Jarret TT Camp

Posts Tagged ‘room’

You might like a contemporary style of decorating if you like to keep current with styles, enjoy things that are modern, of today, right now.

While it’s been thought that modern interiors are cold and minimalist, today’s contemporary interiors are comfortable and welcoming without being cluttered and dark. It’s a style that is equally appropriate for offices and stores, lofts and homes.

A contemporary style home can be a quiet and comfortable retreat. To achieve the look of a contemporary home, it’s important to stick to some basic rules.

Fundamentally, simplicity, subtle sophistication, texture and clean lines help to define contemporary style decorating. Interiors showcase space rather than things. By focusing on color, space, and shape, contemporary interiors are sleek and fresh.

Learn about some more of the characteristics and elements of a contemporary style of decorating and how you might bring the look into each room of your home.

* Color
Neutrals, black, and white are the main colors in contemporary style interiors. The palette is often punched up and accented with bright and bold color. Black is often used to ground and define a contemporary style room. With walls painted in a basic neutral, you have a wonderful backdrop for bold colored accessories. If the walls and windows are painted in pastels, the trims should be neutral. If a wall is a bright, bold color, neutrals should be used everywhere else.

* Line and Space
The most obvious and distinctive element of a contemporary style interior design is line. It’s found in architectural details, use of bold color blocks, high ceilings, bare windows, and geometric shapes in wall art and sculpture. The bare space, on walls, between pieces of furniture, and above in upper areas, becomes as important as the areas filled with objects. In contemporary interiors, less is more. Each piece stands out as individual and unique.

Take advantage of structural elements. Air ducts may hang from a ceiling, broken bricks provide texture and stability, and exposed plumbing pipes are perfectly acceptable in a contemporary style interior. To draw the eye, paint these structural details in bold contrasting colors, or to diminish their importance, blend them with the walls.

* Contemporary Style Furniture
Smooth, clean, geometric shapes are essential for contemporary style furniture pieces. Upholstered furniture often wears black, white, or other neutral tones in textured natural fibers. Cover it in a neutral, black, or bold fabric. Fabrics often have a natural look found in wool, cotton, linen, silk, jute, and add textural appeal.

Furniture pieces should be simple and uncluttered, without curves or decoration. Sofas, chairs, and ottomans have exposed legs. Beds and chairs usually have no skirt, trim, fringe, or tassels.

Pillows add a shot of color and texture in clean geometric shapes.

Keep in Mind

* Use furniture and accessories to make a bold statement in contemporary style interior. Use a basic background and shout out with your favorite color on a piece that will stand out.

* Less is more! In a contemporary style interior, don’t use ruffles, excessive carved details, fringe, or floral prints. Abolish cute and small. Go basic, bare, bold, and structural.

* Floors in a contemporary style home should be bare and smooth in wood, tile, or vinyl. If you must use carpet for sound control or warmth, choose commercial grades. Add color and texture with plain or geometric-patterned area rugs.

Contemporary style decorating has distinct characteristics and elements that are evident. Read below for ways to incorporate some of those contemporary design elements into your interior space.

* Generous use of metal, stone, and opaque or clear glass works well in a room decorated in a contemporary style. To soften and warm up the space, add heavily textured fabrics in plain colors for window treatments, pillows, or rugs.

* Colorful, fussy prints should be avoided, since they confuse a plain space that is key to a contemporary style home. Two-tone prints work well. Think about a zebra print pillow on a black leather chair, a large leopard-print pillow thrown on a plain floor, or bold, heavily textured striped rug to anchor solid colored, sleek furniture.

* Individual pieces are very important in a contemporary style interior and lighting fixtures should be selected to focus on specific pieces. Each light fixture could be a work of art itself with sculptural details and clean lines. Add color and metallic elements on the light fixtures.

* In a contemporary style room, use spotlights or can lighting directed at a painting, poster, or print. These will help to draw the eye to the pieces you want to focus on.

