Happy New Year! Welcome to the newest addition to Cider Street Designs! “Good Coll” will be my blog devoted to all things that make me happy! From interior design to cooking with lots of homesteading and family sprinkled in, my hope is that this forum gives people more than ideas for their home. I want to show them ways to love their home in the now while enabling and empowering them to make the changes they want in the future! Good design seems to be ever changing and right now feels like an exciting time. People feel empowered to tackle home projects with a little sweat equity and there is amazing access and inspiration everywhere from online to local shops. Design has never been more accessible!
So let’s talk about my personal motivation to help people transform spaces in their homes. It is really simple. I love my home. I probably mention this fact to my husband at least once a week. Our home feels like us. It is truly a reflection of both of our styles which have now merged and evolved into this current state. We feel confident taking risks and have DIY’ed our way right into our dream home. And…..this is what I want for other people. To feel this way about their special space. To make their home feel like a reflection of themselves, a space that is comforting and speaks to their heart.
So where do you start? Something feels off in your space or you feel frustrated when you can’t seem to get a room to feel “finished”. I’ll let you in on a little secret…..I feel that way too sometimes. It is especially difficult when you live IN the space. At times this can cause a block and make it virtually impossible to see beyond its current state. Often times just having a fresh set of eyes or a new perspective can drastically change the way you see it. I have some easy strategies to help identify possible issues in your own space. These three concepts are typically the biggest offenders when rooms just don't feel "right".
To start, I always examine the color palette and specifically if it trends in either a cool or warm way. You would be amazed how simple tweaks within the palette can completely bring a room into focus. I see lots of spaces that have really great elements like a fantastic sofa or an incredible wall of cabinetry, but the overall palette falls into all warm tones or all cool ones. For instance, the hardwoods have a yellow or orange undertone with a beige sofa and beige walls. Everything is running in the same tones and without a punch in there to break that up, it ends up feeling blah. With grey acting as the new neutral, it is super easy to layer an entire space in it these days. A balance happens easily though when you bring in warm elements like warm brown wood tones or leather to counter against all the cool. Instead of something feeling sterile, it suddenly has visual interest because our eyes are naturally drawn to the pieces that punctuate the palette.
And speaking of color, color and more specifically paint, is your easiest and least expensive tool to completely change your space. A few gallons of the right color can unleash the hidden potential. Since grey is a popular choice these days, let’s dissect the color a bit. Grey’s can be built from green, blue, purple and taupe. It can be tricky to find the right shade and it is super important to know what shades comprise the overall color. I find sticking to neutral grey’s like those built from green and taupe allows me a greater opportunity to mix in any additional colors to my palette down the road. On the other end though, color is exciting and can take a room from standard to extraordinary with the flick of a wrist. I love enveloping bedrooms specifically in deep tones like moody navy blues and jewel tone greens.
Another tip is directly related to scale. Does the size of the existing pieces in the space relate to the overall dimensions of the room? Often times, an over
sized sofa or table can instantly throw a room out of whack. Likewise, and what is far more common, small items tend to congregate in spaces. Editing a space in this sense can work wonders! Removing the small pieces of furniture and finding an appropriate scale for the remaining ones will always make the room feel larger and more spacious.
So there you have it! A few quick tips to reimagine your space and hopefully inspire you to see your rooms a little differently. What spaces in your home are you frustrated by? Is there one room specifically that is a diamond in the rough?
Cheers!
C
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