Design 101

Design with Longevity: Part 3

Lisa

You’ve heard how a brand new car loses tremendous value the minute it leaves the lot?  In the same way, we don’t want rooms that are just months from showing their “design age” either.  How do we create them?

Authenticity, Functionality, and Relevance

Our focus today is Relevance.

We’ve had  many new people in our home over the last few months, and imagining our space through their eyes has given me fresh perspective.  For example, I’ve grown increasingly aware of a few stuffed animals that arrived circa the toddler years.   A special bunny given to my daughter happened to match our family room and eventually became part of the decor.  Likewise, a souvenir teddy bear made our living spaces welcoming for our youngest visitors.  Fast forward to years that house a teenager and a preteen (and the visitors who have also aged), and it’s just weird.  –Because, it’s not relevant anymore.

To create a space that is relevant, ask, does your current design support your season of life?  Not just functionally (the principle of the previous post) but stylistically?  Is your home evolving with you?

So, where do trends fit?

In this series, it might seem like I’ve painted trends as the bad guys in design.  Not my intention.  Rather,

I believe good design is inspired by trends, not held hostage by them.

We should pick and choose among the ever-changing flood of trends those that suit us  rather than worrying that our home looks “SO last year” because it doesn’t have a (insert latest “must-have” here.)  Remember, most trends are just ingenious marketing efforts–and that revolving door will keep on spinning!

When Joanna Gaines brought southern charms to mainstream decor my heart went pitter-patter.  Cotton stems available at Wal-mart?  It’s Christmas for this displaced Southerner!  But Southern elements will always be relevant for me because of my heritage—no matter what’s trending.

So, if there’s a trend you love, add an element to your space–just avoid the complete overhaul that will eventually date your room like Disney’s Carousel of Progress!

(Arnel Hasanovic on Unsplash)

Practically, I see two approaches:

  1.  Keep a room feeling up to date with on-trend accessories.  Accessories are usually inexpensive and easily replaceable when you tire of them.  Changing just a few notable accessories (a pillow, a vase, a picture, etc.) can give an entire room a more current look.
  2. Fall in love with a statement piece?  Go for it! –If you’re at peace replacing it in 3-5 years or you know that it soooo captures your personal style, it will be timeless to you.  For most of us, that means NOT choosing trendy materials for anything that requires a contractor and remodeling dust–like tile, counter tops, or fixtures.  However, the area rug that pulls the whole room together but will likely be worn about the time I’m getting tired of it anyway (thank you, messy people who live with me), absolutely!

Our homes should include elements that prove we actually live and move in the outside word, but

filter trends through authenticity and season of life to remain relevant.

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Design 101, Uncategorized

Design with Longevity: Part 2

Lisa

A well-designed home seems nearly timeless.  Sure, some pieces will require replacement as they become worn or tired, but we don’t have to be at the mercy of the latest arrivals to curate a home of which we’re proud.  What elements contribute to design with longevity?

Authenticity, Functionality, and Relevance

In this post, we’ll look at functionality.  This principle is pretty straightforward:  if a home doesn’t work for you and with you, that angst will be felt.

A classic example is the stand alone dining room.  Over the last decade, we’ve seen a surge of redesign or  “reapplication” of these spaces.  Many have removed walls in favor of an open-concept space.  Where this is not feasible, others have allowed their more consistent needs to define the space as a playroom, office, or project room.

So, as you walk through your home or redesign a specific space, observe which items always seem in the way or keep getting moved because they’re not a good fit.  Do you really need them?  If so, but not very often, is there a landing spot or storage option that more accurately represents it’s use?  Can you make some exchanges that better reflect how your family lives?  Maybe that big bulky chair in the family room gets moved to a corner in your bedroom (because the benefits of a “man cave” or “she shed” don’t always require a whole room!) and replaced with that spare bench to provide seating and better traffic flow.

In reverse, is there an unmet (or inconveniently met) need that it is time to resolve?  Do you consistently find yourself looking for a place to put down a drink near that chair you love to unwind in?  Would a slipper table, stack of sturdy suitcases, or small shelf hung nearby complete this little parcel of refuge? Would you dearly love to prop up your feet when the conversation gets good and no one wants to leave?

We have a tufted ottoman that invites all to sit back, relax, and stay a while.  It’s round shape facilitates traffic flow, and the wheels allow it to be easily removed when we need the floor space (ie. family dance competitions!).  The lid can be removed to access storage.  It’s where I keep magazines for lazy days moments (!) and comfy throws for snuggling.

Functionality

A space that functions is fluid and frees one up to appreciate those meaningful moments you design a home for in the first place.

(Josh Applegate on Unsplash)

 

Other Photo Credits:  (Top–Down) Jason Leung on Unsplash, (mine), Kevin Wolf on Unsplash, William Warby on Wikimedia Commons, Alisa Anton on Unsplash, (mine)

Design 101

Design with Longevity: Part 1

Lisa

What makes a room nearly timeless?  Well, good design of course.  But you know that!  So, let’s take it a step further with these

3 Elements:  Authenticity, Functionality, & Relevance

We’re starting with Authenticity:

(Annie Spratt on Unsplash)

Have you noticed that some of the easiest people to be around are those who are very comfortable in their own skin?   –Those people who aren’t working overtime to project an image of who they think they should be but those who “just are?”  The same principle is true when making a house a home.  

William Morris said, “Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful.”

Rooms that seem to transcend time have very little to do with keeping up with the latest trends and more to do with what you love.  Is your home full of what makes you smile? Hope? Feel comforted?

If we’d never met, but I was given a tour of your home (and let’s assume for this illustration that wasn’t weird!) could I distill a few characteristics of your personality, your heritage, or your aspirations? From photos to furniture, heirlooms to innovations, include elements that bring you delight–regardless of what’s in the latest Pottery Barn catalog.  (No disrespect to Pottery Barn or any other housewares chain–they just shouldn’t be considered a manual or a check list.)

(Anne Spratt on Unsplash)

For future purchases, ask, “Would I have loved this last year?” (ie. before I saw it on Pintrest or so-and-so’s house– who always has the latest thing?)  In time, your unique preferences–the ones that will transcend trends–will emerge.

For example,  I am obsessed with textures.  Worn wood, mottled mercury glass, an impossibly soft blanket–if an item offers a unique texture, I’m likely to enjoy it for many years to come, not just while it’s popular with others.

Likewise, some of my favorite homes to visit are those in which the owner has been true to his or her unique style.  My friend who loves Early Americana with its distressed woods, heirloom quilts, and aged pottery, proudly expresses her love for this era in her furniture and decor choices.  Though she updates and edits over the years, her house always seems designed well because it is true to who she is.  Another friend loves mid-century furniture and decor–and has loved it LONG before it became trendy.  Her home also bears a “non-stuffiness” about it that invites others to simply be who they are and enjoy that time together.  So, remember:

Authenticity is beautiful–in life and design.

(Brandi Redd on Unsplash)