We all reside in houses of one kind or another. When furnished, whether well done or not, they constitute the environment in which we spend the great part of our lives. These environments influence us continually and profoundly.
To the degree that your home is beautiful and comfortable affects us favorably and provides a wonderful haven for recuperation of mind and body. It also facilitates a richer and more satisfying life. To the degree that it is uncomfortable and lacking in beauty, it provides the exact opposite. This can develop into a potentially devastating degree.
As you can see, a properly furnished home is a very significant matter. It affects your life, as well as your attitude and ambitions. Your home should be an environment that is as supportive of your life as possible. Therefore, knowledge of how to furnish a house properly is very meaningful.
Beauty and comfort in a home do not result from chance or happen by accident. They result from the proper application of a reasoned process. Two quotes on the back of my business card illustrate this perfectly. They are the foundations of my business philosophy. Firstly, “Quality is never an accident; it is always the result of intelligent effort.” Secondly, “When love and skill work together, expect a masterpiece.”
Transforming a blank canvas into a picture or carving a block of stone into a beautiful sculpture is comparatively less creative of an endeavor than transforming an empty house into a place of beauty and comfort. The major distinction between the painting or sculpture and a house is that you are looking at the artwork. In the home you are not only looking at the interiors, but you’re also enveloped in them. Therefore, interior design and decoration is also an art of selection and arrangement in a three-dimensional environment. This will require knowledge, appreciation, discrimination, and good judgment. Since interior design is a part of architecture, like a hand in a glove, it differs from painting and sculpture in that it has a very practical aim. Your home must not only look good, but function well. Being supportive of your lifestyle is the end goal.
When you set out to furnish your home, you face a threefold problem.
- You must select and arrange items that suit the age, sex, and temperament of the individuals; whether one or many, as well as meet the needs, express the tastes and aspirations, and fit the budget.
- You must see to it that the furniture and accessories are selected and arranged to suit the home in terms of scale, proportion, coloring, and style. It may be eclectic, transitional, traditional, or contemporary.
- Finally, you must see to it that these things are not only suitable, but also good-looking and aesthetically pleasing. In addition, they must all combine to form a harmonious and beautiful whole.
The treatment of your house and each room within it involves the interplay of three factors, which I differentiate as the personal, the architectural, and the aesthetic. No decorative problem, however simple or complex, can be solved correctly and appropriately unless each of these factors is properly considered and given their due importance in order to achieve ideal results.
Even though the personal factor is of extreme importance, the architectural factor is one of the first things taken into account. The size and other physical characteristics of the rooms will determine what goes into them.
The personal factor is critical from the point that houses are for people, and a house exists to make adequate provision for the satisfaction, needs, and preferences of the individuals that will inhabit it. The prior statement is simple common sense, yet professionals as well as nonprofessionals ignore it frequently. Many look at it as “decorating” without due consideration for personal aspects relative to the real needs and preferences of the occupants.
This is not about fads or the newest craze! You must never forget that if you choose to disregard the personal factor, or make it of subordinate importance, you will pay the price in loss of comfort and beauty. If your main concern is to comply with the newest fad or craze of the hour, you may experience an hour’s satisfaction. But you will most assuredly fail in achieving any dignity and individuality, or the fine flavor of distinction found only in homes whose decoration and design are established on the studied needs and tastes of the occupants.
As far as the aesthetic factor is concerned, making the furnishings fit the house is also of great importance as well as making them fit the people who live there. A properly furnished home meets all the real needs, both practical and aesthetic, of all the occupants, and relates them to the architectural factors as well. This paves the way for a pleasing and harmonious composition that is unique and personal.
Briefly, here is what you need to consider. Imagine three intersecting circles. I’ll name them Circle A, Circle B, and Circle C. Circle A represents the total number of things available, without reference to their suitability, and are intrinsically good-looking, or pleasing in an aesthetic way. Circle B represents the total number of items that would satisfy your personal requirements. Circle C is the total number of elements that would satisfy the architectural requirements. The small area where all three circles intersect is the “sweet spot.” This specifies the total amount of items and elements that are capable of satisfying all the conditions… the personal, the aesthetic, and the architectural. The remaining are the choices that you are limited to, in order to create the most holistic design possible. This will eliminate all the “fluff” and potential errors that could ruin your surroundings.
Dream big and allow yourself potentially wonderful results that greatly enrich your life!