Interior decoration and texture clutter

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Interior decoration and texture clutter

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Started 1 year ago by ninakk
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ninakk
Member

I'm about to take the AT real homes real people book back to the library and while many of the homes there seem comfortable enough for me to be a frequent guest, I still feel a bit overwhelmed by the huge amount of different colours and textures or whatever I should call it.

I believe a more neutral colour scheme with fewer focal points would make the spaces feel less cluttered to me, even though there might still be more stuff (seems like my white period isn't as over as I expected it to be!). This is one of the reasons I replied in interior-decoration terms in Mimi's thread on negative effects of decluttering; I need the overall look to be streamlined and 'even' also when it comes to storage containers etc.

How does this sound to you, do these things influence your perception of how cluttered texture-wise a space might be or is it just the absolute amount of things that make it or break it for you?

Posted 1 year ago #
bandicoot
Member

ninakk, i think i am with you.
my ideal sorts of rooms have a minimum of things to distract the eye...whether that is actual stuff, or decor elements, or different textures.
i prefer rooms to be open and airy with high ceilings and white walls and for there to be spots of colour and natural texture.
but not too much.

i had to unsubscribe from AT, after reading it for only a week or so.
there was just too much stuff going on in most of those rooms!
yep, overwhelm.
i mean, does every single thing in a house have to be a "feature"?
it just makes none of it look special.

my design goals are much more asian-inspired than north american.
o yes, real simple is another place i like to look online.
but sheesh, there is a lot of plasticky pastel frippery going on over there and it doesn't feel real simple a lot of the time, lol!

Posted 1 year ago #
Mimi
Member

nina, i am with you!

i cannot stand too many colours and textures. i used to call it "visual exposure" but you could also understand it as visual clutter.

a friend of mine always makes the same joke when he comes to visit me and detects someting new. he laughs and says " wow, what a wonderful (multi)coloured thing!"- it´s always white ;)

PS: i was was rich, i would ask john pawson to design a house and the interior for me. his architecture is minimalistic but he creates such a wonderful light sothat you you feel warm and comfortable even in empty rooms. http://www.johnpawson.com/architecture/residential/pawsonhouse1999

Posted 1 year ago #
irishbell
Member

My daughter who's in art and design school is presenting a board today she just finished on good/bad design. One example of bad design was a room with gorgeous fabrics,wonderful textures, beautiful colors and many focal points. Each aspect of the room taken separately was visually pleasing but all together it was way. too. much.

Posted 1 year ago #
djk
Member

I am a big fan of neutrals, especially warm whites and creams and taupes. This is a look I have seen a lot in France and it makes me swoon. For now, anything too colourful is too strong for our little home.

My dream is a seaside farmhouse with rustic white, natural woods, and wicker. Light, air, breeze, wide plank floorboards, and fresh flowers make me weak-kneed.

Minimalism as a "look" doesn't resonate with me, but neither does having everything on display. Our place is far too visually cluttered for my taste, but we own the right amount of stuff for us, (barring the usual gradual accummulation of stuff and its routine removal).

Posted 1 year ago #
irishbell
Member

djk, your dream home sounds fab and it got me thinking about mine. I've always loved the look of the white home with aegean sea blue shutters, wood floors type look of the homes on the cliffs of Greece- probably on the Aegean Sea. It started with 4 yrs of Latin in high school and a love of mythology and ancient things, then the movie The Tempest, with the most gorgeous scenery in the whole wide world.I do like well equipped kitchen and bathroom areas, not sure how that fits in with the more rustic outside look I drool over. I could make it work though, given the chance....in my dreams!

Posted 1 year ago #
lottielot
Member

I like colour in my house :) To me white and neutral colours are soothing but a bit dull. Right now I'm in my lounge room, it has beautiful pink walls and one wall is pinkish brick with a fireplace, dark red curtains and cushions, dark red tiles near the fireplace, a patchwork type rug in pinks and reds and mid-brown leather sofas, cherry wood coffee table and a similar colour mirror and frame with a painting of Paris at night-time. I love this room, it's like a little womb and it's full of things which make me feel happy when I look at them :) I would prefer it if it had a bit less DVD and CD clutter, but it's comfy and cosy. If I painted the walls white and had a neutral decor it'd probably feel bigger but I would hate it. I'm thinking my bedroom may be better off a bit more neutral though... What I hate is houses which are all 'designery' and don't have any sign of personality or individuality, even if they have colourful accents that seems really boring to me. A home should reflect the people who live there, at least in some of the rooms.

Posted 1 year ago #
Anita
Member

I'm with lottielot, I love colour. My apartment walls are yellow. It's a warm, comforting yellow, which gives my old apartment an amazingly welcoming feel. In the living/dining room we kept it fairly "neutral", with a yellow-black-white scheme. In the office we added some dark blue, turquoise and a bit of bright orange. In the bedroom it's mostly browns and greens.

I agree that over-designing and overwhelming a space with too many competing colours or textures or patterns can feel cluttery. However, colour or texture or pattern alone does not make clutter. The cluttery look is usually a result of poor design choices. On the other hand, while a neutral colour scheme might be soothing to many people, to me it almost always looks boring and lifeless.

