New Interior Design Blogs

Hello Everyone,

This was my first blog, and what I realized is that I really need two blogs.  One is for consumer education, and the other is for designers. So, starting March 17th, please visit these new addresses, and we will pick up where we left off:

Consumers: www.gaildobyinteriordesignblog.com

To The Trade: www.interiordesignsuccessblog.com

We will no longer post on this blog, and we will delete it in April.

Many thanks for your interest and participation.  I look forward to seeing you in our new spaces.

Luxe Magazine Article on Color - Interior Design Tips

Hello everyone,

Thank you for waiting for our newest interior design post.  It has been a difficult month with three funerals, so let’s hope that we are done with the sad news for awhile. 

As mentioned in an earlier post, we have a new article about color in Luxe Magazine that just hit the stands.  This magazine is an over-sized coffee table publication that is sure to inspire you.  The photography and layouts are stunning.  Kudos to my colleagues for their excellent design work.

We are almost ready to launch our new and vastly improved website www.renaissancedesign.com.  I will post that once our webmaster gives us the final launch date.  We will be starting our online newsletter during the first quarter, too.  The teleseminar series for consumers will also be starting during the next few months.    

About the author:  Gail has been transforming lifestyles and designing dreams for over twenty years.  Her interior design practice focuses on residential renovations, dream home designs and blissful master suites.

Great Article on Interior Design - Painting Your Home

http://www.wikihow.com/Paint-the-Interior-of-a-House

Also note the resources they offer.

Interior Design Question from Askville Viewer - How Do I Hang Pictures?

This is one of the biggest challenges for many readers and it is critical that it be done properly to achieve the right balance in the design of a room.  What I see happen most often when hanging pictures is placing them too high. 

Here are a few easy tips:

If you have a big wall and you only have small art pieces, group them by subject and try to use similar frame colors.  They can be in different sizes of frames, and you can also use multiple mats to enlarge the size of the picture. 

Always think about the typical view of the wall.  Will the viewer be seated, walking by, or typically be standing?  I tend to use a lower hanging height where the viewer is seated.  The exception is the dining room.  You can have the lowest part of the image partially obscured by the seated heads, but try to keep it to a minimum.

As a rule, I like to use approximately 62 - 65″ as the centerpoint of the pictures.  If you are doing a grouping, I like to keep the grouping fairly close together - somewhere between 2 - 5.” It also works well to group similar colors.

If you are struggling with hanging many different sized frames, go to your favorite office supply store and purchase some 1/4″ graph paper.  Use the 1/4″ = 1′ - 0″ scale and draw the size of your wall.  Take another piece of paper and cut out pieces that are the size of the pictures you are hanging.  Move them around until you find a layout that is pleasing. 

The biggest challenge hanging a grouping of art is getting them hung correctly.  One of my biggest pet peaves is when two pictures that are supposed to be the same height (using an implied line of the bottoms or tops of the frames) and one is off at least 1/16.”  That is an extreme opinion to some people, but it is important to me. 

Here are the tools you need:  Hammer, nails with hooks, pencil, level, clear tape, blue hanging putty, and if you can a laser level that suctions to the wall, it is extremely helpful. 

Be aware that few shops place the hooks on the back at exactly the same height.  When you need two nails, you need to measure very carefully to keep the picture level.  To keep the picture level, make a ball of the blue putty and put a ball behind the bottom two corners of the picture and push the picture into the ball to make it firm against the wall.  If you are off slightly, you can often tap the nail upward, or use blue putty on top of the nail to make a slight adjustment.

Start with the central piece and work outward.  Once you hang the first piece, measure the next piece and divide the dimension in half and add the space you want to the first piece (this is assuming you only need one hook).  Continue the same process.  This takes practice and patience.  I do not hang artwork with my husband! 

The reason I use tape, especially with plaster walls, is to mark the wall for the location of the nail and to keep the plaster from cracking.  It does help diffuse the impact.  Fold over one end of the tape for easy removal, measure, start the nail and then remove the tape.  Finish hammering the nail, hang the picture and check the level.  It is very important that you level each piece before hanging the next or you might have a faulty measurement.

