This post is NOT about blogging, it’s about decorating. It’s about what we learned about decorating because we were blogging about interior design, all.day.long. When you do something all day every day, you are going to learn something whether you want to or not. You’re also going to make a heap of mistakes, but that’s how we learn, so I don’t mind making the mistakes for you!
I’ve got the key points in this blog post, and you can also hear the lively discussion with Kelly of My Soulful Home and Yvonne of Stone Gable. LISTEN BELOW.
Photograph the room
I say it all the time, but seriously, photograph your room. You can’t get the full feel for how your room looks until you photograph it. Or rather, I feel that photographing the room helps you look at the room more impartially. It’s harder to ignore the flaws in a photo. I’m not sure why that is, but it is. This room looked awesome in person, but in the photo, it felt flat to me.
When I added the new chairs and rug, in the photo you can tell it looks so much better.
The photo was very helpful in figuring out what the room needed.
It’s okay to copy
Yes, being a copycat is totally fine. In fact it’s a great place to start when you aren’t sure what your style is. You can find a room that you love and copy it. Yvonne mentioned that in art school they copy the masters when the students are learning. And I look at my favorite designers to see what they are doing. I ‘borrow’ the ideas I love and leave the rest. I know a lot of people that would love to copy this kitchen by my builder, Ridgewater Homes!
What did I ‘borrow’ when designing my home? The large island with the extra thick counter top, the white river granite and the stove. I know people are going to ask, and so I’ll go ahead and say this is not my home, and I don’t know where they found the light fixtures. Feel free to contact the builder, link above.
Incorporate all of the design elements – form, scale, color, pattern, texture and light. Kelly mentioned that you need to know all of the design elements in a room. So look at your room and see what you have of the 6 design elements in your room, and look to see how you used them.
Visually pull apart the room. Find a room you truly admire and pull it apart. Rather than looking at it as a whole, look at the individual design elements. What scale of items did they use? What patterns are there? Do you notice any textures? What shapes or forms are in the room? What colors were used? Are there many colors or few? Are the colors bold or muted? What kind of light is in the room? This is excellent advice that Yvonne offered.
Move things from one room to another. Sometimes you don’t need anything new, you just need to move something from one room to another. We get bored with sameness, and things need to occasionally be mixed up. When something looks good we sometimes worry that we won’t ever be able to achieve anything that good again, so we don’t want to move anything. I know I left things the same for a long time. I liked what I had done, and thought if I moved things it would never look that good again.
Just do it over, and over again. What I realized is that the more you move things, the more you learn. The more you learn, the better you are going to get at interior decorating. Creativity grows with use! That’s the good news. You can’t use it up.
Define your style from the beginning Define your style first. Then it is easier to decide what to buy and what to get rid of. You can look at the item and ask yourself if it fits with your style. Some really pretty things are not compatible with your style. If you haven’t defined your style yet, you can check out this post and this podcast episode.
French style goes with every style (almost)! Personally, I think a French chair works in almost any room. Okay I know there are exceptions, but I see them beautifully incorporated into many styles.
Natural lighting is fabulous for a room. Throw open those curtains, swing open the plantation shutters, and roll up the shades. Let the sun shine into your room, and it is going to feel so much happier. I know when I go in a house with the shades drawn during the day, I find it depressing. We all need that sunlight.
Yvonne’s oatmeal In the podcast, Yvonne talked about how her styling has improved over the years she has been blogging. I had so much fun finding these photos for you. Here is the oatmeal she styled when she first started blogging. You can find the post HERE.
Compare that to her latest photo on oatmeal. CLICK HERE to get the recipe.
See, she learned a lot by doing. I hope you are enjoying these posts I do with the podcasts. I feel they are jam-packed with so many valuable tips. Kelly and Yvonne are pretty talented and I love learning from them.
Want to listen to more podcast episodes? You can find them HERE.
Did you enter my giveaway? Just leave a comment. Details here.
Great info here Anita….I love moving things around to get a fresh look without spending any money…I had to smile about that fact of taking photographs of the room for another perspective…I just recently finished a post on a “blooper” that I did and noticed it on the photograph…which made me change out that item…Love Yvonne’s evolvement of her baked oatmeal!
Great post as always- I particularly loved the idea of photographing your room. I did that as a home stager for years, and now that I’ve changed my jobs (fun) I own a booth at an antique store.
I consistently take pictures which are amazingly helpful- and really surprising. I think the room or booth looks good and then I look at the photo and yikes!!! It is so wrong!
Great advice and your pictures. Thank you!!!
Same thing has happened to me so many times Susan! Your antique booth sounds so fun!!
