Point

Adding the Emphasis!

The focal point of any room is like the exclamation point on a well worded sentance.  Emphasis in interior design is simply enhancing or creating a focal point in the room. A successful focal point immediately draws the eye to a specific point in the design. It does not have to be dynamic in pattern or bold in color because size, color, line, texture, woodwork and ornamental detail can all be used to attract attention.

Below are some of the culprits that detract from a focal point and some of the natural remedies:

The culprits:

• Large furniture that may completely block a focal point

• Too much going somewhere else in the space that detracts from natural focal point

• Busy Décor - too many detractors

• Room Domination - any item in your room that screams for all the attention even though it shouldn't

• Conversation area facing another area of the room

• No defined focal point at all.


The remedy:

• Determine what your focal point is in the room first.  If there isn't a natural focal point, create one.

• A fireplace, a window with a view, a large painting, or a grouping of smaller paintings are all eye-catching, and each can serve as a focal point.

• Create a focal point using color.

• Every room should have a “wow” factor if you don’t have something in the room to highlight, create it.

• Once you have established what the focal point is, play it up.

Mobile Blogging Now Activated!!

Banquette Seating

I absolutely adore banquette seating. Whether it's used in a kitchen, dining room or outdoor patio area, it creates a cozy and intimate setting that any would love. It's a great solution to a small area where the luxury of having room to pull chairs away from the wall is not an option. It can also be as casual or formal as you want to make it. Whether it's built-in or just a creative use of benches, it can be the perfect solution for any eat-in space.

Take a look at some of my favorite examples:

Picking the Right Paint Color

Today's blog is all about color....the right color. When you take on a new painting project in your home, do you have trouble choosing the perfect paint palette?

A couple of tips to help you establish the right color palette:

• Limit your selections - a color palette should be reflective of your personality and furnishings, but every home needs a primary color pallete that runs through most of the main living spaces. Take cues from your furnishings or artwork you love and choose one main color and preferably no more than two secondary accent colors.
• Be careful not to choose colors that are too garish and bright, unless you want your house to look like a day care. Typically colors that have a gray undertone to them will "read" much more soothing and subdued while still giving that burst of color you want without shocking the eyes.
  

This bachelor pad went from oh so wrong to the perfect palette for him.

• Pay attention to the color of your floor and furnishings. For example, if you have dark wood floors and dark leather furniture, you may not want to paint a dark color unless you are going for a really dark look - such as a media room. If you do, balance that color with other brighter elements in the room. Conversely, you don't want to have your furnishings floating in a see of white or beige either. Add some contrast!
• Get the advice of a professional color consultant such as myself. Choosing color is an emotional decision! You know that you are going to invest time and money in the process of painting, and who wants to paint 3 times to get it right. If you just can't make that decision. Call a professional to come and help with those selections. You will get a personalized color palette that is perfectly suited to your tastes and you will be able to sleep at night knowing you didn't make the wrong choice.

At Interiors Refined, our color consultations start at $75. We have an expert painting crew that will make your home beautiful. They can also handle sheetrock repair and trim carpentry. Color Consultation costs are applied to the cost of painting if you choose to use our painters.

Happy Decorating!

Top Ten Decorating Mistakes Part 2

Top Ten Decorating Mistakes
II. Lack of Cohesion

I've seen many rooms that just don't feel pulled together. Usually the culprit is a number of things:
• Competing styles: you may own a Victorian chair and have it paired with southwest style artwork. While it's not always wrong to mix styles, you must have some unifying element.
• Competing colors: the color on the wall may not do anything for the furnishings in the room or may even clash.
• Mismatched Accessories: The accessories may not match the overall feel of the room. An overall mish mash of furnishings, artwork and accessories. If your space looks more like a resale shop or thrift store than a model home, some changes may be in order. I'm betting you already know that.
• Complacency & Familiarity: If you know the space is just not quite right, but can't tell what is out of place. Invite a friend with a good eye for things over and have them be honest about what they see is out of place. Sometimes we just get so used to looking at things that we tend to overlook them.
• Ignoring the Architectural Style: If you live in a victorian bungalow, you may want to be careful about forcing furnishings that aren't a good style fit such as mid-century modern.

How to pull it all together:

Color Schemes & Style: Also tying together color schemes and overriding style and removing items that don't work with either is a great place to start.
Pairs: of chairs, lamps, etc - is the fastest way to give any room a pulled together look.
Repetition: Repeating design elements will bring a space together and add interest. Many times you won't notice immediately, but most designers will repeat some element of design over and over again to bring fluidity. (ie. Shapes, finishes, colors, style elements)
Furniture Styles: Competing furniture styles will cause visual distraction. Some styles can be blended well, but be careful not to use styles that fight with each other.
Beware of Too Much Matching: Remember that you don't have to be "matchy, matchy" to have a pulled together, cohesive look. You may have 2 chairs that are similar in size and feel, but aren't identical. They can be upholstered in the same or coordinating fabrics to tie them together visually. "They don't have to match, they just have to go."