Good Life of Design: 05/29/17

June is just a couple of days away and if you are like me that marks the beginning of SUMMER!!

There are so many things I love about summer but I must admit the high temps are not my favorite so I like to create a cool atmosphere in my home.

Since I use a lot of blue in my home it is pretty easy to have a cool and relaxing look, but there are other ways to add a Summer vibe to our homes other than adding blues.

Declutter!

The very first thing we all need to do is to DE-CLUTTER, we want to open up our spaces and let them breathe. Remove all accessories, only leaving your furniture and main pieces that will not be changed out.

Once you have a clean palette you can begin to see the bones, or base pieces of your room.

While you are de-cluttering don't forget to put away heavy throws, and an over abundance of pillows. Remember we are letting our room BREATHE!!

CHANGE ROOM ARRANGEMENT

This is a good time to change the arrangement of the furniture to a more open look .....

CHANGE OUT YOUR RUG!

If you have a heavy rug in your room try for a lighter more airy rug such as a sisal which is a great neutral base for any home.....

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The sisal rug is not only neutral for just about any room, but it adds the element of texture to your room as well.

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When thinking about a rug for the summer, think of lighter, brighter, more airy keep your colors in mind and choose an accent that can bring more life to your room.

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It doesn't have to be neutral to look summery. A brightly colored, fresh looking rug can be fun as well. Think of a beach towel laying on the neutral sand.

PILLOWS

Since we are letting our rooms breathe less is more, even in the pillow category. Things to keep in mind are your color scheme, and how you want to lighten and brighten it up. There is a bottomless pit of pillow choices, so only use your favorites.

Keep in mind you want lighter, happier, brighter looks for your room.

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Add at least one solid white or ecru to your mix to brighten things up. Use only one thematic pillow in your mix if you love that look, and then one patterned pillow.

In my own home I add all blue and white here is a picture of our previous home in the summer time.....

I used one very long lumbar pillow on my ticking sofa. I had this professionally made.

In my chairs I used a large print and trimmed it out in the blue ticking like my sofa.....

Here is a close-up of the trim.

Notice I have palm fronds in a beach glass bottle, a stack of books with ONE shell and two bubble balls. Not a lot going on, but it still looks summery.

CHANGE LAMPSHADES

Adding lighter, or more colorful lampshades can be a fun addition to your summer room. In the winter I use black lampshades on a couple of my lamps. It gives a rich, warm ambiance to the room, but for summer putting lighter, or more colorful shades on your lamps can lighten up the feeling in your room.

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Don't forget to check Target or Homegoods, you can always find good deals there on lampshades.

Sometimes they will have a lamp with a fabulous shade and it is actually worth the price of the lamp to get the spectacular shade then donate the lamp!! I am on the hunt for some new shades myself so I will be out there looking too!!

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ADD MORE WHITE AND CLEAR DECORATIVE ITEMS

If white is not a color that mixes with your home choose a light ecru or cream, always keeping in mind to lighten, and brighten your home for summer.

This is a room full of neutrals. Notice the elements, the summery themed pillows, the ship, the lantern. Even though this room does not have one bit of blue it still makes me think of the beach.

Here is another very neutral room that still evokes summer. I would change out the ottoman to something more open and airy.

Notice the basket, the ship, the large glass bottles with sea grass. I am not sure but I think the two pictures on the wall might be shells, if not picture sand dollars in those two frames, and addition of a little white and a beach themed item.

DON'T ADD TOO MANY KITSCHY OR THEMATIC ELEMENTS!

I will have to stop here and mention you need to be careful to not have too many beachy, kitschy items in your home. That look can look contrived, dated and over done.

Try to choose 2-3 items, or areas to concentrate your thematic pieces. More is not better when decorating a room with a theme.

Personally I like to keep my elements more natural such as using greenery. Nothing says beach or summer like palm fronds, banana leaves or beach grass.

Look around your room and see where you can add them. Greenery always brings life to a room.

In this room there are actually only a few summer touches and yet this feels like a each house to me.

This room is actually a bit too thematic for my taste, however I think if they took away one of the themed pillows and put the dough bowl tray on the coffee table the room would look better, at least to my minds eye.

The elements on the coffee table in such close proximity to the pillows is a bit kitschy in my opinion.

Beach hats and Baskets

If you have a coat rack in your home add your favorite beach hat for the summer!

This might be a bit over board for most, but just look at the wonderful texture and presentation. Sometimes doing things en masse can be better than having them scattered throughout the room.

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BOTTLES

Keep your bottles clear and the colors of summer.

Adding a touch of greenery always gives a cool summer look.

Demijohns are so easy to find now, just about anywhere, they are not originals but the large shape and colors will give you the look.

Last but not least!.......

ARTWORK!

By taking favorite vacation images and framing them in all the same type frame you can create a wonderful wall grouping!

This can be a bit tricky to change out. I am not telling anyone to take down their original artwork, but if you have a wall or two where you can add some seascapes, beach scenes or nautical pieces the summer time is a great time to add them. Places like Homegoods has inexpensive pieces all the time.