Picking Colors Can Be Fun

Dear Melissa,

I have a contemporary home not large (almost a cape size) painted white and no real divider except one small wall near the kitchen. I am afraid to paint with a color because of the flow from one room to another. I have cathedral ceilings. I do need some spark added to the rooms. Please advise me. Thank you. Rose

Dear Rose:

This is the most common question I get; a lot of people are stumped by this one. I’m assuming that since you have rooms open to one another, the color schemes are already somehow related to one another. There is probably at least one color common to all the areas. The simplest option is to paint the walls a shade of this common color. If you’re timid, start with a light color – in time you’ll get bolder. Now for something with slightly more impact: try a texture on your walls in this common color. Use either a painted faux finish or a textured wallpaper – the fainthearted can try a strie pattern, a grasscloth or rag finish.

For those of you who are even more adventurous, find a contrasting or complementary color for your walls. A lot of shelter magazines publish issues on color in the spring; or look at patterned fabrics for inspiration. Here are some examples: if your color scheme is blues/greens or pinks/blues, color your walls yellow; if your color scheme is cream/tan/white, color your walls dark brown; if your color scheme is a range of pastels, try aqua or gray walls, etc. Get the idea? Picking colors can be a lot of fun. M.A.K.

Secrets to an Outstanding Room

Dear Readers:

A woman recently asked me for the decorating secrets to creating an outstanding room. There are really no secrets. A truly great room requires careful space planning, wonderful furnishings (define wonderful however you like), and if not intuitive style than at least education and training.

Let’s get the furnishings out of the way, since this is what everyone focuses on. There is a big difference in quality and appearance -- not to mention cost -- between the merchandise available to the trade only and that which the average person has access to. (There are ways around this, but that’s the subject of another column.) You can still have a wonderful room on a budget, because even more important than placing great items in a room, is the ability to apply the principles and elements of design to the space. Some homeowners use these rules instinctively, but professionals use them deliberately.

What are the rules? The most important is the famous “form follows function”. A room’s design must meet the needs of the persons occupying the space; i.e., you shouldn’t have to adapt to your surroundings. The space should be carefully planned to handle the activities while allowing for traffic circulation.

The other design principles are ones that you won’t notice until they go horribly wrong. One is called

unity and variety, which seem like contradictory components. Actually they complement one another, like yin and yang. While each room needs a sense of planned order, the juxtaposition of opposites in it adds visual interest. Some people unfortunately carry variety to an extreme. Without the restraint of unity, there’s a fine line between an “eclectic” interior and an insane one.

The principle of balance is another biggie. This is one of the main problems I come across, and one of the easiest to fix. Balance refers to the visual weight of objects in a room. The visual mass on one side of the space should counterbalance that on the other. All sides of the room need to be counterbalanced visually.

Rhythm creates the “movement” in the room. The placement of objects and patterns causes your eye to dance around, and the eye resting on large solids provides control of this movement. Scale and proportion deal with the size of objects in relation to the size of the space and to each other, respectively. And emphasis means that nothing should detract from the focal point of the room.

Line, form, contrast, color, pattern, and texture are all design elements that occur in various combinations in every room. While each one has several discussion points, let me just say that one element should predominate in the space.

You will end up with the last principle of design, harmony, when all of the other principles and elements have been used correctly. (Ta da! Nothing to it.) I hope you look at the complexity of well-designed rooms with new appreciation. For more information, inquire about decorating classes and interior design programs in your area. M.A.K.

When to Hire an Interior Designer

Dear Melissa,

My husband and I are building and decorating our dream house. I feel like I need an interior designer to really make my dream come true, but my husband thinks it’s unnecessary. Do you have any advice for us? O.G., AZ

Dear O.G.,

While building a dream house is exciting, it can also be very stressful. If this is all you and your husband disagree about, you’re doing pretty well. I’m curious as to your husband’s concerns. Is he worried that it will cost too much, that your personal taste will be ignored, that the designer isn’t experienced enough, that you and your designer won’t be compatible? It’s easy to prevent all of these with a thorough interview.

