By Jennifer Barger
For the Washington Post
As in every customer -oriented company, it is of the utmost importance in the interior. But sometimes designer customers have to save from their own instincts (or above all what they saw on Instagram).
“Designers have created spaces for many, many people, and we have the perspective of what works and what does not work,” says Sara Swabb, an interior designer in Washington, DC.
Designers provide many customer inquiries for furniture, lighting or paint colors that are not functional, do not exist, or only displeasure aesthetically. Here are some of your most frequently sought-after no-go loes, together with your suggestions, what to do instead.
Install installation too many immersion lights
“I have to go anywhere everywhere,” says Kristin Harrison, founder of Bungalow 10 Interiors in McLean, VA. “”
A blanket full of Can Lights makes you feel like a soulless, over -illuminated corporate office from “severance pay”. Instead of its game fittings on different levels and layers, try a task lamp for your desk, a glittering chandelier over the dining table, moody wall lights in the bathroom.
“It gets warmer and more targeted,” says Harrison. “Good lighting really personalizes your space.”
Hang your TV over the fireplace
If you hang a television over your fireplace, you can save space, but most designers advise, on the other hand, for aesthetic and ergonomic reasons. “It distracts from the fireplace,” says Swabb. “In addition, heat from a real fireplace can damage the television over time.”
And because most fireplaces are three to four feet high, every screen that is positioned above you is difficult to see. “The ideal height is 42 inches from the floor. All higher and they will crick their neck, ”says the New York designer Kati Curtis.
Instead, professionals recommend hanging it on another wall or placing a piece of furniture such as a TV easel.
The only way to deliver a cave are the way of thinking
“Customers often request large sections, provided they make the room comfortable and maximize the seats,” says Swabb. But a huge sofa can overwhelm a room, block the flow of movement and interrupt the lines of vision. In addition, sections with chases or suitable Ottomans often have pillows that cannot be turned over, which can lead to uneven wear.
“I lead people from sections in smaller apartments because they take so much visual space,” says Curtis. “You can make two sofas and put them in an L shape, and that won't be a big dead weight.” Or deliver your large room or cave with a few lounge chairs and a smaller sofa, says Swabb. “People don't have to be packed on a section like a few sardines.”
Cover all windows with plantation shops
Plantation shops – internal wood blind – are popular with homeowners due to their sharp appearance. But Arlington, Virginia, interior designer Sarah Beth Wood believes that they are slightly killing monsters: “Customers tend to set it with them and to forget it with them, which means that the window shops remain closed and the light and the view of the view Nature block outside. “
Wood prefers curtains or Roman colors. “You don't look between a few slats outside,” she says.
Combine benches with your dining table
A rustic bench that is rolled up to a robust wooden table remains a popular seating in the modern farmhouse interior. “I think the benches started with Joanna Gaines on” Fixer Upper “and they seem to be a creative solution to fit more people at their table,” says Wood. “But they are difficult to move and the pillaries can hurt their spine.”
Instead, go for slimmer caterpillar or buy living room chairs with a low enough profile so that you can be put into operation for parties or public holidays at your table.
Fill your kitchen with too many cupboards
If you convert or expand your kitchen, the creation of additional storage is probably just as important as the update of the worktops and devices. “Many customers request closed upper cupboards on every wall,” says Swabb. “But that can make the kitchen heavy, narrow and visually overwhelming.”
Other options? Enter the open shelves with closed upper cupboards or create a pantry for additional storage. A rescue or a buffet in a meal kitchen can also offer overflow camps. “And make sure that you use your lower cupboards as effective as possible,” says Swabb. “In every kitchen that I design, we use drawers in the lower cupboards.”
Buy carpets that are too small (or cheap)
After they are shaped on sofas, dining tables or other furnishings with a big ticket, homeowners are often pushed for carpets. “Many customers don't buy a sufficiently large carpet, and then half of their furniture is out of the carpet and only looks shaky,” says Sydney Levy, interior designer with Maryland's Anthony Wilder Design/Build.
Return: rest at least two legs of your sofas or chair and the entire dining table on the carpet. In space, carpets generally float a no-no-icer for Hall runners because they appear maroon.
Do not buy cheap, synthetic carpet either. “Viskose carpets appeal to customers due to their low prices,” says Wood. “But they dye slightly (even with water pollution) and quickly end up on a landfill because they cannot really clean them.”
Wood suggests trying out a vintage wool carpet or obtaining a handmade Indian or Moroccan carpet from Etsy or Ebay. “They give their space character, soul and durability,” she says.