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Getting Away from it All…By Staying Home!

Sunday 28 Feb 2010 by admin | No Comments
Filed under: DOES THE SHOE.....FIT?, Space Design Tags: , , , , ,

For the past several years there’s been a movement toward investing in our homes…..not as much to increase saleability as to give us places of retreats. I call these Sacred Spaces/Healing Spaces. Places to get away to think deep thoughts, to mentally form solutions to a problem, to pray or meditate, or to just play—with a hobby, a pet, your childen.

The exercise room is an example: for some it is becoming a wellness center. It may have an in-house sauna, steam room, double shower, fountains, etc. And we’re seeing outdoor kitchens. Regardless of age, income, or other demographics, we want specially designed private getaways. Size is not an issue; these spaces can be quite small. Think of multi-tasking a space. For instance, when we rearranged a formal dining room, and added book-shelves, lounge chair and reading light, our client got a library as well! Another example is turning a laundry room into a hobby center and laundry room.

One client was astounded to come into the new quiet room and find all three of her sons sitting quietly reading! We had removed all electronic equipment and laid the furniture out on a diagonal. That was all, and the children were responding to the changes.

This type of space should  be digital free, windowless unless there is a beautiful full scene from the outside. The space needs a good reading/sewing light, lots of puffy pillows, and warm earthy tones with deep browns. However, color and a quiet zen quality is up to the client. No other space needs as personalized design as this. Joyce Goldstein of J. Goldstein Interiors recently created a space in a garage, later featured in the Robb Report periodical. It was a man’s playroom, with a 92” projector TV with a continual feed of car races. It had real race car seats for lounging, and bar stools made from car wheels.

In our next blog, we’ll discuss how we create Sacred Spaces/Healing Spaces Outdoors. It will get us all planning for summer.  —-See you then!  Sharon  Breay

Designing for….? Happiness?

Sunday 14 Feb 2010 by Sharon Breay | No Comments
Filed under: Furniture, Psychology of Color, Psychology of Light, Space Design Tags: , ,

Design for ……?Happiness?

 What does Happiness have to do with Design? Aren’t we referring to colors and furniture?  Well we are, but good design is much more than colors and furniture. Design is very much based on psychology. Applying our own personal psychology to a space can contribute greatly to our happiness. We do need to follow good design principles, but we must equally take into consideration the personalities of the inhabitants of the space.

 The other day my husband wanted me to look over his new website for his stamp dealership. The header had a large background of very deep gray that gradiated down the page. My personal opinion was that it looked gloomy, even depressing. And yet the graphics person working so closely with my husband apparently didn’t feel the same. I also thought back to a recent hotel stay where there were lots of coral colors, plants and sunshine. It gave me a feeling of being in the tropics, and made me feel very happy. What colors and things make you feel happy? What themes of rooms make you feel happy?

Lighting has much the same effects on our happiness. Very bright lighting throughout your home could easily make you feel tense, jittery, and grumpy. Yet soft colored, low level lighting would probably make you feel relaxed, even secure.

 One of the first steps in applying the Chinese philosophy-religion of Feng Shui (the placement of furniture & accessories to bring you wealth & happiness) is to eliminate clutter.  A harmonious flow comes from having only a few favorite items setting out. It seems our minds have quite enough to thing on.

Bring in natural light and fresh air. Have house plants that purify the air, such as fern and ivy.

It is not the trends and latest TV show designs that we need to follow. We need to follow our heart. Use good design principles, but don’t overlook your own personality. If you need to GET AWAY!–you may wish to address the happiness your own home design gives to you.  Think of your home as a shoe, and ask yourself, “Does the Shoe….FIT?”

Exterior Task Lighting

Saturday 30 Jan 2010 by Sharon Breay | No Comments
Filed under: DOES THE SHOE.....FIT?, Entry Lighting, Exterior Lighting Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Courtesty of OutdoorLighting Perspectives

Courtesty of OutdoorLighting Perspectives

Hi again!  This blog will continue discussing exterior lighting, focusing on the task lighting of our entries. In review, our yards need three layers of lighting:

1)      Ambient, low level general impression lighting

2)      Task lighting for where we perform tasks

3)      Accent lighting for areas of interest (the brightest area of lighting)

You may have a walk leading up to some steps at your entry. Perhaps a fixture with lights about eye level will be enough for both walkway and steps. The steps will need brighter lighting than the walk so no one trips on them. Therefore, put the light close to the steps, allowing the waning light from the fixture to glow down the walk. If you have a longer walk, you may need a lower, small auxiliary light further down the walk, being careful not to create monotony with too many of the same fixtures.

The steps consist of treads we walk on, and risers (at the back of the tread ) that take the treads to the next level. If we light the steps from below or with lighting that illuminates both tread and riser equally, we have a safety hazard. The user can be easily confused seeing both treads and risers as “one” plane because of the equal lighting on both, instead of 1 horizontal plane (tread) and one vertical plane (riser).But if we light the steps from above, the treads are lit and the risers are in shadow. This is a much safer method of lighting steps.

Now visualize the door. Consider putting a light right above the door or at the side of it. Having one light centered in a porch ceiling will give overall light, but you will be in your own shadow trying to unlock a door. If you have this situation, consider adding task lighting over the door or at it’s side.

Next blog, let’s discuss discuss designing for happiness.

