One wouldn’t think that 450 square feet would be enough to turn around in, much less breathe but….miracles do happen in the world of interior design.

There are three tricks to creating the illusion of space. One is to use a limited palette. There’s lots of white in this place, grounded by accents of black with shades of taupe and sepia to soften the look. ?Even the floor is painted white. No other colors are inserted to distract the eye.

The second is to arrange furniture so as to create mini rooms.

Accessories are the frosting on the cake of interior design. And when you accessorize with a beautiful collection, your frosting becomes the most melt-in-your-mouth loveliest delicious thing you have ever seen.

Same and Different

What is a collection? A collection is a grouping of things that are the same in some way and different in some way. In this photo above, the collection is all the same material, finish and color, but different shapes. I love the way the robins egg blue color is repeated in the framed map.

Tim Cupper Architects

This collection of leaf paintings are the same color (with a tiny bit of variation) and the same theme. What is different? The shapes of the leaves are different. I like the way the designer created an extra enormous display of leaf print…it took some doing. 5 rows of 8. A total of 340…which really makes an impact! Sometimes (not always) the bigger the collection the more dramatic.

Same Function and Color - But Different Shape

Vicente Wolf

I’ll bet whoever made these shovels never thought they would be used in home decor. Go figure! The function is digging. The color is brown. The material is wood. The shape?…all slightly different. This makes for a fascinating collection silhouetted against white walls as shown here.

 Just a few small objects…

 Vintage wooden pull toys tell a story about their owner

Marcel Wolterinck

A cluster of little white ceramic vases of varying sizes

Ballard Designs

Rustic cowbells. I like the way one is turned on it’s side.

An enormous display of small things…

Stephen Falke

Do you like this one? or is it too much?

A collection of a few very large things…for drama!

Egg shapes are lovely to look at. So primal

This arrangement of huge ship’s wheels was done by Tom Felicia for his beach house.

Small, medium and large

Vicente Wolf

Same material and finish. Different shapes. Different sizes.

Display things you use every day

Vicki Mansell

Don’t hide them in a closet if they’re this pretty

Take those jazzy retro glasses out of your drawer and show them off !

         Wendy Lewis

Distinctly recognizeable Fiesta ware dishes are the same material and finish. Large bowls are grouped along the bottom in different colors. Dinner plates are stacked at the top in different colors, etc. This collection is both functional and fun to look at.

Flours, sugars, pasta and herbs all in the exact same jar

Collections Under Glass

Lee Stanton

Big and small birds eggs under glass cloches are fascnating to see

Collectible vintage baseballs

Show off family heirlooms (only if you like them)

Linda Keenan

No family heirlooms? Start your own

It’s easy to start your own collection. Select something that interests you or that you just like looking at. I love these industrial style gears

from Restoration Hardware

Rustic stone urns from Wisteria

Collect a favorite artist’s work

Decoupaged glass pieces by artist John Derain make this bathroom much more iteresting.

I hope this has sparked your interest in collections. As you can see, they are one of the most fun and most dramatic ways to accessorize.

Walk in beauty…it will change your life.

#1 Cheapest and Easiest – Paint the Walls

Not just any color though…make it fun, current, energetic. Yellow-green is currently a very popular color. Whether you are trend sensitive or not (guess what? everyone is to some extent…but that’s a whole other article) you will want to use colors that appeal to you right now.

With a freshly painted wall, the color scheme above becomes green, black and white. I love the way the black is repeated in four different ways: lamp, stool, floor tiles and picture frame.

Here’s another bathroom in a delicious mocha brown. Note the interesting collection of ornate white framed mirrors in an otherwise un-fussy room.

#2 Change Out Colored Accessories.

This could even be less expensive than painting the walls. New fluffy towels, artwork that echoes the towel color, and a wastebasket that carries it through. It’s a simple but delightful change that will lift your spirits.

#3 Paint the Walls Decoratively

This takes a bit more effort than rolling just one color on the walls. The bathroom below is very eye catching indeed. Our homeowner simply marked off stripes with painter’s tape and created a very cool look for the same price as a solid color.

#4 Use a Towel Display as a Design Element

Keeping the color palette limited to yellow, black, white and gray adds pattern without getting too messy looking. In other words, let’s keep our red towels stored in the linen closet…know what I mean? They wouldn’t fit into the color scheme and would simply create a distraction.

