It’s easy to get carried away when reading the glossy home décor magazines.
Beautifully crafted photos of the interiors of ‘A’ list celebrity homes, wonderfully flowing and prosaic articles by leading design gurus and of course the helpful wisdoms shared by the top consultants – all these things in the publications can leave us looking around our own living space and feeling very inadequate.
Getting massively motivated, we charge off downtown determined to revolutionize the décor around our home. This enthusiasm usually lasts right up until we turn over the price tag on that ‘must have’ fabric in the shop. Cue knees turning to jelly!
It doesn’t have to be like that though.
The Role Of The Glossy Magazines
It may be that you’re sufficiently wealthy so as to be able to afford to fly in a top interior designer from Europe or the other side of the country and give him or her a blank check with the instruction “go do it”. If you are, then you have no need to read on.
If you have slightly less disposable income, it’s worth remembering at the outset that many of the home interiors magazines are very useful as idea generators.
Don’t get depressed though in terms of costs. In general they tend to concentrate on the very top designers, labels, brands and suppliers. You may be able to achieve similar effects overall at a far lower cost.
Interior Designers And Consultants
Contrary to their media image, the vast majority of professionals in this area are not living a pretentious and champagne lifestyle. You may be surprised at how affordable their advice, guidance and design services are. Some stores and outlets will even offer some services of this type free-of-charge if you’re buying through them.
It may be a wise investment. As an example, many of us know the principles of the look we’re going for but perhaps lack the exact skills necessary to achieve the perfect balance of colors and textiles etc. It could also be the case that we may not know exactly what choices are available or where the best bargains can be found in terms of sourcing what we need.
Designers and consultants may be able to help in all these areas and more.
Building Your Own Design
If you’re giving a room or house a complete makeover, then having an overall design plan is usually a good idea before you rush off to the shops. It needn’t be very detailed but it should at least contain a theme and scheme. Buying items piecemeal that individually catch your eye can lead to disaster in terms of achieving an integrated and cohesive design look.
There are many ways a design can be put together but having even a few simple sketches will help avoid horrific color or style clashes when you get your purchases back home.
These basic design sketches don’t have to be of Leonardo de Vinci’s standard! They just need to contain:
• The ‘feel’ and ambiance you’re going for (minimalist, Victorian, Japanese, retro 70s etc)
• The main color schemes of items such as drapes, furniture and rugs
• The ideal positions of your major of items of furniture.
Keeping things roughly in proportion will be very useful. If you’re not great with a pencil then you can probably find a friend or neighbor that is. Even better, many major stores now have Internet facilities that will allow you to use software to design your own room online.
Finding Your Items
Once you have your basic design worked out, it’s then a question of ‘making it happen’.
There’s no middle ground here. Spending hours on the Internet browsing various suppliers or trudging around the shops looking at color charts and fabrics, is either something you love or you hate.
Whichever camp you’re in, you’ll probably admit that it isn’t easy. One tip is worth remembering though if you enjoy it and your partner doesn’t. Dragging an unenthusiastic partner around for hours simply because you insist on having their ‘contribution’ is likely only to lead to friction and poor decisions!
Suppliers
You can search for your items on the net although many people still prefer to see, feel and touch items before they buy them for their home. The traditional shops and home furnishing stores are always a good start.
It may also be worth keeping an eye open for auctions of bankrupt stock, clearances and sales of ‘seconds’. Sometimes at these events it is possible to find designer labels at a fraction of the price they’d normally fetch in a major store – though do watch out for fakes and counterfeits.
Finally, when you’re going for ‘the look’, remember that execution is often key.
There’s not much point spending a lot of money on exactly the right ingredients for your home if they are ruined or partly ruined by poor application. That drape fabric may have looked great when you purchased it and you may well have paid a fortune for it, but if it’s badly hung it’ll look cheap and nasty nevertheless.
The same applies for just about anything. Painting is another good example of something that looks easy, whereas in reality if you don’t know what you’re doing the final result can appear crude and amateurish.
So, if you’re ‘doing it yourself’ that’s great but make sure you know what you’re doing. If you have any doubts, then paying a little extra for a professional could make all the difference to the final result.
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