See you then!—Sharon Breay

A Light in the Garden

Friday 15 Jan 2010 by Sharon Breay | No Comments
Filed under: DOES THE SHOE.....FIT?, Exterior Lighting Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

 

compliments of OutdoorLights

compliments of OutdoorLights

Once there was a poem about a light in the garden. Is “a” light enough? Probably not. Exterior lighting needs to be planned as carefully as we plan our interiors and our architecture. So often when I am looking out the window of a home in evening, all I see are the reflections of the interior home staring back at me. I see none of the lovely grounds beyond!  If this sounds like your home, here are tips to rectify the problem.

Yards are to be enjoyed in the evening as well as in the day, and from the inside as well as from the outside. A little string of low voltage or LEDs, or solar lights usually won’t do the job—not because of the type of light, but because of the straight line of lighting fixtures. Too much of a good thing becomes too predictable—and ultimately, boring. Nor will a huge sensor light over the garage door create the feeling of peace and mystique that are so appealing in a night garden. Nor will lighting up the yard like a commercial parking lot be appreciated by viewers, particularly neighbors! 

By mixing lighting heights and intensities, and what the light illuminates, we can create an interesting, unobtrusive night scene that can be enjoyed both from inside and outside. Think about the spaces in your yard. You will do well to provide some ambient, low level lighting for general visibility, some task lighting at areas such as steps, and some accent lighting to focus on a favorite area of architecture, or lawn ornament, or shrub or tree. The task lighting should be about twice as bright as the ambient light, and the accent light, which will only shine on one element of focus, can be 15 times as bright as the ambient light, for real “punch.” 

Next blog, we’ll discuss some methods of lighting the entry. 

See you then!—Sharon Breay

Does Your Room Tilt?

Wednesday 30 Dec 2009 by Sharon Breay | No Comments
Filed under: DOES THE SHOE.....FIT?, Furniture, Space Design Tags: , , ,

Recently I was giving a design workshop in a private home. The room we were in showed the biggest problem in our interiors today, Here’s the scene: We are in this smaller sized living room. My hostess has graciously given me space to present next to the white 14” deep television shelving on one wall. Across from me, against two walls, and continuing right to the dining room archway on one side and the entry on the other, is this massive, red, over stuffed, huge-armed, “L” shaped sectional. At the end of the sectional is a table with lamp and accessories, which actually extends into the archway. In front of the sectional is a large, multi-colored tile coffee table.

Can you picture the lopsided room with lighter weight (and color) shelving on one side and heavy, large furniture on the other? The homeowner had accommodated seating for several, with positions to see the television. But the proportion of the seating and coffee table, coupled with the seating being one massive solid, overpowered the room. That sectional was like trying to fit the movie monster King Kong into the room.

Proportion is the biggest problem I see in our interiors. Don’t be fooled by the size of furniture as it sits in massive furniture store displays, with hundreds of other pieces.

Take the measurements of the piece and compare them with the size of your room. Do not bring King Kong home unless the room can accommodate the monster!

Had our hostess used a lighter looking sofa, with smaller arms and less mass, with a few side chairs (versus fully upholstered lounge chairs), putting one chair at the shelving for balance, the room would have looked infinitely better and been far more flexible. If we can further visualize this furniture in the room, using two small tables rather than 1 large coffee table, we have space between pieces, smaller sizes, and better balance.

Psychologically, we all become uneasy with tilting objects. Don’t let your room tilt!

Proportion and balance contribute much to an enjoyable space.

DOES THE SHOE……FIT? Blog

Tuesday 15 Dec 2009 by Sharon Breay | No Comments
Filed under: DOES THE SHOE.....FIT? Tags: , , , , , , , , , , ,

Welcome to DOES THE SHOE……FIT?  blog! Let’s share a discussion about all the areas of interior and exterior home design and decoration. On the 15th and 30th of each month, we’ll share thoughts, answer questions, and perhaps discuss the work of a famous designer as inspiration.

You may want solid information to solve a problem. You realize the “trends” seldom relate to your personal lives and budgets. You can “see through” the entertaining, staged television shows on design. You know that pretty pictures don’t answer your questions. For these reasons I became a designer and professional speaker on design. Audiences have gone wild with my informative workshops; you may enjoy the same interchange here.

This blog is fashioned after my speaking presentations by the same name, “Does the Shoe….FIT?” Your homes ought to fit your personal ways of living, your style, and your home’s architecture, the way a favorite shoe fits. Would you think of wearing steel toed construction shoes with a formal gown? Would you try to get into a shoe 4 sizes too small? The shoe has to fit the activity in order to perform well. So too, must your homes, in order to give you peace, functionality, beauty, and a place that works well for the way you entertain.

Here’s an example of what I mean: I live in a mountain canyon in Colorado. Up here, you wouldn’t wear spike high-heeled shoes when mountain climbing—even though some advertising touts a particular high-heeled shoe as the “shoe of the year.” Even though you’ve seen a gorgeous movie star wear this shoe for such feats as walking through the desert for a week, climbing up the mast of a sailing ship, and running away from a hungry lion! The fact remains, the shoe isn’t appropriate for mountain climbing! Just as the right shoe fits your activity and personality, so too your homes must fit. You deserve to have them fit your lifestyle, personality, and the architecture that you live in….not vice versa.

I am not a professional writer, and may not even have all the answers! But with decades of design experiences, awards, and recognitions behind me, I intend to give you a new slant or viewpoint to deal with the areas you live and work in. Feel free to send me your comments and topic suggestions.

I look forward to meeting again December 30th, or shortly thereafter!

Sharon Breay, ASID