Nicole Lanteri

#5 Add Wallpaper that is Eye Candy

Bathrooms are small. Powder rooms are even smaller. They are a great opportunity to use wallpaper that is wilder than you might ordinarily use. There will not be much of it…especially if you only cover one or two walls. Here are a few great examples to tickle your imagination.

Elegantly Asian

Talk about a conversation piece

Handsome Arts & Crafts style

#6 A New Vanity Can Do Wonders

You can pick up something contemporary like this for very little money

This special chest was repurposed into a vanity by drilling a hole for the faucet and another for the sink.              Not a complicated job.

Let your imagination go wild! I love the way the bicycle is used to hold spare towels.

#7 A New Medicine Cabinet

The one below is shabby chic and brings lots of character into the room.

#8 A Unique or Oversized Mirror

Utopian Lifestyle

Here’s a mirror with plenty of personality. What do you think?

 It’s not for everyone, huh? But…you get my point.

Note how this enormous framed mirror extends behind the vanity all the way down to the baseboards.                Very dramatic. Wow!

#9 Replace Your Old Sink With a Snazzy New One

Vessel sinks are so popular nowadays. If you get a glass one, make sure you select something that you can clean easily. Nothing worse than blobs of toothpaste on your exquisite hand blown glass.

McLean Quinlan

#10 Replace Your Old Faucet with Something That You Love

Michael Penny

An oversized spout

Hego Faucet 

Dual purpose vase ad faucet. I couldn’t resist including this

#11 Light Fixtures – Get Rid of the Ugly!

The badf news is that there are very few attractive bathroom light fixtures on the market. The good news is that they are relatively inexpensive for the important job that they do.

Sconces on either side of the mirror throw better light on your face than light bars mounted above. The ones pictured above are quite handsome. My hunch is that they are on a dimmer which allows the homeowner to create some “atmosphere” when brighter lights are not required for a task such as putting on makeup.

#12 Beautiful Tile Adds Class (and cost)

Tile does not have to be designed in a complex way (like this one below). If you don’t want to stretch your budget this much, consider plain white subway tiles.

#13 Art Work Speaks Volumes About You

Utopian Lifestyle

Here’s a Combination of Many Ideas

Scott Yetman

I think this is an inviting room that feels good.  What do you think?  What would you do differently?

I invite you to leave a comment below. We would love to hear what you love and what you hate….seriously!

Until next time…

Walk in Beauty. It will change your life.

This beautiful piece of custom designed cabinetry makes a classic statement. It’s cornice is inspired by Paladian styles, and the white paint keeps the room pale. I really appreciate the well edited choice of books and accessories displayed in the shelves. Clean and uncluttered. The exquisite barrel-back wing chairs are genuine antiques…..that is to say, one of them is. The designer found one and wanted a pair, so she had the other one made to match. Many people who are not professional designers don’t know that you can actually design your own furniture and have a skilled upholsterer make it up for you. First a frame is built out of wood, and the shapes and curves are created with webbing, foam, cotton, down and springs. This chair is graceful and sculptural with a slim profile that gives it a sort of contemporary feel. Notice how the edge of the sisal rug is cut to run around the cabinet.

I love how the corner ceramic lamp echoes the deep red of the Scully painting.

Silk draperies are used here with simple pleats that are sewn on to the rings. The classic chandelier was found in pieces in a London antiques shop, purchased and reassembled for this traditional space.

This apartment is 2,200 square feet. Not huge. Efficient use of space and storage is important. Here is the guest room with it’s built in canopy daybed. The drawers beneath the cushion hold a multitude of essentials, and a trundle bed hides behind the baseboard. The pale colors and bare floor gives this small room a very open look. ?As you will see, every room in this apartment continues the running theme of a neutral color palette and the highest quality finishes. Continuity is the key to successful interior design. While this traditional style may not be your particular cup of tea, I hope you can see how well the designer accomplished a flow of color and design from room to room.

The master bedroom is luxurious but not over done. Beiges and whites don’t have to be boring, do they? The fabrics are very high quality, but quiet. Monogrammed euro style shams on the bed are a nice touch. I don’t think I have ever seen a chair pulled up to the desk at the foot of the bed. It looks great in this photo. The walls appear to be grasscloth…a great way to incorporate texture into a neutral room.

A small sitting area occupies the other side of the bedroom. Again, we see beautiful fabrics. Neutral chenille upholstery on the sofa next to an “airy acrylic table that takes up almost no visual space.” Large contemporary painting by Sam Samone.

Photos courtesy of Decor Magazine Late Summer 2009