There are certain “rules” for good design, some written and some unwritten. And they are there for a good reason! When I went to design school we studied architectural concepts such as scale, repetition, and pattern. I hear rules for decorating from designers constantly, and most I agree with whole heartedly…
But there are a couple design rules that I prefer to break. Here’s my short list of my designer disobedience:
Designer Rule #1: You must buy a giant rug that sits under all of your furniture. Most designers will suggest buying a rug that is at minimum a size that all of the legs of your furniture grouping will sit upon. Many show rugs that span the entire room. However, I disagree. First of all, huge rugs can be very expensive! Once you get up to the size 8×10 or larger, prices can jump very rapidly. I would rather buy the same rug in a smaller size, such as a 5×7 to give a room a great pop of pattern, for half the price. Furthermore, in my home I have great hardwood floors that I love (wideplank, handscraped natural hickory!), and paid a small fortune for them. Why would I want to cover up that beautiful invesetment with a glorified carpet?
While all of the furniture legs still fit on this rug, they stuck to an 8’x10′ size:
A smaller rug lets those gorgeous wood rugs shine:
Designer Rule #2: Group objects in a set of odd numbers, and three seems to be the magic number. This idea has been around for a long time under the concept that odd numbers are most pleasing to the eye. Maybe. But why stick to that rule? Change it up! Group together four frames above your bed. Line up ten mini vases of flowers along your mantle. Have fun! Be free of the odd numbers. I’m a big stickler for filing up a space to keep it proportional in the rest of the room. So fill up a space, but don’t go crazy over numbers.
Go even! These four floating frames look modern and simply beautiful:
I liked how they mixed it up here: They framed a set of three photos, but kept two vases off to the side, to balance it out. You can be asymmetrical but still proportional:
Designer Rule #3: Build open bookcases and fill them with lots of accessories! Hmm, that is a lot of little accessories I need to purchase, coordinate, and dust every week (okay, lets be honest…twice a year). Even the most professionally decorated ones seem a bit uneccessary to me. At worst, they are cluttered and filled with objects that aren’t precious to the homeowner. I see no shame in cabinet doors for things they shouldn’t be displayed! If you love the idea of open shelves, keep them in a minimum, and less is always more in my opinion.
In this playroom, they struck a nice balance of open storage and LOTS of closed storage. What kid can keep all of their toys organized? Add those doors to your entertainment/storage center!
Mudrooms are hot right now, and I see hundreds of photos of gorgeous spaces with perfectly styled accessories out in the open. But I live in the real world, and my three kids, hubby, and dog do NOT leave their stuff photo worthy every day. So I stuck doors on every single locker in our mudroom. This mudroom below strikes a nice balance of closed and open storage. (I still would daily “organize” those hanging hook items every day though!)
I love how this cozy, coastal family rooms using a mix of side tables with drawers, oversized baskets, and coffee table storage as a mixture of closed and open storage. Find those places to stash away your items that you don’t want out on display every day.
In our family friendly living room, I used all three rule breakers. I stuck with a smaller 5×7 Pottery Barn rug that gives a landing area for my coffee table, but still lets loads of those hardwood floors shine through. For my mantle I grouped uneven numbers of mercury glass vases. And finally, with the exception of my mantle, no open storage here! I have a set of built-in cabinets (not shown) to stash my stuff. It comes in major handy when unexpected guests pop by.
Do you have any design rules that YOU like to break? Share them with me on Facebook! Or if you prefer to sit back and let all of the design ideas come to you, I’m alway sharing looks in my home on Instagram. And of course the holy grail of design ideas: I’m always finding looks I love on Pinterest!
In the meantime, if you have questions on how Postbox Designs works, check it all out HERE and for this month only save $100 on any Postbox!
Cheers!
Debra Stewart says
I have a tv mounted on a wall and a large Great Room that is about 20′ x 25′ with a open concept leading into the kitchen with a breakfast bar separating the two room. We are in the middle of remodeling the kitchen and adding wood flooring throughout. I want to put 2 accent chairs with the backs of the chairs to the tv. What are your design thoughts on this layout?
PostboxDesigns says
Hi Debra, Sounds great! When you have an open concept room like your Great Room, usually floating the furniture in the center of the room, centered around the TV is a good way to go. If not every piece of furniture can face the TV, I like to use the largest piece facing the TV (such as the sofa). If you are able to angle your chairs so they can still see the TV, or use swivel ones, that will give you extra options. When in doubt, I tell my clients to design their space for how they live 90% of the time. You can always move around furniture if you are hosting a larger group. I hope that helps! 🙂 Kristin