Have you ever taken a virtual or actual tour of a grand house that’s on the market? (Don’t you just love open houses and real estate websites where we get to peek into other people’s homes legally?) Very often the interiors inside these magnificent structures are so disappointing, it’s a shame. Many homeowners with excellent taste have neither the expertise nor the resources to bring the interior of the house up to the level of the envelope. If you are using the finest materials in the structure, it is only fitting that the home’s interior appointments should meet this level of quality as well. Designers can provide access to superb furnishings, fabrics, lighting and accessories that are available only to the trade. An interior designer can also make sure that costly mistakes aren’t being made in furnishing the home’s interior. Moreover a designer can serve as a sounding board, meshing a husband’s and wife’s conflicting ideas into an agreeable compromise; often, the designer will put an idea on the table that homeowners haven’t even considered.

An interior designer can also provide a cohesive plan for your home, so that the colors and styles of the various spaces complement each other. Many homes have windows with unusual shapes, light control, or privacy issues; a designer can provide you with stylish window treatments to solve these problems. Furthermore, designers have access to the best workrooms for upholstery, window treatments, and pillows, as well as decorative painters, finish carpenters, paperhangers, etc., who are the best in their fields. The quality of their workmanship can make the difference between a so-so room and one in which even the smallest details are wonderful.

A well-designed interior that is wholly functional as well as aesthetically pleasing is difficult to achieve; that’s why people specialize in creating them. Keep in mind that there are a lot of dream houses that have never become dream homes. You are smart to recognize that an interior designer can help make this transformation a reality. Hopefully, you can convince your husband that you’d be more comfortable with help. (Even if the designer just supplies you with those to-die-for-gorgeous furnishings that your dream house deserves.) M.A.K.

Optimizing Natural Light

Dear Melissa:

We have a room in the northwestern corner of our house, which is a ranch style. Because of the trees, we get very little light into this room. Can you suggest something we can do about more windows or skylights to optimize the natural light? K.G., NH

Dear K.:

Here are some tips on window placement for us in the Northeast.

When faced with a choice, choose horizontal windows with angled window jambs to admit more light. Sun blockage on the western side of your house is not a bad thing, particularly with deciduous trees, but you might want to increase the sunlight on the northern side. Since I wouldn’t remove any windbreaks, I would definitely consider a row of clerestory windows up by the ceiling. When one edge of a window is contiguous with an adjoining wall or the ceiling itself, light flows along this surface creating an extra glow. Windows above your head will also cut down on drafts.

You don’t mention which way your roof is pitched, so all I can tell you about a potential skylight is that you should avoid placing one in a southern- or western- facing roof, if possible. You don’t need the other extreme of sun blindness. M.A.K.

DIY Closet

Dear Melissa:
My wife and I are planning to convert a small bedroom into a walk-in closet. We are doing the work ourselves to save money. We have the choice of a wire system or melamine. Is there a disadvantage to one over the other, besides cost? C.B.

Dear C.:
Yes, so pick your poison: dusty shelves versus a waffle weave on stacked clothes. Personally, I like the furniture look of solid closet systems, but I would choose wire myself nowadays. When I was younger I thought that having the imprint of a wire grid on my sweaters would be horrible. Now that I’m aging rapidly, the thought of dust collecting on my closet shelves along with the rest of the house is just too much. See, it’s really just a matter of perspective.

Some words of advice, though, since you are doing the closet plan yourselves. First, discard everything you don’t need to store, before you start measuring. (Sometimes simply cleaning out a closet solves the problem.) Group like items together for planning purposes. Lay out the closet for easy retrieval by placing the things you will need most often in an accessible location. Place closet poles over one another for shorter items. If possible, place a small island in the center of a walk-in closet for folding and arranging outfits; a small chair would also be helpful for putting on shoes. Don’t forget good lighting – think about what the lighting in store dressing rooms does to our self-esteem.

Keep some dimensions in mind when calculating the space. Clothes closets should be 24-32 inches deep. Allow 2 inches of hanging space for each item of indoor clothing (more for outerwear). Allow at least 12 inches between wire shelves for the brackets to fit. If planning on putting a hanging bar close to the ceiling, leave space above it in order to lift out the hangers. Figure at least 4 inches beneath the longest hanging garments for air circulation and vacuuming.

That said, you should be off to a good start. Let’s face it, organization keeps life running smoothly. M.A.K.

Pint-Sized Collector

Dear Melissa:

My adolescent has the smallest room in the house and the most stuff. She’s a collector and every surface is covered. Can you suggest something to stop the battles? Frustrated Mom

Dear Frustrated:

I totally sympathize. I have two collectors myself, and we’ve tried everything, including the dreaded “mom cleaning with a garbage bag”.

