Your home is a reflection of you, which means every home should exhibit a distinctive flare. It doesn’t matter what the style of the room is as long as it follows these three basic guidelines for success:
It is functional.
It expresses a mood.
It exhibits a sense of harmony.
Your challenge:
Think outside the labels of Contemporary or Traditional and thing about the things you love and hate.
- Pick your two favorite and two least favorite home items and think about what these objects say about you?
- When faced with a wall of colors, toward which ones do you naturally gravitate?
- What is the function of each space and what functionality is missing or mandatory for each room?
The 2010 Color Trends – Where are you?
In the Kasmir Fabric Design Studio “Color & Style Trend Report 2010,” I was surprised by the number of color trends. Here’s the list:
- Turquoise: Pantone color of the year
- Colors inspired by the continent of Africa: soft greens, smoke blue, sand, mauve, lemon and copper
- Flower Colors: vibrant greens and buttercup yellow
- Eco Colors: chalky whites, soft greens and yellows, and aqua as an accent
- Gray: the new neutral
These color options proffer a large range of options, and yet they are still all trend setters. So, think outside the trend box, and define your style. Let us know the results!
The Road Map for your room decor starts with some basic tips. For open rooms, select two colors and mover them from one room into the next. However, for a standard room, you want to start with these three items:
Pattern: Is there a pattern that stands out in the room?
Surface: Sheen or texture? Texture is more casual.
Color: You need three colors in every room – base, contrast & accent
Pattern
When mixing patterns, there are few things to consider. The scale of the patterns should not be the same. Additionally, you want a color from one pattern to flow into your secondary pattern. Then, consider proportion. The best is 2/3 to 1/3. For example, the bedding and drapery will have the same predominant pattern while the pillows and ruffles have the secondary pattern.
Lighting Tips
1. Consider what art works in the space
2. General illumination lighting vs. task lighting
3. Add accent lights via cabinet underlighting and wall sconces, but don’t use more than 60W bulbs.
4. Typically, lighting should hang 30-32 inches above the dining table.
5. When selecting task lighting, the bottom of the lamp shade should be eye level when you are seated.
Furniture Arrangement Tips
1. Place seating within 18 inches of a place to put a glass.
2. Keep a 17-21-inch space between the sofa and coffee table
3. Coffee Table should have a length that is 2/3 the size of the sofa.
Hunter Douglas blinds and shades provide child safety options, including:
Break-Thru® Safety Tassel
The safety tassel is designed to break open under pressure should a child or pet become entangled in the cord loop. This is a standard feature on all Hunter Douglas horizontal blinds.
PermAssure®
Verticle blinds can be outfitted with the PermAssure safety wand, which eliminates looped pull cords completely.
Ultraglide®
This retractable-cord system keeps the cord at the same length whether the shade is raised or lowered, thereby making the cords less accessible to young children.
LiteRise®
Raise or lower blinds with the touch of a hand. A hidden control system keeps the shade or blind in a constant state of balance. It’s a great safety enhancement for households with children and pets or those with limited hand dexterity.
Hunter Douglas blinds provide additional energy efficiency benefits as well as privacy and UV protection for furniture. Learn more about the Hunter Douglas shades that qualify for the Federal Tax Credit.
Advice from Sunshine desingers Debra and Donna
The bedroom should always be your retreat from the world, whether it’s the Master Bedroom or the room you reserve for family members and guests. The boudoir retreat is built layer by layer with color, fabric, texture and accessories. As the room’s focal point, the bed incorporates all these layers making it a primary element in the room.
Unfortunately, it can be a challenge to find the perfect bedding solution when shopping with traditional retailers catering to the masses. You need the right style, color and fit as well as quality materials and all the accessories in stock. Not to mention, that retail can often create a matchy-matchy look that many sophisticated home owners don’t care to have.
With a library of hundreds of fabric swatches, Sunshine Drapery’s decorators can design bedspreads, comforters, bed skirts, pillows, throws and coordinating window treatments that create the perfect balance, quality and look. Each item is measured to fit your bed and your lifestyle preferences. Our skilled seamstresses can handcraft a fluffy comforter with Euro shams or an non-quilted, contemporary throw or duvet cover for that modern feeling. Our designers and seamstresses can create any of the following:
- Custom Headboards
- Bedspreads
- Comforters
- Duvet Covers
- Throws
- Bed Skirts
- Dust Ruffles
- Euro Shams
- Table Skirts
- Cushions
- Neck Rolls & Bolsters
- Upholstery
Call 314.569.2980 for your complimentary, in-home consultation with a Sunshine designer today!
We recently set up some Hunter-Douglas kiosks at local Ace Hardware locations. Look for the Sunshine Drapery & Interior Design flier next time you are visiting one of the following locally owned Ace Hardware locations:
11039B Manchester Rd.
Kirkwood, MO 63122
211 Lamp & Lantern Village
Chesterfield, MO 63017
11767 Manchester Rd.
St. Louis, MO 63131
2645 Northtown Way
Highland, IL 62249
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