DECORATING TIPS 101: TEXTURE AND WARMTH
Decorating with different textures can help to give a room depth. Depth makes rooms more inviting and interesting. Professional decorators don't simply figure out the most interesting arrangement for furniture and choose a couple of pieces of art, they are always thinking about texture, color, mood, and things that give feeling to the room.
Patterns can be fun to work with. If everything in the room matches perfectly, then the room can become stale and boring. To avoid this "flat" feeling, you should experiment with different patterns. Rugs, throw pillows, art and curtains are a good place to start. Remember that all of the wood in the room does not have to match either. Just make sure that you don't have everything in the room matching and then one random table that sticks out like a sore thumb.
You can use baskets, foot rests, plants, and wall hangings to give a room texture. You can also use texture to take attention away from things that don't necessarily look good by themselves. Textured items can also make boring things look more exciting. Have you ever seen an interestingly decorated room and thought to yourself, "I never would have picked that, but it looks great in here." That would be because the interesting pillows made, let's say, some mustard yellow drapes, look like they belonged in the room.
Layering things can also help to give a room texture. Use doilies, table runners, quilts and throws to break up the monotony of a stale couch and coffee table. Use layers to extinguish areas of little warmth. You can use more subtle approaches on rooms that you wish to remain open and airy or formal. For example, you can use a table cloth in a formal dining room or velvet mats in pictures in an open living area.
Warming up the feel of a bathroom or kitchen isn't as hard as it sounds. Fluffy towels, on display in a bathroom or cozy floor rugs in a kitchen can quickly warm up an area. Track lighting or soft bulbs instead of fluorescents can instantly warm a room. Stone accents and earth tone paint and accessories warm the area. Wood is always good for warming up a sterile environment. Consider a wood ceiling, hardwood floors, or even a wood accent wall in your bathroom or kitchen to warm it up.
You can do the same in your closets to warm up the space. Use different baskets and bins, as well as wooden hangers to make the area more inviting. Alternate between hanging, folding in neat stacks, and using baskets for storage to make the closet more appealing to the eye.
About the Author: Jo Granville is on the staff of Only Hangers, a leading online resource for beautiful, high quality wooden clothing hangers.