I hope that answers your question, reader.  If not, please feel free to submit a comment on the About Gail page.

About the author:  Gail will be offering consumer and To The Trade teleseminars starting Q1 2008.  If you are interested, please keep watching for the postings.  An Ask page for questions from the readers will be set up in the near future.

How to Unify the Interior Design of Your Home

For my Askville readers and others of you that want to do your own interior design, here are some tips to help you create a beautiful interior.  There is much more to design than color, but it is one of the most impactful elements of interior design.

When I start a project with a client, it helps to understand their motivations for their personal space.  Some people are focused on displaying art, entertaining family and friends, creating a warm and soothing personal retreat - the personal goal for the client or you is to start with the end in mind. 

Once the goal is determined, I like to ask about likes and dislikes.  This includes colors, textures, patterns, design styles and any other elements that the client can express clearly.  Interviewing both spouses at the same time is very interesting.  I always surprise my clients with the questions that I ask and they in turn are surprised with their spouse’s answers.  This creates the design tension that makes the project interesting.  What I tell my clients is to expect about 85 - 90% agreement by both of them, and the remainder is a negotiation.  We allow each of them to have a few things that are uniquely theirs.

Assuming you’ve agreed on the 85 - 90%, I like to start with a central focal point per room.  Your focal point may be a rug, a piece of artwork, an architectural element such as a fireplace or a view.  Usually, the palette evolves from the focal point.  For example, if you have an oriental rug with reds, blues and tans, you can use those colors in your palette.  The trick is to balance the hues in terms of value (lightness/darkness), dominant color and application of the color.

When you have a dominant pattern controlling your design, you want to think about the final result you want to achieve with the room.  If you want that pattern to control the overall look, you can keep neutrals on the majority of the surfaces including the walls, ceilings and large furnishings.  You can start with a tan on the walls, a lighter version of the tan for the moldings and ceiling.  You can also reverse the application and put darker tan on the moldings and ceiling and lighter on the walls.  It would be best to keep the ceilings lighter if your room height is 8′.  If you have higher ceilings, the darker color can create a warmer and cozier feel.  I personally like using darker trim and have done it in my own home. 

You can also use the same color on the moldings, ceilings and walls - just use different sheens.  Always use flat on the ceiling…there are so many irregularities that are highlighted when you use a higher sheen. 

You can also use accent colors or textures on one or more walls.  There is no rule that says you have to paint all walls the same color.  There are several suggestions for this treatment and that could be another article in the future.

Back to the room with the oriental rug.  Once you’ve decided on the dominant color, you can add accents.  Some designers like the 60% color 1, 30% color 2 and 10% accent rule.  I don’t follow the rules, so you need to decide if you are daring enough to alter that. 

One way to apply the 30% is to use that color for the secondary furniture pieces such as accent chairs, draperies, window treatments, ottomans, accessories, etc.  The last 10% could be one of the other colors in the rug such as the red which happens to be a popular color right now - again, accessories are good for this.  Varying textures and patterns on other pieces in the room is also a great way to control your result.  If you are intent on keeping the rug as the dominant focal point, keep the other patterns to a minimum and more subtle.  This is a great time to use textures such as chenilles, velvets, mohairs, and other pleasing tactile selections.

If you want a bold room, use one of the stronger colors as your dominant hue.  Just remember that warm colors advance the walls and make the room seem smaller.  Cool colors such as blues, greens and violets will make the walls recede and make the room appear larger, so use care with your selection of colors.  Just remember, paint is inexpensive, so if you don’t like the result, start over.  I suggest daring with color…it is so fun and dramatic to add color.  For less than $100, you can paint your own room.

One of the most difficult challenges for most people is overcoming their fear of applying dramatic colors.  Face your fears and you will enjoy the results.

About the author:  Gail Doby has been designing interior spaces professionally for over twenty years.  She grew up with white walls and mid-century modern furnishings.  Her mother was an artist and renaissance woman that decorated their home with abstract art and portraits that she painted.  Gail grew up visiting museums and enjoys every style of art and architecture.