Wednesday, March 9, 2011

How To Use Blue In A Space- A Tale Of Two Blues

Having lived in Arizona for seven years, I have come to learn that blue is not a well used color for interiors here. I always find it funny that most residents of AZ relocated here from another state, many from the East and Mid- West, where blue is a normal, sometimes even dominating color in the world of design. Yet, we move here and become accustomed to tans and rusts of the Sedona skyline and quickly toss away the colors schemes of our past. But what about those of you who just truly love blue? Why can't you use it within your space? Well, you can! Let me show you two ways to create a luxurious interior using the color blue- (and NO, I don't mean the pale blue and brown we used a few years ago when everything could work with brown.)


With gray continuing to be the neutral of choice in room design, we're seeing a serious increase of blue making it's way into the color palettes of new glass tile, carpets, and accessories everywhere. It can be as tranquil as a baby blue or as regal and elegant as a cobalt or royal blue. Blue can also easily transform into a masculine or feminine neutral space- appealing to a couple looking for a design compromise. Take a look at the mood board above. On the left notice that we've gone more towards using blue in a neutral setting. When combined with paler shades of gray as a base, you can use a deep blue sofa as your crowning  piece in a room and then use a combination of gray, frosty white and even light blue as accent layers. In this application, let that blue sofa stand alone  (as the only blue furniture) and use chromes, nickels, mirrored pieces and lesser blue accents, like perhaps this ceramic stool, to tie the look together.


The right hand side uses blue entirely as an accent to punch up the room. By starting with a pale gray sofa and then adding the deep, exciting blue accents, we've now given this decor electricity. This look makes a blue accent chair a must have! Accent chairs are like a great pair of red shoes with a black dress. They are your unexpected delight to complete your look! Years down the road, when opting to change your look, a good quality sofa in this neutral color can remain and you simply re-upholster or replace your accent chair to achieve your next trend. Use wooden tables and quirky bold accessories like a blue budha head (one of my faves) or these fun foo dogs to complete the look.


You simply don't have to be scared of blue in your home. Even in the smallest doses, it can bring a little life into an otherwise standard space.

Wednesday, March 2, 2011

What Comes First: The Furniture or The Paint?


It's the age old question that homeowners have most difficulty with- what comes first, furniture or paint? And you'll find many different thoughts behind your logic- like, if I am just doing a tan on the walls I can do that first because then anything I pick for furnishings will match because it's a neutral...WRONG! I realize that seems logical in theory, but if you understand base colors, you'll realize that all colors have tints, tones or shades in thousands of levels that alter the "true" color, resulting in some sort of undertone. Let me explain...

Not so long ago I had a repeat client ask me to assist them with designing their new home. I had selected every wall color in their previous 5,300 square foot home to perfection and their happiness. When it was time to sell, the house sold swiftly with people fighting over the home because of the paint colors throughout. Even without the furniture, which they took with them, the house spoke to potential buyers. I was proud of that, and having done such a fine job, you would think they had total faith in my color consultations. 

This time they wanted to get away from the neutrals and go into "a color" as the husband put it--- grays. (lol, another neutral) They were excited and we went in search of the perfect sofa. With fan deck in had, at the store I selected coordinating shades of gray for the walls and, as the living room leads openly to the kitchen and then hall, chose similar grays in tints of that same color. (A tint is achieved by adding white to a color). In the store, not only did they love the sofa- which was a charcoal gray with a bluish undertone, but they understood and loved the wall colors as well.

Then came the problem- the painter painted the walls and for six weeks, while they awaited the sofas' arrival, they agonized over the blue in the wall color and how much they hate blue! BUT THEY LOVED IT ALL TOGETHER AS A WHOLE and when the wall color and the upholstery is together they do not look so blue. It just so happened that standing alone they were able to see the undertone. I begged for their patience because I knew they would love the end result but it's hard to get over a preconceived notion that you dislike something, especially a color. (I'll tell you the end result of this story in part 2).