Consider replacing some pieces of furniture with those that do double duty, such as a captain’s bed, a cabinet with built-in hampers, wall mirrors with an attached shelf/hooks, and a vitrine (glass-topped display table). Trust me, you’ll feel better freeing up some horizontal surfaces just so you can actually see the dust for a change.

There is also untapped space just below the ceiling. Consider running a 4” deep display shelf around the upper part of the walls. Your child probably just wants the comfort of having her favorite things nearby where she can see them. Keep only her actual playthings within easy reach.

You might also try rotating her collections, the way adults do when they have too much clutter. Possessions feel fresh and new again when brought out of storage. And if all else fails, keep the bedroom door shut. M.A.K.

Landfill as the Ultimare Organization Solution

Dear Readers:

It’s time to clean out my studio for spring. I just got back from buying a paper shredder and seven plastic organizers. What I need are seven human organizers. I really have the best of intentions, and I’ll buy anything. It’s the commitment that’s lacking. You would not believe the amount of paper and samples a design firm generates. My assistant and I are literally buried.

Here’s my latest strategy: hide everything in the bins until I have a few spare hours to sort, shred, and toss. (That should be around June.) The only drawback to my camouflage plan is the old ”out of sight, out of mind” problem. What I really need is a place for everything. Alas, that also requires time and planning, both at a premium these days.

Perhaps the best home for everything would be the dump. Throwing everything out would be very liberating. Having had a dumpster for a few months while under construction for an addition was fantastic. I highly recommend it for motivation.

Wish me luck with my spring cleaning!

M.A.K.

No Flatscreen over this Mantel

Dear Melissa:

We have a couple of questions concerning what to do with our walls. Could you tell us when to place art or a mirror over a fireplace mantel? I don't need mt TV in this room. Also, where is a good place to group family pictures; we live in a raised ranch and have a long hallway leading to the bedrooms, and an entranceway with a massive wall that needs something. Thank you.

D.Z., NJ

Dear D.Z.:

Let me address the fireplace mantel first. Since the fireplace is usually the focal point of a room, one has to consider what is worthy enough to occupy this “seat of honor.” Artwork, clocks, and mirrors are all perennial favorites for this prime real estate. Sculpture, collections, and candles also work well. Artwork and other objects placed over a fireplace become slightly more important than the other accessories in the room, so choose something you love. Consider adding a spotlight or a picture light.

Mirrors add sparkle to a room and can help to brighten it when placed near a window or other light source. When placing a mirror over the fireplace, or anywhere for that matter, one must also take into account what else will be reflected in the mirror besides light.

Whatever the choice, keep the scale in mind, trying to complement the size and shape of the fireplace, neither overpowering it nor letting the fireplace dominate.

The location of family photos is a personal choice, but my preference is to display them in a more private area of a home, like a bedroom, family room, den, or that hallway you mentioned. I think that would be a perfect location for a grouping of photographs.

As for the large entry wall in your raised ranch, the options are endless. An accent wallpaper or paint color can be a good foundation. Since this is a large area, either think big or think multiple arrangements. Something sculptural or three-dimensional would be a nice change from the usual pictures. (Just make sure you can get past it on the stairs.) Whatever you do, try to avoid a single row of pictures marching up the stairs like little soldiers. Groupings are much more interesting. Overhead lighting is critical in this typically dim space, so explore wonderful chandeliers, pendants or accent lighting.

M.A.K.

Must Paintings Line Up?

Dear Melissa:

In my bedroom, I have a painting on each of three walls. Do they have to line up with each other? What do you do about paintings? Barbara,  IN 

Dear Barbara:

Here are some guidelines for hanging paintings. Proportion is important. A single, tiny painting looks lost on a large wall. Conversely, a gigantic painting that practically fills up an entire wall will also look odd. Smaller pieces can be grouped into an arrangement for more stature and visual interest. Sometimes all you need to correct the size issue is to change the frame or mat. Keep in mind though, that the frame is supposed to enhance the painting, not detract from it. Ornate, heavily carved frames were used historically to separate those bold, colorful masterpieces from the ornate walls of the period. A heavy frame won’t make sense on a line drawing hanging on a painted white wall.