* Track lighting and recessed lighting help to wash a wall in light. In home renovations or new construction, consider installing cove lighting or indirect light.

* Contemporary style sculptures or art on a stand can be placed at eye level by using a structural column or pedestal. Again, be sure the piece is well-lighted.

* Don’t clutter the contemporary style rooms with collections or too many pieces. Open space is just as, if not more, important as the pieces you put in the space.

* Plants and flowers should be large and dramatic in simple containers placed in contemporary rooms. Large blooms with interesting leaves work better than small arrangements. If space allows, place upward focusing lights around a large plant on the floor. Keep the arrangements neat with rocks or bark chips arranged over the dirt.

* Frames in high-gloss or matte black, natural wood, or metal finishes are great for artwork. If you must put several pieces together, hang them close together so they give the feeling of one large piece instead of many small pieces.

* In a contemporary style dining room, keep dinnerware contemporary, too. There are a number of geometric shapes, bold colors, and interesting styles available. Bring in texture with silverware, napkins, placemats and centerpieces.

Do you long for a casual style room that is homey, warm, comfortable, and inviting? Who doesn’t want to be comfortable in their own home? If you want to put together a casual style room, learn the basic elements that combine to create a truly casual room.

For starters, casual rooms have simple details, textured elements in fabrics and accessories, restful horizontal lines, soft upholstery, low-luster surfaces, and arrangements that avoid perfect symmetry.

Details are simple, and elements are rectangular or softly curved.

A room decorated in a casual style is the perfect place to have a touch of whimsey. Use an old or reconstructed birdhouse or wooden candlestick for a lamp base, stack pieces of old luggage for a side table, use a low vintage ironing board for a coffee table.

Casual decorating is easily incorporated into rustic, French Country, cottage, Shabby Chic, or American Country decorating styles.

With people enjoying more relaxed lifestyles, many homes today are totally decorated using the elements of casual decorating. But any home can incorporate the elements into a guest room, country kitchen, guest room, or bath. The elements of a casual style of decorating can sneak into most any room and make it feel comfortable.

The elements of a casual style of decorating are discussed below. Use any or all of these tips to bring the casual decorating style to your rooms.

* Furniture in a casual interior is soft and comfortable. Upholstered pieces are usually oversized and slipcovered.

* Many pieces of upholstered furniture are covered in neutral colors, such as tan, gray, beige, or off-white. But other colors are used, too. Soft pastels give a peaceful feeling. Or try darker tones such as navy, rust, olive or forest green, wine, and cranberry for punch.

* Fabrics on furniture and pillows are usually textured, rather than shiny. Interesting weaves of natural fibers like cotton, linen, wool are typical. New synthetic weaves give a natural look and add durability.

* For special accents on upholstered pieces, add ruffles, pleats, buttons, ribbon, or cording. Contrasting colored details incorporate the full range of colors in the room.

* To achieve a casual look, pieces are often long, large, and horizontal, rather than vertical and tall and petite. Tables are chunky and of a large scale, which gives a comfortable feeling, while providing space for storage and spreading out. This helps to create a restful look.

* A room decorated in a casual style is the perfect place for found items of wicker, iron, and rattan, or flea market finds. Old antiques fit in well.

# A room decorated in a causal style often has furniture arranged on the diagonal, cutting off sharp corners. Matched pieces are not required, as the focus is on easy.

# An ottoman is essential for comfort. Add a large wooden or rattan tray to convert it to a coffee table.

# Light woods are often used for furniture pieces and wood flooring. Oak and pine are the most popular, either painted or finished with a flat, low luster varnish to protect the grain.

# Hammered iron, antiqued brass, wrought iron, porcelain, or carved wood are used for the hardware on doors and drawers.

# Collections of treasured or found items are often arranged to add the casual look. The shelf of a bookcase or corner tabletop is the perfect place for an arrangement of treasures.

