By Gwyn Herbein
Deciding how to remedy blank walls or mismatched furniture can be intimidating for even the most seasoned homeowner. Whether it’s renovating a bathroom, updating a kitchen or adding a bit more personal pizzazz to a bedroom, deciding how to put things together or even just figuring out how to best use a space can be a challenge. Not only that, but the options on colors and styles can be overwhelming. Before you dive headfirst into a sea of fabrics, paint samples and light fixtures, take a step back to evaluate your individual taste, budget and how you’d like to use your home’s unique spaces. Once the groundwork has been laid, you’ll have a better idea of who to talk to and what questions to ask in order to make your dream interiors become reality. To help get you started, KNOWAtlanta picked the brains of some of the city’s best interior designers and furnishing retailers for some fresh ideas and insights on the hottest design trends.
Know Yourself
The first step to successfully designing a space, regardless of whether it’s one room or an entire house, is to know your style. Some people may have a clearly defined style when it comes to colors and furniture—modern, classic, Colonial, antique—but others may need some guidance. “I had one recent client tell me, ‘I don’t know what my style is,’” explains interior designer Beth Webb of Beth Webb Interiors in Buckhead. “My response was, ‘Yes, you do.’” To help the client find her way, Webb told her to spend a weekend looking through shelter magazines and pulling out pages of things that she liked. “If you show me all the pages you pulled, there’s generally a common thread,” explains Webb. “What [interior designers are there for] is to edit your choices. We’re here to facilitate getting from point A to point B.”
This type of introspection can help narrow down the options you end up considering, especially when it comes to deciding what color to paint a wall. “I tell customers to look through their closet and tell me what their dominant color choice is,” says Gary Babcock, VP of fashion and merchandising for Arhaus. “I tell them to pick a color for their space that looks good on them. So, if you tend to wear blue a lot and you look good in blue, then do a blue room. Customers that listen to this advice are always happy with their color choice in any space they’re painting.”
Being flexible with your choices will make the process much easier. “Be prepared to talk; be prepared to listen,” says Rhett Anders, a design consultant with Westside Foundry Home Furnishings. “Just because you love it does not mean it works.”
Know Your Space (and Your Budget)
Another important aspect of beginning any design project, big or small, is determining how the space will be used. “Pets, kids and traffic all affect what materials should be used and where,” says Anders.
Webb notes that, with the economic downtown of the past few years, people have started to simplify their lives and are gravitating toward smaller spaces. “I like to make every room work,” she says. That often means combining a room’s uses in order to maximize available space. “A dining room that was once only used for formal dining should multitask—it could also function as a library.”
Once you’ve decided how to use a space, don’t go too overboard with your wish list of improvements. Webb cautions her clients not to jump into doing everything at once. Determining the scope of a project in advance will help avoid any confusion and potential sticker shock later. If you’re enlisting the help of an interior designer or design consultant, it’s important to make sure everyone is on the same page in terms of the budget and scope. “Set your budget, take pictures of your space to bring with you to showrooms and measure, measure, measure!” advises Anders. “Size and scale are some of the easiest mistakes to make and also some of the easiest to avoid.” If you decide to go the DIY route, it’s best to at least consult with an expert to avoid these types of issues.
Consult the Experts
After the measurements have been taken, the budget sketched out and your ideas are flowing, it’s time to hit the stores. Atlanta is rife with designers and retailers who can help your vision come together. Room & Board, on the trendy Westside, for example, offers a complimentary service to help homeowners plan their space. “The homeowner can bring in photos of their space or measurements, and we can help pull the room together through the layout and product suggestions,” explains Julie Dewald, retail market manager at Room & Board. Dewald describes Room & Board’s design aesthetic as timeless. “We approach our design through five different movements: mid-century modern, arts and crafts, Danish modern, Shaker and Asian-inspired,” she says.
In addition to its own complimentary design service, associates from Arhaus will also travel to a customer’s home to assist with furniture or paint selection, according to Babcock. “Many, if not all, of our associates are interior designers by trade, so they’re extremely skilled and talented,” he says. With its eclectic style, including a mix of new and old world design, Arhaus can satisfy many different tastes. “You walk into our stores, and you’re greeted by a bevy of one-of-a-kind antiques and even reproductions amongst a solid selection of contemporary pieces,” Babcock says.