Placement is also important. I’m sure you’ve heard that you should hang a painting at eye level. But whose eye level? The person who is 6’3” or the one who’s 5’2”? This guideline applies more to gallery spaces. If you are showcasing a painting, it should be hung at the height where most viewers can interact with it.  In one's home, that means it could be at chair height.

Artwork in homes is typically used to unify furniture with walls; therefore unless a painting is large and dominant, it is often placed over something, like the bed or a dresser. Artwork should hang relatively close to the piece of furniture, creating a composition. I want to say hang it no higher than 12 inches above the furniture, but it really depends on each situation. Just remember, if you aren’t sure about the height, err on the side of hanging it too low rather than too high, even placing it on the furniture. Please. It makes me crazy when pictures look like they’re drifting up towards the ceiling. And treat each painting separately. M.A.K.

Asthma

Dear Melissa:

I wonder if you have any thoughts on how to make a home environment better for those suffering from allergies or asthma. Do we really have to go down to bare floors and toss out the favorite sectional and replace it with leather? Ugh!! L.D., MO

Dear L.:

Treating a home for people with respiratory ailments depends on the severity of the problem. Sometimes it necessitates a move to Florida or Arizona. I’m serious.

Less drastic measures start with attentive housekeeping, quality heating & air conditioning, mold control, hypo-allergenic well-vacuumed bedding, sealed windows, and the removal of all known offenders: pets, dust, down, feathers, heavy draperies, textured fabrics, fluffy carpets, and facial tissues (extremely dust producing).

One doesn’t have to end up with a sterile setting, however. Instead of heavy window treatments, try pretty valances with shutters or pleated shades beneath. Consider covering your sectional with a washable cotton slipcover – unless it’s stuffed with feathers or down. Then it will probably have to go. As for flooring, you might experiment with cotton area rugs. There are also some wonderful low-pile, low-gas carpets on the market designed for the healthcare industry. Consider sisals and canvas floor cloths, too. Since everyone is a little different, you might have to experiment a little. Good luck. M.A.K.

Reverse-Painted Glass Walls

Dear Melissa:

I loved your room at the Guilford showhouse a few years ago. The bathroom is really stunning. I would kill for that awesome shower curtain. I could tell the trim was real jade. The glass walls kind of confused me, though. I still don’t quite understand how they were done. Were the walls painted and then covered with the sheets of glass? G.B., Madison, CT

Dear G.:

Thank you for supporting the showhouse, and for the compliment. (I need all the encouragement I can get.) The amazing onyx sink in the bathroom required equally dramatic surroundings, which explains the silk-and-jade shower curtain and the glass walls.

I love to experiment and push the envelope in showhouses, because there is no client to disappoint. Since my two favorite surface materials are metal and glass, they came to mind immediately. Metal was too contemporary for this space, so I chose to create something special in glass. Hence the unique walls.

Reverse-painted glass itself is not new. The Chinese have been doing it for centuries. It was also popular in this country during the Art Deco period, although mostly on picture frames and mirrors. You may be familiar with Eglomise, the French name for gilded and reverse-painted glass.

As its name implies, reverse painting is painting in the opposite order. Consider normal painting, where an artist paints the background first, builds up each layer, and then ends with the foreground. When one paints on the back of clear glass, the order is reversed, starting with the foreground. This way when the glass is turned over, the foreground is uppermost. As you can imagine, this requires a lot of skill and practice.

As far as I know, reverse-painted walls are unheard of. Think of them as glass wallpaper.

I needed a truly adventurous artist, so I asked Randy Davis, of Off The Wall Murals, in Killingworth, CT, to create the walls for me. He’s incredibly talented, and has done work for Disney, Paramount Studios, and Warner Brothers, among others. I knew if anyone could figure out how to do this, he could. And he did. Beautifully.

The glass company solved the problems of the physical constraints and how to affix the panels to the walls, and we were good to go. (So what if I had a few sleepless nights until we were sure this would work. That’s what it means to do a showhouse.) M.A.K.

What to Put on the Walls

Dear Melissa:

We have a couple of questions concerning what to do with our walls. Could you tell us when to place art or a mirror over a fireplace mantel? Also, where is a good place to group family pictures; we live in a raised ranch and have a long hallway leading to the bedrooms, and an entranceway with a massive wall that needs something. Thank you.

