Fashionably Designed

With Fall nudging its way into our homes, I love to settle down with Fashion magazines. To me, Fashion and Home Design are connected. The best stylists know how to balance scale with texture; to create a look that is always interesting, and sometimes provocative. Decorating a home is exactly the same; no-one opens a magazine to be bored, and no-one ever aspires to look at a repetitious, impersonal space. What we look at should always evoke some kind of feeling.

The latest Fall fashions make me hyperventilate with joy; a sumptuous combination of rich colors, tweed fabrics alongside ridiculously oversized, girlie taffeta skirts, and accessories that just beg to be noticed. While these looks are often exaggerated, their message can often be applied to our everyday lives.

I have attached several editorial photographs. The first one is a classic, retro look, the second, a beautiful study in neutrals, and the third, a playful mix of pattern and texture. If you forget their original purpose, they could easily be used as pieces of artwork, or, even better, inspirational guidelines to decorate your home.

Whether or not you love Fashion, pick up a magazine now and again. Notice the way that their photographs are styled. I am sure it will make you think differently about your home.

With many thanks to: http://nibsblog.wordpress.com/ for the retro photograph, and two other magazines (whose names I have forgotten) from which I tore out these pages.

The Sweet Dreams of Reality

A friend recently asked me about decorating her bedroom. After living in her home for many years, her bedroom had become a transitional mess; a place for laundry (in all it’s stages), a storage facility, and a home office that was slowly reproducing technical equipment when no-one was looking.


Why do we put ourselves last? Bedrooms should be the simplest room to decorate. The focal point is already established, and the function is pretty much self-explanatory. More than anything else in the modern world, people are lacking sleep and relaxation; wouldn’t it make sense to focus on these things before picking out kitchen cabinets, or deciding what book to place on our coffee table?

I promise, that whatever the state of your bedroom, all it takes is an afternoon to make it a better place to spend time in.

- Start with the obvious, take out everything that doesn’t belong in there! Minimize or eliminate all electronics.

- Then, decide what you do (and don’t) want to see first thing in the morning and last thing at night. Close the closet doors, make the bed, straighten the dresser and take a look at what is happening on the walls.

- Group family photo’s in an interesting way; asymmetrical displays will look casual, but pulled together at the same time. Keep them tightly arranged, no more than an inch or two between each.

- Artwork above the bed should not be too high, or too small, that it feels disconnected from the bed. Consider an inexpensive piece of wall sculpture instead of a painting. Some people like inspirational words above their bed. If making a statement, make it bold!

- Use color or texture for interest. Place a rug on the floor, over your carpet if necessary. Layers of flooring are better than layers of sweatshirts and dirty underwear.

- If the ceiling, bed linens and floor are all too similar, add a contrasting color for depth and balance. Rooms need contrast for them to feel grounded and “whole”.

- Create a personal story around you of things that will inspire you to have sweet dreams (words, pillows, blankets, books, Art, silence, notepaper, flowers, pens, stuffed animals, plants, lotion, photographs, music, nothingness