It doesn’t matter whether you’re decorating project is one room or the entire house; whether you are starting with zero furnishings or a fully furnished condo for sale in Pattaya, planning is necessary.
Your plans must be written down someplace. You may prefer to set up a file on your computer. There is nothing wrong with using a notebook, or even a file folder stored in a file cabinet. Whatever method you decide upon, make sure it is comfortable and convenient to use.
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Why should you plan?
Planning is directly linked to success. A plan keeps you focused on your budgets. There are three areas you must budget when considering a decorating project: finances, time, and energy.
Knowing how much you plan to spend on your project will keep it from escalating beyond a price that will cause much stress in your life. Knowing when you want the project completed, will help you to schedule appointments with in-home salespeople, technicians, deliveries, and installers.
Many do not consider their energies. If there is some part of the decorating plan which calls for physical labor, such as installing flooring, unless you have done it before it is best to let a professional carpet laying or tile mason handle the job. Doing so is usually cheaper and faster in the long run.
Your next step is to make an analysis of your project area. Who will be using the room? Is it used by the entire family? Or is it an area only for the children, or only for the adults of the home? Will the family dog or cat be allowed in the room? Will your pets be permitted upon the furniture?
These are important considerations that will help you determine what type of furnishings would work best in the room, based on who will be using them.
What are the ages and activity levels of those who will use the area? A family with grade school children will have different considerations and needs pertaining to the function of the room, then a middle-aged couple whose grown children are living in faraway locales.
Each member of the family who is old enough to know what they like and dislike should be allowed to express their preferences regarding the furnishings of the room.
You will need to gather everyone’s preferences regarding the following areas of the room:
Color: light, dark, medium, bright, dull. What colors exactly?
Line and Forms: do you feel more comfortable with straight lines, than curved ones?
Background Elements
Flooring:
What type? Carpeting, resilient type, (like vinyl tile or sheet vinyl), wood, (plank, blocks or parquetry, and what kind of wood – walnut, pine, maple, etc.). Maybe you like marble, ceramic tile, terazzo, brick, or stonework.
Walls:
Wallcoverings (paper, mylars, fabrics, naturals). Paint, (all one color? A mural? Or graphic?) Ceramic tile, or paneling (wood type and tone, and also plywood or hardwood?)
Windows:
Your selection choice is staggering! Blinds – Mini blinds, roller shades, Roman shades, Austrian poufs, soft light, reed or wood slat blinds (formerly called woven woods) Vertical blinds. Perhaps shutters.
Draperies:
shirred on the rod, tab curtains, or draperies. What fullness if draperies (2 to 1, 2 1/2 to 1, or 3 to 1) Will it be a center draw or a one-way draw? Will you use a traverse rod or a decorator rod of metal, wood, or heavy-duty plastic? Do you like a sheer or lace curtain between your drapery and the window? (This is called a glass curtain). Top treatments: valances either shirred on the rod, tap type, or pleated. (Pleated valances have many styles of pleated clusters to choose from). A cornice is also a possibility: either upholstered or in finished or painted wood. Many do not know that a lambrequin is also an option. A lambrequin is a cornice board that is extended down the sides of the window so that the window area is framed on three sides.
Furniture:
What are the criteria for your furniture? Function, durability, maintenance, size, style, material (wood, chrome, Plexiglas, plastic, or mostly fabric), finish, beauty?
What type of furniture do you need: seating pieces, tables (called case goods) storage pieces.
If you plan on a bookcase, measure your tallest book, to make sure the distance between the shelves is wide enough to store this book.
Fabrics and Textiles
What fabrics from stunning clearance linens do you like? What patterns, designs, or textures?
Accessories:
What kind of accessories? Wall types? Collections? Heirlooms or keepsakes? Antiques? What materials: nature (shells, rocks, wood, plants, or flowers), fabrics, ceramics, glass, metal, plastic, or paper?
Lighting:
What type of lighting does the room have? Architectural or fixed lighting? Or portable lighting? (Generally, the best lighting plan is a combination of both).
Lastly, is anyone allergic to any item that is planned for your project room? Allergies such as:
Plants, fabrics, synthetics, or petrocarbon.
With this list completed (I know it may seem a bit tedious) you are well on your way to creating a successful and professional looking interior. And you have taken the first step in life style decorating.
What is meant by life style decorating? Just very simply, decorating that takes into account the preferences of the people who will be using the space being decorated. It abolishes the very old idea of the society designer who threw everything out of the house, in order to begin fresh, without considering whether what was being tossed had any sentimental or economic value to it.
Life style decorating differs in many ways from the current and very popular Feng Shui movement in decorating.
But one of the most basic and important differences is that life style decorating is “family-oriented” whereas Feng Shui is “self-oriented”. Feng Shui considers just one person, you. Life style considers, not only you but each member of your family.
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