Tan can have any variety of undertones. A shade of tan ( adding black to a color) can have a yellow undertone, while some tones of tan (adding gray to a color) might have an orange undertone. Sometimes a tan can have a pink or peach undertone, while other times it can appear to be a khaki (with a green undertone). A tan is never really just a light brown. This is where the strong eye of an interior designer comes into play. I can't tell you how many times a potential client spent hundreds, if not thousands on having their home painted and the colors simply did not match their furnishings because they painted first and bought later.

It is always easiest to select your paint colors based on your furnishings and then coordinate your window treatments, artwork and accessories with the combination of what you have selected. Paints can be altered in shade, tint or tone to achieve a match to a fabric, but despite the hundreds of upholstery choices you have for a "custom" sofa, you can't simply create a fabric to match the exact undertones of a wall color. Not only that, but purchasing your furniture first might open you up to accent and wall colors that you might not have ever considered. It's amazing what colors you can pull out of a good print and throw on your walls to produce stunning results and a great big AHHH when your friends come through the door!

Tuesday, March 1, 2011

How To Add Pantone's Color of The Year 'Honeysuckle' Into My Decor?


For us designers, it's like the Oscars! We impatiently await with ears, eyes and mouths open in anticipation to hear the announcement of Pantone's colors for the coming year. They are the Holy Grail of our world. All textile companies rush to design new upholstery fabrics in the top trending colors, which are then snatched up by the best furniture manufacturers who use them to create desirable pieces of furniture which us designers then clammer to place in the houses of our most trendy homeowners. And while that's a mouthful, without these vital cues, many homeowners would never move forward, still owning a puffy black leather sofa and hunter green and mauve cushions with white washed cabinets in our kitchens. (if you still have any of these, please call me immediately!)

Although Pantone's Color Of The Year is appealing to most women, some men might be hesitant of just how to incorporate Honeysuckle into their homes in a way that doesn't make their room into a girly girl space. Honeysuckle has actually been a trending color for several years. A derivative of the corals, rusts and fushias we have been seeing peeps of throughout the last few years of design, it has finally made it's way to the forefront as THE in color for all things in the home. I was shocked to see that my husband- the ultimate man's man, said he liked the honeysuckle chandelier in this picture to finish this spaces decor, above the other two. I have to agree, but I still selected three to show the versatility you have when playing with this or any new color trend that you want to add to your space.

Color trends are more than just the latest fad in design, they are the inspirations for the future of the home industry as a whole. And while there are some radical colors that enter into the mix from time to time, for the most part the new colors are an indication of where colors will stay for a small extended period of time. I say this because so many homeowners do not dare to follow the trends for fear that they will become outdated the very next year. It is the job of your designer to make sure that the pieces you add into your home's current decor will stay current for years. This is done by carefully incorporating just the right accents pieces and base colors into a space, allowing these new color trends to highlight the room and not takeover it. In five to seven years (when most homeowners update their main room's decor) the items selected (if done right) should easily either fall into your decor's background or be easily replaced by the next color scheme that appeals to you.

If you notice the mood board here, you'll see that the basis for this room's decor is the gray and cream color scheme. Gray has been a trending color for the last four years and continues to be popular in all things fashion and home design. It shows no signs of leaving yet. The pieces here, from the sofa to the accent chairs and accessories work well together, but can also be separated and broken up into other rooms. So can the honeysuckle pieces shown in the space.

Accent pillows are all the rage and you can never go wrong by tossing a few in the newest trend into the mix. For anywhere from $10.00 at a discount store, to $40 at a home department store or even as much as $200 in a high quality furniture store, they are still cheap enough to cover or discard after five years or so!

Lighting options in a trending color are another great way to infuse your decor with what's in the now. If you love the style of a chandelier or lamp, down the road you can always have the base refinished, add or swap out the shades or have other things done to alter the appearance of the piece to accommodate the newest style.

The best way to add a jolt of adrenaline into a lack-luster room is to add a single accent chair with a print in the trending color. Again, consult a designer in order to get this right. It takes more than just matching the print's colors to your existing decor in the room. Attention to detail, size, shape and scale of the piece are vital when attempting to incorporate a new member into your furniture family! When done right, however, your room becomes a WOW when it was once an ugh!
Need help with any of these design ideas??? Consider hiring a great design firm- 480.227.1832