Fashion and Decorating

Simple Fashion Rules for Decorating

An article from About Decorating

Use Your Fashion Sense for a More Successful Home Decorating Project

We all dress ourselves every day, usually with no trouble at all. So why is it that so many people seem paralyzed by decorating decisions?

We decided to take a look at some basic fashion rules. Most of these you’ll recognize as conventional wisdom. But did you know that these same fashion rules can apply to decorating your home as well?

Find out how with these 8 simple fashion rules for home interiors.

Fashion Rule #1

Invest in classic pieces.

• Decorating Takeaway
  Spend the biggest portion of your decorating budget on pieces that will have a long life: a beautiful dining table, well-constructed sofa, a classic rug, or a gorgeous armoire.

Fashion Rule #2

Neutrals as a steady diet could be boring; spice it up with color!

• Decorating Takeaway
  Color is cheap.

Fashion Rule #3

Too tight a fit is uncomfortable; too loose is unattractive.

• Decorating Takeaway
  Scale your furnishings to your room: a huge canopy bed in a teensy room is a gamble. Likewise, a tiny settee in front of an oversize fireplace will look ridiculous.

Fashion Rule #4

Highlight features you like; play down what you don’t love.

• Decorating Takeaway
  Call attention to your room’s best features by using color, lighting, or furniture placement. Likewise, downplay less-than-attractive parts of a room by “painting them out” with matching wall paint (good for items like pipes and vent covers), or by disguising them with clever cover-ups. Have a great view or lovely fireplace? Arrange furniture so these best features are the center of attention.

Fashion Rule #5

A well-constructed color scheme helps bring an outfit together.

• Decorating Takeaway
  Consciously work with one main color in a room and one lesser-used secondary color. Add a third accent color (usually the brightest hue) in smaller amounts -- on artwork, trims, and accessories.

Fashion Rule #6

Fabulous shoes can make an outfit.

• Decorating Takeaway
  Pretty carpeting, lovely hardwood floors, or a beautiful area rug can be a terrific foundation for a room. Pull the colors and patterns found in the rug for use throughout the room.

Fashion Rule #7

A few great wardrobe basics can take you from day to evening, just by changing accessories.

• Decorating Takeaway
  Upholstery in plain textured fabrics are like wardrobe basics – they’ll allow you to decorate around them as you change your mind, update seasonally, or move to a different home – simply by swapping out pillows and accessories.

So, choose a chocolate brown chenille sofa for the long-term, and outfit it with orange pillows for fall, red for winter, and baby blue for spring.

Fashion Rule #8

Versatility is a virtue. Choose fashions that can be worn with a variety of other pieces; for example, a great tweed jacket that looks as good with a matching skirt as it does with jeans.

• Decorating Takeaway
  Versatile pieces are worth their weight in gold. Whip off a summer slipcover and your upholstered chair will be ready for fall. A great chest of drawers or armoire can take on many roles – in many rooms -- as your needs change or you move from home to home. And a roomy ottoman can stand in for a coffee table or extra seating. These workhorse pieces will give you more than your money’s worth over time.