The 80,000-square-foot showroom at Westside Foundry also presents a lot of opportunities for a unique design vision to come to life. The experienced design consultants can help with everything from window treatments to upholstery, mattresses to furniture layout. And their design aesthetic is anything but ordinary. In describing the Westside Foundry, Anders says, “To quote Joan Rivers, ‘It’s how Marie Antoinette would live if she had money.’ [The Westside Foundry is] transitional, abstract, classic, fun, eclectic, period infused with fashion forward thinking.”
What’s Trending Now
Once you have an idea what your style is, and how to go about incorporating it into a room, it’s time to shop. Trends in interior design can change annually, seasonally or even daily. Dewald cautions homeowners not to get caught up in too many trends because they can lead to costly replacements in the future, if your tastes or needs change. By using trendy pieces in moderation, you can swap out items as needed. “I keep upholstered pieces colorful,” says Webb, but she suggests using slipcovers to facilitate changes down the line. Many designers agree that starting with a neutral palette can help anchor a room. “In upholstery, neutrals with nail heads are big right now,” says Anders. “Oatmeal, grey flannel, tan, winter white and taupe are all building block colors that age and wear well.”
Once the neutrals are in place, experiment with color to enhance the individuality of a room. That can be as simple as painting an accent wall with a pop of color or incorporating accessories such as throw pillows or artwork. Fun colors that are making their way to showrooms include grassy green, lemony yellow, sky blue, raspberry and others. “Currently, animal prints, gold/silver and or black accent furniture are what are dressing the better salons of Atlanta,” says Anders. He is also seeing home accessories in fun colors like turquoise, pink, celery and olive. Smaller accents that incorporate color can change the style of a room without breaking the bank. “You can always opt for a few new accessories … a table or floor lamp or two, or an assortment of accent pillows with a matching throw,” suggests Babcock.
However you choose to incorporate neutrals and color into your space, don’t underestimate the importance of individualizing. “Put a little of yourself into it,” advises Anders. “Family photos and heirlooms add a sense of place and a soul to a room.” This will keep your house from looking like everyone else’s, no matter where you shop or how much you spend. Webb also notes that the pendulum of design trends is swinging back toward quality, character and individuality.
Light It Up
These days, trends in interior design extend far beyond paint colors and furniture styles. One of the easiest and most cost-effective ways to change up a room is to invest in new lighting. As Leslie Killingsworth, a certified lighting consultant and director of purchasing at Atlanta-based Progressive Lighting, points out, “Investments in flooring, cabinetry and furniture will go unnoticed if a space is not lit correctly.” The options for lighting are as endless as customers’ imaginations, from subtle and unobtrusive to dramatic. Like many of the furniture and design retailers in the Atlanta area, Progressive Lighting has trained professionals who can help select just the right style for every room.
But like everything else, don’t forget to do your homework. “If you are redoing a space, bring a sketch of the space and pictures into the showroom, so the Lighting Consultant will understand the existing structure and know what to recommend,” says Killingsworth. “The colors that are used in a space have a tremendous impact on how much light you will need, and knowledge of existing ceiling height is critical.” Progressive’s specialists receive ongoing training so they know what fixtures will work from both a technical and an aesthetic point of view.
Progressive also offers in-home consultations and has five showrooms in the metro area. According to Killingsworth, the showrooms were designed with the customer experience in mind. Current lighting trends that customers can explore include Casual Elegance, which helps to create livable spaces with soft finishes; Simplified Traditional, which gives a fresh interpretation to classic styles; and Soft Contemporary, which uses polished nickel, chrome and oil-rubbed bronze finishes that often complement the décor of intown living.
Regardless of whether you are redecorating an entire house, or just want to liven up a single room, Atlanta has all the resources you need. From a brightly painted accent wall to a new light fixture, the options for decorating in Atlanta are endless. No matter if your style is classic, ultra-trendy, traditional or somewhere in between, the city’s vast pool of designers and retailers can help you design a uniquely individual space for you and your family.