D.Z., AL

Dear D.Z.:

Let me address the fireplace mantel first. Since the fireplace is usually the focal point of a room, one has to consider what is worthy enough to occupy this “seat of honor.” Artwork, clocks, and mirrors are all perennial favorites for this prime real estate. Sculpture, collections, and candles also work well. Artwork and other objects placed over a fireplace become slightly more important than the other accessories in the room, so choose something you love. Consider adding a spotlight or a picture light.

Mirrors add sparkle to a room and can help to brighten it when placed near a window or other light source. When placing a mirror over the fireplace, or anywhere for that matter, one must also take into account what else will be reflected in the mirror besides light.

Whatever the choice, keep the proportions in mind, trying to complement the size and shape of the fireplace, neither overpowering it nor letting the fireplace dominate. Scale matters.

The location of family photos is a personal choice, but my preference is to display them in a more private area of a home, like a bedroom, family room, den, or that hallway you mentioned. I think that would be a perfect location for a grouping of photographs.

As for the large entry wall in your raised ranch, the options are endless. An accent wallpaper or paint color can be a good foundation. Since this is a large area, either think big or think multiple arrangements. Something sculptural or three-dimensional would be a nice change from the usual pictures. (Just make sure you can get past it on the stairs.) Whatever you do, try to avoid a single row of pictures marching up the stairs like little soldiers. Groupings are much more interesting. Overhead lighting is critical in this typically dim space, so explore wonderful chandeliers, pendants or accent lighting.

M.A.K.

Connecticut Casino Design

Dear Readers:

It’s been my version of Driving Miss Daisy. My mother has always loved casinos. Let’s be honest; casinos have become Senior Day Care Centers. Being of a certain age, however, she could use a younger driver to navigate the highways between home and the two casinos in Connecticut: namely, me. Since I have absolutely no luck and will have to earn every dollar I’ll ever have, I would go to enjoy the interior design. Anyone who has not been there should take a trip.

Foxwoods looks like the “Emerald City” standing there amid rolling hills. The interior design is a sort of Native American neoclassicism, in cool aquas and lavenders. The Mohegan Sun, on the other hand, makes use of untamed, animalistic deconsructivism. This is a form of architecture using building fragments, as though they are barely attached to one another, hence the term DE-construction. The new hotel is all glass, and looks like shards of ice breaking through an ice floe. The outer walls are slanted and breathtaking.

While both are well done, I adore the design in the Mohegan Sun, especially the lighting design in the original casino. It’s magical, and the lighting of the new casino is also very innovative with its lighted walls made to look like craggy mountains of glowing alabaster. I could spend all day looking around -- especially at the Dale Chihuly glass sculpture in the mall, which must have cost at least a half-million dollars. It’s worth a trip, even if you don’t gamble. M.A.K.

What Works with Red and Purple?

Dear Melissa:

The colors in my living room are red and deep violet. I know it sounds gross, but it’s really nice. I want to recover a chair in my living room, but I can’t find the right shades of either the red or the violet, so I’m stuck. I don’t want to do a neutral and have it stick out like a sore thumb. I have looked everywhere. W.S. 

Dear W.:

I think your color scheme sounds great. Unfortunately colors come in trends, with certain shades going out of favor for a while. You don’t have to match colors for them to blend well in a room, however. Have you considered using an intermediate color to bridge the two colors – say, amethyst or wine, for instance? A bridge color wouldn’t be as obvious as a neutral. Another option would be to experiment with an analogous color like ginger or tangerine. M.A.K.

Mount Vernon and Monticello

Dear Readers:

During a recent trip to Virginia, I had a chance to visit both Mount Vernon and Monticello, homes to two of our greatest presidents. It was interesting to contrast the two. While George Washington and Thomas Jefferson were contemporaries, they were very different individuals, as evidenced even by their homes. Both courageous and energetic statesmen, George Washington was self-educated and a superb businessman/farmer, while Jefferson was a self-taught architect, a man of letters, and a proponent of education. Washington was wealthy, Jefferson ultimately bankrupt. Both homes were hubs of activity. The enormous properties sustained a large number of family, friends and slaves. Both drew visitors and their servants from all over the world. 677 guests stayed at Mount Vernon in one year alone.

