Each Monday on the DesignQuotient™ blog, DesignCoach™ Los Angeles Designer James Swan answers readers’ questions. Post your design dilemma today.
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This week on the DesignCoach: Finding the Balance
Q. I would love a little advice! I love a true Southern/Traditional style home. However, I do not like country/clutter. How do I have an elegant and warm home without going to modern? I have a hard time finding that balance.
Traditional Home vs. Modern Life
A. Balance is the key. Finding a balance between items you love and wish to surround yourself with and our nemesis clutter is the challenge. I understand your concerns and believe that by using a few basic principles you can achieve the elegance you desire without bumping into either of the extremes you mention.
Consider three principles for a well balanced, classic interior:
Edit. The best way to avoid clutter is to eliminate. It is said that Coco Chanel encouraged women, once fully dressed, to stand before the mirror and remove one item. Stand in your Living Room with a critical eye and decide what item you can live without. Remove it and see how the negative space impacts the rest of the room. Play this game for an afternoon; add and subtract items (large and small) and learn how their presence or lack there-of, impacts the rest of the space. As you build your understanding you will be better prepared to decide what ultimately stays or goes.
A well edited Breakfast Room
Scale. I find that by selecting objects of slightly larger size you shed the tendency toward clutter. To me clutter is defined as “too many small, busy objects”. If you gather objects that have greater scale and presence you will find that they stand on their own giving the impression of greater ease and balance.
The scale of objects can help eliminate clutter
Passion. If you buy “things” just to fill up a room you’ve missed the point of having a home. Your home should be a reflection of your loves, passions and personal interests. Learn something about yourself today…discover an interest and let that interest guide you. Personal collections make your home unique. Expand these collections and display them in interesting and innovative ways. This focuses attention in a room to one key group and by doing this reduces the tendency to have things scattered around the room. This type of focus aids in our quest for balance.
The beauty of cherrished things.....
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