It's all about balance. Achieving the right balance and scale of accessories, color, textures and placement of furniture is what makes a home design elegant and inviting. Interior design consultants are the "angels" who can achieve these miracles of style and save homeowners time and money - both of which are in short supply in today's busy world.
ImagesAZ recently toured some local homes with two design consultants - Angelique Flanders of Design of the Interiors (DOTI) in North Scottsdale and Nicole Powell, who owns Casa Bella Home Interiors and Design (formerly Olivia's) in the Anthem Market Place. Here are their thoughts on what makes great interior design and a view of the homes they showed us. |
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| "When designing a complete home, or starting with just one room, there is a delicate balance of style, color, scale, textures, placement of furniture and personal touches to consider for the overall effect," Angelique advises. "If done right from the beginning, time and money will be saved in this endeavor. I take into consideration the client's preferences when we put together the textiles, furniture and accessories to create the look they desire. I use their favorite pieces, but arrange them using the right scale and balance. With goals set jointly for the timeline and budget of a project, my clients save money by having me assist them with their design plan." |
Entry Hall. A great example of Angelique's philosophy about the proper balancing of all the elements is the entry hall of the home shown here. The entry hall is a vision of elegant architectural symmetry. The beautiful design in the granite floor had already been installed when the homeowner moved in. By using the right scale and balance of materials to complete the look the owner wanted, Angelique was able to achieve a stunning entrance to the home that was dramatic but not overwhelming. The simple chandelier she chose balanced the large, detailed design in the granite floor. Lovely wrought iron insets surrounding the door add to the glamorous flair of the home. The insert in the ceiling, which looks like Victorian pressed tin, was achieved with anaglyptic wallpaper - a heavy, embossed patterned paper that was painted and pasted to the ceiling - a much cheaper alternative to the real thing. In addition to the embossed tin ceiling, the entry features a faux leather-like texture on the walls, achieved with paint - also less expensive than the real thing. The white woodwork and crown molding provide a stunning contrast with the dark reds, browns and greens of the walls and ceiling.
Den/Office. Just off the entry hall are French doors leading to the sophisticated office, which features ceiling-high, built-in shelves and desk in a warm, dark wood. The shelves are filled with a mixture of personal photos, books, plants, favorite objects acquired on the couples' travels and purchased decorator accessories.
Kitchen Dining Area. The kitchen and adjoining family room are blanketed with faux painted walls in a soft suede finish. The simple Old World elegance of the home is also carried in the kitchen dining area with a classic dining room table and chairs. The beautiful striped curtains frame the large window without overpowering it and add just the right color and pizzazz to the room. The wrought iron work seen throughout the house is also featured in the lovely chandelier and note how balance and scale is achieved with the candlesticks of varying heights and the flower arrangement placed in an Italian-inspired apothecary jar. |
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Master Bedroom. The master bedroom was given an exquisite Venetian plaster treatment. The walls were first sanded down to remove the builder's texture on the walls, then painted with an acid green color to imitate the walls of an old Italian villa. The crisp white linens, which the clients love, provide a dramatic contrast with the brilliant green of the walls and the red accents in the pillows and accessories make the room pop. Angelique always likes to add a touch of whimsy to a room, and that is seen in the "tiger-skin" chaise at the foot of the bed. The walls of the adjoining master bath are painted in a faux chocolate suede, carrying out the brown, red and green color scheme throughout the house.
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Boy's Bedroom. While this home is worldly and elegant, the owners wanted their home to be a place of casual comfort and fun, too. Their little boy's bedroom has a whimsical feel to it, with a straw umbrella in one corner and a real fish (caught by his Mom!) mounted on a South-Sea-like wall hanging.
Nicole Powell's motto is "a home should be a portrait of its owners." And she practices what she preaches. Nicole likes to blend both the old and the new in the design of a home. Her own home reflects her skillful integration of antiques or handed-down pieces with newer models of furniture or objects. Nicole's husband, Jeremy, plays baseball for the Tokyo Giants and the couple, along with their two-year old son, lives in Japan for several months each year. She loves browsing flea markets for some really unique finds, both here in the US and in Japan . Nicole absolutely believes in working with the client's taste, lifestyle and budget. She tells her clients, "I want you to gather all your favorite objects and put them in the middle of the floor." By looking at what appeals to the client, she can then place the pieces around the home where they fit the best and suggest new items, if needed.
Entry Hall. Occupying the niche in the entry hall of Nicole's home is a 200-year-old Chinese figure bought on one of the couples' trips to Japan . Alongside the ancient statue is a flower arrangement in an old ceramic pot and, acting as an elegant backdrop behind both pieces, is a beautifully embossed leather tapestry.
Entry to Living Room. The long cabinet, which is a reproduction of Spanish colonial furniture, serves as a focal point coming in from the entry hall and acts as a divider separating the entry from the living room. Note the balance and scale of the friendly mixture of items that have been placed on the cabinet. The small family photo and books are balanced by the varied heights of the ornate candlesticks, the tall lamp and the green silk plants. The two grill work pieces in the background add to the warm ambiance. |
Family Photo Wall. "Instead of expensive artwork or paintings, try taking favorite photos, having them enlarged and made into black and white prints," Nicole advised. "There's no need to buy new frames, either. If your frames are a mix of styles, sizes and colors, painting them all one color (off-white is my favorite color) gives the room order and interest at the same time."
Kitchen. An old cabinet purchased in Prescott sits in a corner of her kitchen next to an ancient-looking Tuscan pot. The cabinet is over 200 years old and originally from Tuscany and the old pot is a reproduction, made in Italy and painted to look weathered. The dark wood cabinet with the iron grill on the front is a reproduction of an old wine cabinet. Nicole has filled it with wine bottles (naturally) and decorative Italian apothecary jars and colorful greenery.
Dining Room. Nicole has bought many beautiful silk obis (those wide bands that act as belts around Japanese kimonos) during her stays in Japan and loves to use them as table runners on her dining room table. She has purchased many exquisitely embroidered obis in different colors to match the mood of the seasons. The Japanese plates on the table are reproductions from the Edo era in Japan , which are made by someone called China Pete from Kyoto , Japan . China Pete makes these inexpensive reproductions of china from all the antique periods of Japan . These and the other antique reproductions shown are available through Casa Bella.
INFO> Angelique Flanders, DOTI, 480-595-8002, www.dotiscottsdale.com. Nicole Powell, Casa Bella, 623-551-4881, casabellaanthem@aol.com |
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