5 Tips for Preventing an Interior Design Disaster

by Jerome Abecassis, founder and CEO of Divano Designs, and Brigitte Beltran, professional interior designer, certified Feng Shui practitioner and founder of FS2D Design Group, Inc.

Interior design is not simply a set of arbitrary ideas, an eclectic assortment of favorite objects or a mimicking of current trends. Good design has a clear vocabulary; it is grounded in logic, aesthetic and the work of well-trained architects, artists, builders and designers. In every project they undertake, their design philosophy works to blend four basic elements of design: contrast, proportion, color and balance. To avoid design disasters when designing your interiors, please follow these simple tips:

1. Avoid overlooking room size: Nothing appears to be far more out of position than household furniture previously bought for a small room installed in a fantastic family room. The furnishings that labored as part of your old home or condo could purely end up being out of scale for the spaces inside your new property, so bite the bullet and replace those items with furniture that makes sense.

2. Wanting to match the modern trends: Be careful to not produce a decorating template around the most current movements and fashions. Take the time to determine your personal style. Ways to explore this would be to research interior design publications, browse through home interior showrooms or look at online resources to determine which colors and styles you most favor.

3. Enabling someone else to make selections for you: Your home is your personal sanctuary. Don’t allow someone else to tell you where something MUST be placed. If you want support, ask for recommendations. However, when the moment arrives to generate selections, they must be your own. It is your home and you should be comfortable with the options.

4. Avoid color mix up: Never buy material, flooring or paint on your original visit at a store. Compare samples of paint and floor coverings to help you see how they look in your home under day and night lights with lighting fixtures.

5. Running a project without a budget and a plan: Survey your existing household furniture, establish a budget upfront and the time you will set aside for your project. Make a summary of your requirements and start working.

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