Mount Vernon sits on a hilltop overlooking the Potomac River, near the once-thriving port of Alexandria. As Washington’s success and fame grew, so did his home. It grew from a small, bucolic house into an enormous country estate of 8,000 acres. The early rooms remained fairly simple, while the later additions were designed specifically to impress visitors with their elaborate ornamentation. (One might say ”ostentation”, but who can blame him.) The walls of his smaller dining room are glazed in a “jaw-dropping” green, similar to the color of today’s highway signs. I seem to be the only one besides George who liked them. The charming master bedroom would be comfortable even by today’s standards. In fact, most of the bedrooms at Mount Vernon were very pleasant, with great water views. And the very elegant Necessary (outhouse) had drawers beneath the seats for emptying into the fields. The man was really into recycling!

Monticello is situated in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, hence the name “small mountain”, in Italian. Jefferson’s primary residence was a forty-year labor of love. It too grew with its owner’s prosperity. The brick mansion is coolly classical in design, and its consistent restraint is in marked contrast to the later Mount Vernon rooms. Monticello is also filled with many clever European touches and purely Jeffersonian eccentricities. For example, in his dining room, Jefferson had dumbwaiters for wine hidden in the fireplace surround and revolving shelves for food service in the door. In the entrance hall, among other unique things, he had an automatic door, a large dinosaur jawbone, and a calendar clock up at the ceiling. The clock had a weighted chain that indicated the day of the week as it crept down the wall. Unfortunately, the ceiling wasn’t high enough so the weight hit the floor on Thursday. To solve this problem Jefferson cut a hole in the floor, and the weight spends the weekend in the basement until it begins its descent again on Monday. It’s a really fun house.

Never having been farther south than New Jersey, I was particularly curious about the slave quarters on both estates. At Mount Vernon, the early household slaves lived barracks-style in a large building. I was struck by the fact that the bunk beds had curved headboards. Eventually, Washington began to build cabins for the families. Due to his prosperity, the household slaves were relatively well-fed and clothed, hunted, and could earn additional income. Washington’s feelings about slavery changed over the course of his life. He could never have had such a prosperous farm without them, yet Washington freed his slaves upon his death.

At Monticello, nothing remains of the slave cottages on Mulberry Row or in the outlying farms except for the foundations, excavated artifacts, and Jefferson’s documents. I must say those were pretty small foundations, although this was the “new and improved” slave housing, providing more privacy to families. Each slave was provided with four fish, a large slab of bacon, and unlimited milk per week. At the end of the workday, they were permitted to earn extra money if they wanted to improve their standard of living. While he had always maintained that slavery was an “abomination”, he freed only seven slaves over the course of his life.

These homes are both national treasures and snapshots of history.  They are an insight into the lives of two complicated men who risked their lives to create a country. It knocks me out that they rose to such greatness at a time when it took an entire day just to travel 20 miles.  I strongly encourage anyone traveling to Virginia to experience them firsthand. M.A.K.

Spring Cleaning

Dear Readers:

It's finally spring, after one of the worst winters in memory! Of course this time of year inspires people to behave irrationally, often concerning their homes. Take spring cleaning, for instance. Personally, I like to avoid this at all costs. There are, in fact, some things that seem like a really good idea, but which one should never do. Here are a few of my favorites:                                                        

• Never take off your cushion covers or slip covers and throw them in the washing machine (unless of course your daughter wants to use them in her Barbie house);
• Never refinish an inherited piece of furniture unless you are sure it’s not valuable;
• Never wash mini blinds in the tub;
• Never wash prefinished wood floors with water, (the cracks between the boards have not been sealed);
• Never spray clean fabric flowers; and
• Never deep clean good upholstery yourself -- get a professional;

On the other hand, now is the perfect time of year to:

• Straighten all of your cockeyed pictures;
• Rearrange the furniture;
• Roll up and store your heavy carpets;
• Purchase a cheerful new bed ensemble;
• Indulge in some potted spring flowers;
• Lighten up your window treatments;
• Wash your patio furniture and BBQ grill;
• Switch around those tired old accessories;
• Change your throw pillows;
• Consider summery slipcovers; and
• Purchase thirsty new towels, a wonderful shower curtain, and pretty new table linens.

It’s also a really good time to get outside and just forget about your house. Enjoy the warmer weather. M.A.K.