# Bedrooms in a casual style home must have a mountain of pillows and a comfortable quilt.

# Windowcoverings in a casual room usually start with shutters, blinds or shades for privacy and light control. They’re enhanced with simple valances of fabrics, often layered over non-traditional drapery hardware. Add a touch of whimsy here using a tree branch or old iron pipe for a curtain rod. Drapery panels often hang at the sides, or use long iron nails or notched tree branches for tie-backs.

# Details on window treatments are simple. Contrast lining fabric peeking out from the sides, cording or wide contrast banding, or tab tops with buttons or ribbon details dress up the window–but not too much! Add a simple swag of fabric or fabric tie-backs if you must.

# Floors in a casual style room are hardwood, tile, stone, or stained concrete. If carpet is used, it should not be too plush. Rather chose sisal, berber, or long, shaggy styles or subtle geometric woven patterns.

# Rooms decorated in a casual style have light fixtures made of wrought iron, tin, pewter, or wood. Simple chandeliers look old in wrought iron or antiqued metals. Or electrify a hanging pan rack or hang a rack of antlers. Add small fabric-covered lampshades on the small candle lights. Or select a chandelier that burns real candles for a really warm, homey feeling.

# Almost anything you have around the house becomes a decorative accessory in a room decorated in a casual style. Gather pillows, books, boxes, candlesticks, bird houses, and flowers and put them everywhere. Easy-to-keep plants or silk plants add color and texture and candles give a warm, welcoming glow and fragrance.

# Artwork of country, casual themes is simply framed using wooden frames, either painted or stained.

# The dining table of a room decorated in a casual style would be set with rugged stoneware, textured woven or fabric placemats, coordinated napkins, heavy glasses, stainless flatware, wooden bowls, and accessories of iron or pewter. The colors of the table should enhance the theme of the room, using either bold floral patterns, plain pieces, or soft, comfortable pastels.

Keep in mind that a room decorated in a causal style should be:

* comfortable, homey, welcoming, and sturdy.
* Fabrics should be soft and textured.
* Furniture is long, overstuffed, and low.
* Surfaces worn and rugged.
* Accessories are old and rustic.
* A touch of whimsey is in order.

Use a casual style wherever you want to create a warm, inviting atmosphere.

Is a house always a home? There answer is no, and it is very shocking to me that not everyone lives in a home. The difference between a house and a home may not always be obvious. You have to look closely.

House – A nice family lives in a building together. They get up in the morning. They get ready for work or school. They come, one by one, into the kitchen, grab something to eat, of course, it’s something they can eat on the run, because they are walking out the door. They go about their day, absorbed in their own lives, not really giving each other much thought. That afternoon, the youngest member of the family comes back to the house. She goes directly to her room, where she can feel comfortable, because she knows that if she were to relax anywhere else in the house, her mother would know. Not that she would make or leave a mess, but her mother needed everything in the house perfect. Her mother would notice if a pillow on the couch was moved. The other children that live in the house do the same thing as they get home, all at different times. The mother of the house doesn’t get back until eight o’clock. When she does, she puts the take out food she picked up on the way back to the house on the counter in the kitchen. She makes her plate and takes it to her home office, where she will spend the rest of the night working on her paperwork, trying to catch up. The children, who either heard their mother come in or smelled the take out food, wander from their rooms, make themselves a plate, while exchanging the only conversation they will have that day, most of which, are rude comments to each other, about weight, hair color, braces, or anything else on the very long list of insecurities that children have. Then the children take their plates back to their room and eat by themselves. At some point throughout the night, they will all bring their dishes back to the kitchen, rinse them, and put them in the dishwasher. If they need something from their parents, they go to the home office door, knock, wait for the same response they always get, “What do you need? I’m really busy right now.” The conversation between the two is very quick. “There is a field trip next week and I need you to sign a permission slip, and I need you to sign this test I took. The teacher says if we bring it back signed, she will give us extra points.” The mother signs both without question. The child leaves the room. The rest of the night goes very much the same.