Top Ten Design Tips: Number 8

#8 Good Design Is Always Classic. 
Shelter magazines are filled with the newest this or that and often the only value is pretty pictures of pretty rooms showcasing cluttered niches, overflowing plant shelves with artificial plants and sofas and chairs loaded with more than one too many pillows.

What’s the deal? Well, its usually not good design no matter the “deal.”
So whether starting from scratch or remodeling the old, the time tested value of classic design remains the best investment. Design trends + decorating fashion statements are fleeting at best and at the worst are a waste of your dollars, and only serve those in the business of selling “stuff.”

Good design comes from thoughtful planning, often identifying how you wish to work and live in a space. Good design comes from buying furnishings and fixtures that are quality and ones that will last a long time. And finally good design comes with realistic expectations. For example, you can’t turn a 50’s ranch style home into a the style of a European palace so don’t try. Doing so means creating an environment out of scale and balance, but also out of context.
But what if time and dollars don’t permit a complete makeover? Here are some considerations:
≈ If the there is a need to update, consider painting walls a different color. So much impact can be made with paint and a few dollars. Painting contractors are hungry and looking for small and large jobs.

≈ If there is a desire for a new look because family is coming, re-hang art and rearrange accessories in tighter groups leaving wider open spaces on shelves and in cabinetry as “subtracted contrast.”

≈ If there is a need to make a room work better for its intended purposes, don’t buy another piece until you have culled out all the items that are no longer useful nor functional….then move the rest around in unexpected arrangements, perhaps moving pieces from one room to the other.

≈ Now with money and efforts saved, purchase something that has timeless value and echos the style and statement you wish to make. Replacing trendy purchases repeatedly adds up to big dollars that might have well spent on updating built-in cabinetry or new window or wall coverings, or replacing items that have seen better days.