You'll learn through the worksheet, and by watching Room by Room episodes, that a beautifully decorated interior not only functions well, it creates a mood or feeling and shows off the personality of the family that lives there. It's these three important ingredients--Function, Mood and Personality--that ensure a decorating success!
If you're ready to get started, begin by getting comfortable. Now, spend some time thinking about your family and how you live. Look through magazines for inspiration and pull out ideas or rooms that appeal to you. Gather things from around the house that make you feel good - fabrics, photos, mementos, etc. Study them carefully for "color cues" for your room's color scheme and perhaps a clue to the mood you're looking for in your home. This is the beginning of a well-planned and decorated living area.
You may not find it in an hour or even a week, but the inspiration is there and it's shaped and molded by the people and pets in your home. It's the quirks, habits and things that make your family special that make a house a home!
GETTING STARTED--INSIDE YOUR HOME
Inventory
Every room has something that you need to consider while you are decorating - a carpet color, cathedral ceiling, certain furniture pieces, etc. Take some time to jot down these special needs so they are fresh in your mind as you get started.
Function
Decorating is more than just eye appeal - it's making a room really work for you. Consider how YOUR room will be used: for TV viewing, eating, resting, entertaining, homework, etc. At the left, jot down your thoughts, being as detailed as possible. For example: Dining Room - entertaining for four to eight guests, buffet style, background music a must, lighting on dimmers, etc.
A. Focal Point
Sometimes rooms have natural focal points (places the eyes travel to immediately upon entering a room) - a fireplace, bay window with a view, even a built-in bookcase. If the room doesn't have a natural focal point, create one with a dynamic piece of art or a colorful area rug. Even the TV can be used for this.
B. Furniture
Begin by determining whether the available furniture satisfies the functions you have planned for the room. If a piece isn't working or if it's too large/too small for the size of the room, get rid of it or trade it for something else around the house that may be more appropriate.
C. Lighting
Lighting is so important for every decorating project and should be selected for the functions of the room as well as for visual appeal. Every task will require either direct lighting from a lamp (such as when reading or studying), or indirect lights that simply brighten the room for conversation or TV viewing. Accent lighting - floor spots, track lighting or recessed spotlights - enhance texture, color and room details.
D. Furniture Arrangement
Draw your room on the graph paper. Be sure to measure and mark electrical outlets and switches, vents, windows and doors. Arranging furniture becomes much easier once a focal point is established. Measure your furniture and begin placing it in your floor plan. Generally, the main furniture pieces are directed towards the focal point, keeping the major traffic patterns open. Fill in with pieces you'd like to have that may or may not be available now. Be sure to balance high and low pieces, as well as heavy and light ones around the room.
Mood
The mood or feeling of a room is created by your choice of colors, style of furnishings, the amount of texture and pattern you choose, as well as your accessories. Since there is so much to think about when creating a mood, creating a theme through the selection of an inspiration piece can make this portion of a decorating project much more fun and interesting! Read on and you'll understand.
A. Inspiration
The easiest way by far to decorate is to start with some sort of inspiration. A decorative pillow, favorite scarf, even a magazine photo is a good place to begin. Select your inspiration piece wisely and be sure it makes you feel good when you look at it. It's the key to selecting your theme, colors, patterns and textures.
B. Theme
Analyze your inspiration piece and develop a theme name for it. For instance, the needlepoint pillow with a botanical design on a black background may inspire a "Formal Botanical Garden" title. Be descriptive with your theme name and all sorts of supporting ideas will come to mind. Botanical prints, striped walls, greens and floral colors, formal fabrics and furniture, dark woods and black accents all fit this example. Use the left margin to jot down your theme and supporting ideas.
C. Color Cues
Color should always support the theme. Many times, the colors that are most appropriate are found in the patterns and design of your inspiration piece. Remember to rely on the expert designers that have already put the colors together for you. Generally, it's best to choose three colors in a room: a dominant color - used for walls, carpeting and fabric backgrounds; a secondary color - found throughout the room in fabrics and accessories; and an accent color - used sparingly to give energy and excitement to the room.
D. Pattern
Stripes, checks, florals and plaids are just a few of the patterns to consider as you continue supporting your theme. It's all right to mix patterns, as long as you keep three things in mind:
- Keep the background color the same.
- All patterns should share the same colors.
- Vary the scale or sizes of the patterns.
E. Texture
Texture is important in every room. Too many smooth, shiny objects or too much nubby, rustic texture becomes tiresome. Use variety to keep the room interesting. Even a pattern can be used as texture. Many prints look dimensional and therefore add depth to a decorating scheme.
