7 Interior Design Rules to Break
- Flooring Tips, Style Tips
- August 14, 2022
There is a saying that “some rules are made to be broken,” and this certainly applies to the field of interior design. However, before you break any of the rules, you must first understand them and the design principles behind them. You can experiment with style, form, and function and bring to your home an eclectic mix of design elements. Then you can change them to suit your own needs. Following are some tips to get your creative juices flowing.
1. Don’t paint your ceiling.
How to break it: A classic white ceiling could be jazzed up with some attractive tints. Some designers suggest painting the ceiling a shade lighter or darker than the walls. Others go so far as to advise that the ceiling become the focal point – use a bold color there and make the walls an understatement with more neutral tones.
2. Don’t mix old and new.
How to break it: Your furnishings don’t have to be homogeneous and boring.If the architecture of your home is designed from a certain era (like the 1930s), for variety try incorporating objects from the time period and melding them with modern accessories from the 21st century, such as a contemporary lighting or rugs. If you live in an upscale and modern abode, you could add a vintage piece for enhanced visual appeal. Blending traditional and current styles can often add a decor dimension of distinction to a room.
3. Don’t paint a small space a dark color.
How to break it: Even though white and light colors painted onto walls, trim, ceilings, and floors can make a small area seem a little airier and roomier, there is another design trick that can be used to create a sense of depth. By painting a wall a darer color (such as navy blue), the eye will be tricked into envisioning a more space beyond that point. The darker color makes the area seem deeper – the eye will not know where it begins or ends – and the optical illusion makes the room look larger.
4. Don’t mix patterns.
How to break it: Today’s trends call for using various motifs together – stripes with small checks, florals iwth plaids, animal prints with geometrics, or any other combination merged with the other. This creates a fun jumble of diverse and assorted patterns that will infuse your room with personality and pizzazz. If you’re timid about trying this approach, some designers suggest selecting a restricted palette of one of two opposing colors and experimenting with scale and geometry, then proceeding from there.
5. Don’t mix metals.
How to break it: Tradition dictates using the same metals together, but silver, gold, brass, bronze, and copper can easily complement each other. Mixing warm metal colors like brass, gold, and copper can offset the coolness of silver and nickel. Try combining metals in your room for a rich impact.
6. Every window needs treatment.
How to break it: You need curtains for privacy when people can look into your home – but if your view opens onto a pleasing natural vista of mountains or trees (and no one can peek in), then you can forego that embellishment. Sometimes all you need is a framing of nicely painted trim to give your window the simple artistic border it needs.
7. Always match your wood finishes.
How to break it: In eras past, full matching sets of furniture were favored. However, in the 21st century there is much more flexibility – allowing you to incorporate varying wood tones and assorted styles for a more interesting look. Begin the foundation of your wood palette with the color of your floor. But if it too closely matches the color of your wood furnishings, consider breaking up the monochromatic look with a brightly colored rug. Mixing furniture in dark and light is very pleasing to the eye.
Now you are a design rebel!
We hope these ideas have given you a fresh perspective of your design possibilities. Begin a process of change by evaluating your present interior decor and then strategizing ways to take it to the next level. Bypass tradition and create your own rules, and you’ll become a successful design rebel!
There is a saying that “some rules are made to be broken,” and this certainly applies to the field of interior design. However, before you break any of the rules, you must first understand them and the design principles behind them. You can experiment with style, form, and function and bring to your home an eclectic mix of design elements. Then you can change them to suit your own needs. Following are some tips to get your creative juices flowing.
Style 101
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