Displaying Barbies

Dear Melissa:

Can you suggest any interesting ways to display a child’s collection of Barbies? These are not the expensive collector dolls, but they are all over her room and new ones keep arriving. She loves to play with them so I can’t toss them or put them up in the attic. P.C., MA  

Dear P.:

Believe me, I’ve been there. Except my daughter’s Barbies were all nude with tangled hair, so displaying them was not really an option. Have you considered placing them in shoe pockets on the back of her door? What if groups of them went to “sleep away camp” in some plastic bins? You might also consider seating them on a shelf around the ceiling of her room. Pretend they’re airline passengers on line at the TSA checkpoint, until it’s their turn to join in the fun. I highly recommend clothes, though. M.A.K.

Color in an Open Floor Plan

Dear Melissa:
I have a problem with my open floor plan in my contemporary cape that I think is pretty common with a lot of houses built in the '90's.  The family room is about 12 x 15 and it opens into the kitchen, which is about 12 x 18. The entire space has hardwood floors and there is a sunroom off the family room.  You can see the front door from the family room and the sunroom.  My problem is the lack of coziness- it's painted all one color, a light pink, right now to go with the colors I have now.  When redecorating, should I go for two different colors in the kitchen and family room/sun room?  What color(s) would be warm and inviting? Should I use two complementary colors to assist with the delineation of space?  What other recommendations do you have for helping out with the openness?  I'm not too crazy about using screens or plants.  Should we build a small wall to help with the foyer openness?  Thanks.
Diane, Guilford, CT

Dear Diane:

First of all, congrats on the pink – which is one of the up-and-coming premier colors.

That being said, if I’m reading this right, the sunroom is an extension of the family room. I think keeping a similar color scheme in the two spaces would work well (including different shades of the same color). The warmest colors are the reds, oranges and yellows, but I would be careful not to heat up a sunroom with a color that is too warm. For example, think lemon yellow, not chromium yellow; think coral not pumpkin; etc. You could extend the color into the kitchen as well for continuity, but why not use a contrasting color here for interest.

As for dividing up too much openness, a half wall bookcase would be great, so would a lowered ceiling, and obvious seating groups, anchored by area rugs. You can divide a large space with color changes only if there are wall breaks in the right places. Take a look at books on loft design for some inspiration.

M.A.K.

Career Advice

Dear Melissa:

I am an art student at Wayne State University in Detroit, MI.  I wanted to ask your opinion on something.  You see, I am trying to figure out which career in interior decorating would be best for me.  I want to focus on one particular aspect of it, learn everything that there is to know about it, and become one of the best in that particular department. I was hoping that you might be able to take a minute and list a few options that you think would be helpful.  This would really help me in developing a career plan.  Thank you so much!

Scott

Dear Scott:
While your goal of a concentrated field of study is admirable, I'd like to suggest something entirely different. Sorry, that's what happens when you ask an opinionated old broad for advice.
The field of interior design is an enormous one, and in a bad economy a difficult one. It includes: retail sales, textile design, color psychology, interior architecture, set design, magazine photo styling, kitchen/bath design, interior photography, furniture design, antiques, manufacturers representation, historical preservation, CAD, showroom management, renovation, software design, project management, lobbying, and teaching; as well as good old-fashioned commercial, retail, healthcare, hospitality, institutional, and residential design. WHEW! I hope I didn't leave anything out.
How will you know which aspect of the field appeals to you until you explore it? Okay, you can rule out some topics immediately just by their names, but college is a great time for experimentation. (You know what I mean.)
I would pursue a variety of classes. In fact, I did just that. And while at first I thought I'd specialize in kitchen design -- and then in contract design -- when I actually started working, I found out that specialization was much too boring for me.
I like having a full-service design studio, with teaching and writing thrown in, just in case I thought I should have some free time

The undeniably best thing is to intern at different types of firms while in school. Don't commit yet. Life is long. And the more varied your knowledge, the better you can navigate this challenging economy.
Good luck!
M.A.K.

Traditional vs Contemporary Kitchen

Dear Melissa:

My husband and I are trying to renovate our turn of the century kitchen and butler’s pantry. Unfortunately we can’t agree on a style. Neither one of us likes Victorian, but my husband likes a more traditional look and I want a more modern look. Can we have different cabinets in the butler’s pantry and kitchen? Could we combine the two styles somehow? We’re under enough pressure with the costs and construction and everything related to it that we really don’t need this. Plus I’m right and he’s wrong. Could you please give us your opinion? Closer to Divorce

Dear C2D:

Now, now, children. Play nice. You’re creating unnecessary stress. (For me.) Construction is bad enough. You two are going to need a united front to deal with the contractors, so don’t turn on each other. It’s your house. You can do whatever you want to it. It’s just tricky when a couple has different tastes.