Posted 1 year ago #
ninakk
Member

Thanks for some great replies so far! I love pops of colour here and there, but to have a whole space 'invaded' by them feels like too much. I'd describe my style as Scandinavian with a grumble as there are many substyles of it. White used to be my thing as a base, but it's too unpractical and up in a dark place at times too cold as well. Now I still want it present but not in a clinical way. Mimi's example is a great one of how lighting influences a space.

Posted 1 year ago #
lucy1965
Member

There is a lot of color in our current home, but it dates from 1912 and we decided to restore the period colors as we made repairs. (Can I just say, "Never again"? I am NOT cut out for renovation work!)

To me, white walls can say "rented space" if there isn't something -- a fireplace, a fantastic view, or really interesting furnishings -- to give the space character. That's one of the reasons we picked the apartment we have for our new home: there are unobstructed views of the park and the river from the main room, and color in the rooms that don't have that going for them (both bedrooms and the bath). But that's me!

Re: lighting: because of my vision problems, nearly all the lights in the house are on dimmers, and the only room completely dark at night is our bedroom; there's a small salt lamp in the hallway, and the floor is kept absolutely clear of things that I might trip over. So I've definitely noticed the way a difference in light levels can change the feel of a space, and I hope they'll let us put in dimmers at the new place if they aren't currently installed.

Posted 1 year ago #
chacha1
Member

I like color. I like long sightlines. I like being able to see all the way to the walls (so almost all our furniture has visible legs). I like layers and ornament, but most of our ornaments are confined behind glass with the books. We have plentiful closed storage which makes our treasures "hidden."

In our apartment this has taken the form of - for example: honey-colored wood parquet in the public rooms (versus the hideous beige carpet that's standard); paprika-colored open-weave drapery panels along two huge sliding glass doors that frame our patio (versus the hideous beige vertical blinds that are standard); paprika-colored silk drapery panels with gold brocade hems, over the wall of plexi practice mirrors that adjoin one of the sliding glass doors; a 3x4 foot photograph of Mono Lake at sunrise (i.e., pink) over a big, vintage, Mongolian chest on the wall adjacent the other sliding glass door.

We have framed art on every wall. We have painted a couple of accent walls to a pale cocoa-foam tan, leaving the rest landlord beige - except in the kitchen and public bath, which I've painted in a Ralph Lauren metallic silver blue and champagne. The art in those rooms is in cooler tones to match.

I think on the whole our space escapes being "too much" only because there is so much of it. Our main living area has a diagonal sightline of nearly sixty feet, and the central space is mostly empty, as it's our practice floor. We could not have done what we've done if we did not have the expansive space. ... The furniture and art and color provide a frame for what you see when you walk in: a bare expanse of wood floor, two carved Chinese chairs, and a patio garden. And the primary surfaces are all wood.

Posted 1 year ago #
bandicoot
Member

chacha, your place sounds gorgeous!

Posted 1 year ago #
DeclutterDiarist
Member

So many gorgeous ideas here! I am very much one for neutral walls with splashes of colours or patterns. I love the blinds in my bedroom which are two tone brown with an oversized fleur de lis pattern. I also love a multi-coloured blanket to brighten up a plain sofa (an to snuggle up in!)

I am also a huge fan of things in similar colours but different textures. So, one of my sofas has lots of cushions all in purples and deep blues but velvet, cord, wool and cotton.

Little example of my style from my blog is here. Old, quite plain bit of furniture but with a bold wallpaper that I added. http://declutterdiary.blogspot.com/2011/01/great-sense-of-satisfaction-and.html

DD

Posted 1 year ago #
Ginger
Member

I love color as well! I prefer muted and neutral shades on the walls and furniture so the colored decorations/accents pop out more. I'm a big fan of victorian style decor but kept in moderation. That style can get pretty crazy sometimes, lol. Instead of a fancy clock, trinket box, gloves, picture frame, book, vase, old-fashioned camera, candle, doily and potpourri dish all sitting on one shelf, I'll set up just an item or two and be done with it.

Posted 1 year ago #
chacha1
Member

bandicoot, thank you! :-)

Posted 1 year ago #
snosie
Member

chacha1 - you have to post photos!!

Posted 1 year ago #
SunshineR
Member

chacha1: your place sounds lovely, and easy to maintain.
Ginger: I like a bit of Victorian too. I toured an antique shop and decided, like you, that just a piece or two is enough for me, as well.

My style has changed over the years. I used to dream of Laura Ashley everywhere, but now I can stand just one or two floral throw pillows in a room. My DBF likes rustic browns. We have compromised by having lots of light blue and light yellow in the place we share. It's an old place that is converted into an apartment. The charm comes from the original oak hardwood floors. It's our place for now, so I am trying to be appreciative...just short on creativity.

Posted 1 year ago #
MellieTX
Member

I like a mix- neutrals in the larger public rooms, but more interesting wall colors in smaller areas like bathrooms and bedrooms.

Posted 1 year ago #
Rosa
Member

I like bright colors, but not too many per room.

We have a Victorian house, so lots of woodwork - the downstairs has white, the upstairs is mostly stripped to original dark brown.

Then each room is a different color, mostly bright, but all the furnishings blend (white distressed wood cabinet in the sage green w/white woodwork room; brown wood furnishings in the dark green room w/wood trim). And there is a lot of flat artwork - mostly prints and paintings, but also some cutouts and a quilt. But big open spaces in the rooms, and no things on surfaces where I can help it.

Posted 1 year ago #

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