So true about photographing a room! Until I took a picture, I didn’t notice my living room needed a different piece of furniture besides redundant pieces with French legs. Substituting a more contemporary coffee table was the perfect fit!
Great post! Thanks for sharing.
Great Post and so enjoy your blog. Thank you for all you do to make all our days brighter!
This is why I love your blog; your style is distinct and unique, but your insight and wisdom are timeless and universal. I never thought about there being 6 design elements – but I totally get it. And thank you for giving us permission to copy – because it in the end, it actually spurs creativity!
Thanks Kristine! Yes copy away! I think we all do it even without realizing it. You see something you like and add it to your home, not knowing where the idea came from. I learn so much from other blogs, magazines and books.
Enjoy your blog. I don’t mean to be unkind but since we retired from Tex. and love it, I watched the first few shows of TX Flip and Move but because the people on it were so rude, rough and unpleasant I have not watched it since. You don’t seem that way at all so I may give it another try.
You are being unkind, and your sense of superiority does not have a place on this blog. All people regardless of their financial status, heritage, or sophistication level desire to have a home that makes them happy and is reflective of their taste and lifestyle. Even Texans!
Mary, I really don’t think Kedra meant it that way. She seems like a very kind person. I think she is referring to when the flippers bid against each other and talk smack. Of course they actually like and respect each other. Everyone was very professional and very welcoming when I was there.
My comment was not reflecting the people buying or their homes – I felt that the people doing the show were unkind to each other which disturbed me – obviously this is no longer the case. I am a retired social worker and teacher and certainly agree with you otherwise. I apologize that my comment was not written correctly. The blog is lovely and my comment was intended only to show that I would enjoy a new appreciation of the show because of the blogger and her talent.
I loved working with the cast and crew. I promise they were all lovely and kind people. No worries Kedra! I actually loved working on the show partly because of the design challenge of having a really tight budget and having to work with a lot of things I didn’t pick out. The first day I was sweating bullets. Would I be able to create something I would be happy with? In the end I’m very happy with what we created with a small budget, limited furnishings and just 3 days. Now that is a challenge!
Anita, I learn something every time I read your blog. Those of us without boat loads of money do swap things from room to room to redecorate, and it works. Not as fun as buying new things, but it does stretch one’s creativity and make one more resourceful!
Aww thanks Mary! Yes moving things from one room to another is a fabulous idea!
Thanks again, Anita–your blog is my favorite! I’ve been meaning to ask about the petal shaped, lilac/lavender bowls. Do you know the name of who makes them? They don’t look like the Japanese tulip lotus bowls. Thank you!
Cyndie they are made in Portugal and they are cabbage bowls. Thank you, you totally made my day Cyndie!
I love your blog so much!!!!! It’s the first e-mail I read every morning! Thanks for such a beautiful way to start my day! Love you! Now if you’ll just get a store like Magnolia Marketplace so we can come visit you and buy your lovelies in person!
Thanks for all you great advice! I’m still working on those six design elements. Sometimes they all come together beautifully and sometimes I have to search for them! Have you done a separate blog on each element, or combination? It would be tremendously helpful for a novice like me.
Anita, I have learned many things from your blog and your book. You made me realize to think about my purchases. I only buy what I truly love.
I am pinning away right now for our great Room. We are going to purchase new furniture and I didn’t realize how many tufted sectionals there are out there. I think that would be great for my French style along with a settee on the other side.
I adore our tables so they will stay
Cindy
Thanks, Anita, for the great tips!
Great post, Anita. I’ll be sure to take lots of pics of my home tonite! AND during the day, too!
Thank you for the before and after pictures of your living room. I love the way that you had decorated in the before but the after is even better with the 2 new chairs, rug, 2 lamps, and clock.
Thanks for the info! It really helps! My living room is like the 1st pic of yours. It feels empty even though I have decorated it some. I think I need more texture! Thanks for all your help!! I really appreciate it!!
Just found your blog. Love your style. Love those French chairs. Coincidentally, I also just discovered Texas Flip and Move. It’s a kick to watch them move the houses. Thanks for your fun blog.
Wow, welcome Marjie, I’m so glad you’re here!
Thanks for the great advice!
Getting my camera out to start the details!
Oh my! Do I have a bunch of work ahead of me!!!
What Fun!!
Great reminders of what I started to do and THEN STOPPED. Back to square one. Thank you, Anita.
The oatmeal is a great example of how far you`ve come! Great post.
Great post! Thank you for all of the great tips and pictures!
I get in a real rut and have a hard time envisioning things in different rooms. I rearrange the furniture but it stays in the same room. You have inspired me to try some of my table collection into other rooms. Thanks!