The 4 Key Elements of Good Design
There’s a lot to think about when decorating a room. Let’s cover the 4 key elements of good design, so the process will be easier. It can be a bit like patting your head and rubbing your tummy. There are a lot of moving parts, and as you change thing in the room, there can be some undesired consequences of small changes. Let’s talk about the key elements of room design.
BALANCE
The room needs to feel balanced, not necessarily symmetrical, but it needs to feel like it makes sense. This is one of the 4 key elements of design. Having all of the tall furniture on one end of the room, and the small pieces on the other can make a room feel out of balance. Take pictures of your room from each wall. Does the room appear balanced in all photos? Is the color evenly dispersed or only on one side of the room. Does one side of the room feel like it has more furniture in it than the other size? Think balance. Scale and proportion of the things in the room need to work together and make sense.
FOCAL POINT
You want one or more focal points in a room. A focal point is something that draws the eye. It needs to be something interesting and really needs to make an impression. A fireplace in a living room is a natural focal point. An island in a kitchen is a natural focal point. In my kitchen I think the bread board above the stove is a focal point. Other things can take center stage like a striking piece of art.
FLOW
Flow is all about continuity. Does the room makes sense together? Or does it feel disjointed? You want the room to feel pulled together. That is best accomplished with a color theme that is consistent throughout the area. You want to repeat pattern, color and texture in the room. Just as sameness is important in a room, you also want contrast. Too much of the same thing feel boring. You want some tension in the room. Contrast can be accomplished by using two different colors or using two very different textures like silver and rattan.
DETAILS
Details are the kind of things that you may not think are important, but they are. This is the last of the 4 key elements of design. People notice details the longer they are in a room. Details can be the trim you used on a pillow, the monogram on towel, or the hand-painted dishes from France. A detail would be an antique clock or the dried lavender in a basket. All these things work together to give the feeling of a well dressed room.
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I VOTED!!! Love that rug…hope it will winand come in other COLORS. How can I follow you on facebook?
I just voted for your rug! Love it’
I voted – wishing you the best with your design !
Thanks Sandra!!!
Anita, your rug is a great design…!!!!!! Positive it will be a winner!!!!!!!!!!
You are awesome Jan!!!
I voted for your rug and look forward to seeing it and perhaps buying one!!
You make some good points about principles of good design, here. Thanks for the inspiring photos. Pinning for future reference.
Carol (Mimi”) from Home with Mimi
I love looking at your rooms. Very soothing palette. I wonder if you could tell me why it is now common to see books placed backwards on shelves. This is now seen everywhere and I am confused as to why.
Margo, sometimes I do that if I am not planning to read the book. That way the color doesn’t distract from the display. That doesn’t work if you are planning to read the book because you can’t read the spine! It seems that people either love technique or they hate it.
Hi Anita
Under details, could you tell where the blue velvet roll pillow came from
Thank you
It’s from Bella Notte.