F. Furniture
Aside from being functional, your furniture plays an important role in supporting your theme. Some pieces may function well, however, their style or color may stick out like a sore thumb. Try to salvage it with slipcovers, tablecloths or paint. If it's a lost cause, remove it from the room.
THE PROCESS
The Function and Mood guidelines in "Getting Started" are meant to help you organize your thoughts and have a plan in mind before you actually begin doing the projects. During "Room by Room" episodes, preparations are completed and we then move on to "The Process." Here is where the actual work such as painting techniques and building projects are demonstrated.
ADDING PERSONALITY
Congratulations! You've completed all your preparations and your projects are finished, but the room still needs something... the accessories. Here's your chance to add your own personal stamp to a well-planned room.
A. Accessorizing
Pictures, vases, pillows and area rugs are all an integral part of a great decorating plan. They truly are the icing on the cake. Consider how a man's tie says something about his personal style. Accessories in the home give the same life to your rooms. Generally, they should support your theme, but allow more flexibility here. An antique picture frame could add wonderful variety to a contemporary room. Accessories are located on walls, mantels, furniture, tabletops and floors. They can be paintings, photos, pillows - even pinecones if they make you feel good. Address all areas of the room when working on accessorizing.
B. Humor
Humor is optional in your decorating scheme as it can take out any sterile quality that may have been created by strictly following all of the guidelines. A formal traditional living room can gain a little humor with a carved and painted wooden butler holding a tray. A beautiful country sitting room may get some relief from a playful quilt placed over the fireplace.
C. The Unexpected
Interest doesn't have to be humorous; it can simply be something unexpected in a room. Try painting a sky and clouds on the ceiling, and see if it doesn't create interest! A carousel horse in the corner of a living room is highly unusual, as are gold stars spray painted all over the walls!
GETTING STARTED--OUTSIDE YOUR HOME
Color Inspiration
When decorating the exterior of your home, you are often faced with one or more surfaces that are integral, but are too large or costly to change. These types of surfaces include the roof, any brick or stone areas, and awnings. Jot down these surfaces and keep them and their colors in mind as you select an exterior scheme.
Color Temperature
Review your color inspiration surfaces. If it's a "cool" color (blue, green or gray), it would be best to select other cool colors for your siding and other major surfaces. If your inspiration color is "warm" (tans, beiges, red, golds), choose other warm colors to coordinate.
Inspiration
There are all sorts of places to get inspiration for an exterior decorating scheme. Look through magazines, go to the library or a favorite bookstore and browse through books on architecture for your region of the country. If you have an older home, research historical color palettes that are rich in tradition. Or, why not drive around the neighborhood for ideas? There is bound to be a similarly styled home in proximity with a color and decorating scheme that suits you and your home.
Color Harmonies
Most houses, even small ones, can handle up to three harmonious colors: one for siding, trim and an accent color for your front door and shutters. The siding and trim colors work best if they are from the same color family, just differing in their lightness or darkness. In other words, select a siding color, and then choose a color for the trim about two shades lighter or darker than that. Because these two colors make up the major surfaces of your home, use colors that are somewhat muted like earth tones.
Color Accents
When an accent color is used, it draws special attention to an area - but be careful not to overdo it. Pick an area of special importance like your front door that will make an impact to all who visit. Coordinate it with your shutters or let the shutters become more of a subtle background painted in the trim color. Feel free to experiment with accents - they are a lot easier to change than the rest of your house!
Color Preview
Here's the final test before you begin painting the entire house. Have your local paint store mix up a quart of each of the chosen colors. Paint a small area of each in a place where all of the colors come together - probably by a window or the front door. Live with your color choices, looking at them during different times of the day and in varying lighting situations. Still happy? Then go for it!
ADDING PERSONALITY
Accessorizing
Decorating your exterior doesn't have to stop when the paint has dried. Accessorizing on and around your exterior will give it life and help show off your family's personality. Add a wreath, polish a dull brass doorknob or kick plate, or plant some well-placed flowers. Be inventive - create your own window boxes, add some gingerbread to your porch posts or cornices, put out some comfortable porch furniture - the possibilities are endless!
Safety
Here's a quick exterior safety tip: Although cursive style house numbers have a sophisticated look, they can be nearly impossible to read by emergency vehicles. Keep your family safe by using easy-to-read numbers, and place them in a well-lit area on the front of your home.
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