If you are sticklers for historical accuracy, the two rooms have almost always been treated differently. The pantry was a staging area for the staff, and usually contained wall-to-wall cabinetry for storage of dishware, flatware, and serving pieces. Sometimes there was a utility sink. The kitchen was more of a workroom and larder, with free-standing workspaces. If the two rooms are open to one another, you might consider some type of continuity, but it’s not necessary to make one area a direct extension of the other. It’s more authentic not to.

Having said that, whether or not you have both rooms match, you can create a highly customized vision of a kitchen. Styles are not mutually exclusive and I feel very strongly about personalizing a kitchen. In fact, I get a little crazy seeing the same kitchen everywhere I go. They cost too much to be ordinary.

It doesn’t take a lot to mix styles. Choose a door style that you can both at least live with. Recessed panels can go either way. Simple traditional cabinetry looks great in unusual colors with funky hardware. A modern take on historical accuracy is to use one stain or glaze on the upper cabinets and another on the bases, or at least use a different finish on the island, if you have one. Consider a more unusual backsplash or countertop. Copper, zinc, quartz or cement countertops are very cool and work with both traditional and contemporary styles. Open shelving is very big right now and can also go both ways. If your modern sensibility requires empty counters, use built-ins and organizers – or make good use of that butler’s pantry.

Life is compromise. So, too, are kitchens. M.A.K.

Baby's Room Safety

Dear Melissa:

We’re having a baby soon and I’m trying to childproof everything I can. Can you give us some suggestions about the baby’s room? O.G., Chester, CT

Dear O.:

First of all, congratulations. This is an exciting time for you.

By now, I’m sure you know all about the outlet covers, cabinet and drawer latches, and car seat and crib safety requirements. You’ll be fairly safe if you are purchasing the latter two new.

There are a few things that you may overlook in the baby’s room, however. Keep the baby’s crib, changing table, and any chairs away from window treatment cords (even the breakaway kind) and any type of bed canopy or mosquito netting.. If you must use them, be absolutely scrupulous about crib bumpers. They should attach to the crib slats with SHORT ties that Velcro or snap on. (I know this from personal experience.) And keep all bedding and drapery away from the room’s heat source.

Look for dressers that have been weighted at the bottom and can’t topple over. Even better is anchoring the dresser to the wall. (Same goes for bookcases.) Make sure, too, that the dresser drawers have stops and can’t be pulled free. I recommend that you install wall-to-wall carpeting once the baby is old enough to start crawling, to avoid nasty splinters.

Best of luck to you! M.A.K.

Don't Hang 'Em High

Dear Readers:

A lovely woman recently asked me for some tips on hanging pictures. I told her a condensed version of what I tell my students, and what I’ll share with you.

There are some obvious guidelines such as hanging large pieces of artwork on large walls and smaller pieces on smaller walls. There is a little more to it, however.

If you are lucky enough to have a gallery wall, you have the luxury of hanging a painting at eye level, which allows the viewer to "disappear" into the painting. Most people, however, just want to accessorize a room with something pleasing on their walls. Unfortunately, paintings are not meant to replace wallpaper. By that I mean their purpose is not simply to fill up space on a wall. Artwork should be placed judiciously.

The foremost purpose of a painting is to highlight the artist’s work. Its secondary purpose is to complement the grouping of furniture below it. I think we all get the first part, but I know from experience that very few people understand the concept of working with the furniture beneath the artwork.

Valuable artwork should have pride of place. Lesser works can be thought of as part of the composition that a piece of furniture and its accessories make. Most people hang artwork too high. Paintings should be low enough (yes, sometimes even sitting on furniture) to seem to belong to that little vignette. The viewer’s eye should circle around the arrangement created by the furniture and the artwork. Leaving empty space in the room (and therefore on the wall) between these groupings is okay, and helps to give them more impact. There are some exceptions, but these are usually space related and have to be judged on a case-by-case basis.

As for the colors in paintings matching your décor, in a word: “Don’t”! This is art. Please don’t buy a bunch of meaningless pictures in a particular color palette as though you were decorating a motel room. Take your time. Buy what you love. You will find a place for each piece of art and conversely, you will find the perfect picture for each furniture grouping eventually.

M.A.K.