But Where Do I Put the Couch?

Melissa Michaels

Description

101 Real Decorating FAQs Answered When you have a home decorating question, do you wish you had a team to consult? Now, you do! Home decor experts Melissa Michaels (The Inspired Room) and KariAnne Wood (Thistlewood Farms) answer 101 actual queries from readers like you. As Melissa and KariAnne help solve these everyday decorating dilemmas, you'll learn more about Getting Started What to do first, how to update your entire house, and decorate on a budget. Style and Trends How to find your personal decorating style, choose a timeless look, and make your home both kid and style friendly. The Major Elements Get foundational guidelines for flooring, wall decor, lighting, and more. Furniture and Space Planning How to place furniture properly, maximize open floor space, and redo rooms on a tight budget. Color, Paint, and Patterns Choose correct colors, learn paint basics, and express your creativity while avoiding clash. Organization Tame your junk drawer, declutter kitchen appliances, and manage the mess in a multipurpose room. Accessories and Styling Accessorize with confidence, showcase your favorite pieces, and own your style even while renting. If you're unsure about any area of decorating, chances are the answers are inside this book. Melissa and KariAnne can help!

Sujets

• Interior design

Informations

• Publié par: Harvest House Publishers
• Date de parution: 10 septembre 2019
• Nombre de lectures: 3
• EAN13: 9780736974158
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 5 Mo

Extrait

HARVEST HOUSE PUBLISHERS
EUGENE, OREGON
But where do I put the couch?
Right? How many of us have looked at a room and asked that question? A lot .
We know because during our 20-plus years of combined blogging, that question has surfaced more often than a lint-covered quarter from beneath a sofa cushion. We wrote this book to answer those questions-the ones we all face in moments of desperation or creative burnout. To keep it real, these questions are gathered from our blog followers who are now eager for answers. And here they are! So sit back, relax, and get ready to resolve a few home d cor conundrums.
And along the way, you will find the perfect place for that couch.
Melissa KariAnne
CONTENTS

Getting Started
1. But Where Do I Put the Couch?
2. Which Big Projects Should I Do First?
3. How Do I Start from Scratch?
4. Everything Needs Updating-Help!
5. How Do I Update Without Downsizing What I Love?
6. What s My First To-Do for a Redo?
7. How Do I Set Project Priorities?
8. How Do I Create a Vision?
9. How Can I Realize My Vision?
10. What Turns Great Deals into Great Designs?
11. What Turns My House into a Home?
Style Trends
12. What Is My Style?
13. How Do I Single Out My Style?
14. Help Me Sing, I Did It My Way!
15. What Will Bring My House into This Decade?
16. How Do I Choose Timeless over Trendy?
17. How Do I Keep My Style Consistent?
18. Is My Dream of Two Themes Too Much?
19. Can I Create One Style Under One Roof?
20. Can I Translate a Style into My D cor Language?
21. Will My Beach Style Cross a Line in the Sand?
22. Should Leather and Lace Ever Marry? Speak Now.
23. Can I Connect My Eclectic Pieces?
24. Can I Say Yes to Eclectic and No to Chaotic?
25. How Do I Make Heirlooms Feel at Home?
26. Can a Kid-Friendly House Be Style Friendly?
27. What Can I Update Without a Budget Upset?
The Major Elements
28. What Are the Foundational Guidelines for Flooring?
29. Which Flooring Options Are Best?
30. Area Rugs Aren t My Area. What Should I Know?
31. Give Me Rug Rules I Can Stand On.
32. My Mind Is as Blank as My Walls. Where Do I Start?
33. How Can I Have Fun with Wall Designs?
34. Let There Be Light in Each Room. But How?
35. Which Lights Complement My Space and Style?
36. Take My Home from Dreary to Cheery and Bright.
37. Which Lights Set Which Moods?
38. Can I Brighten My Home Without Lights?
39. Is It Okay to Treat My Windows Differently?
40. How Do I Clothe My Naked Windows in Style?
41. Help Me Get a Handle on Hardware.
Furniture Space Planning
42. How Do I Plan My Furniture Placement?
43. Any Tips for Arranging Furniture?
44. Can I Arrange Furniture Creatively Inside the Box?
45. Does a TV Have to Take Over a Room?
46. How Do I Size Up My Furniture Upgrades?
47. What Tips Maximize an Open Floor Plan?
48. I m Open to Ideas to Fill Open Spaces.
49. I Want a Bedroom Makeover (Without Losing Sleep Over Money).
50. How Do I Make the Best of My Empty Nest?
51. How Can I Love My Kitchen Again?
52. What Makes a Small Space Extra Inviting?
53. Can I Distress Furniture Without Stress?
54. Help Me Mix and Match Without a Mishmash!
Color, Paint, Patterns
55. Is There a Secret to Planning Color Schemes?
56. Can I Usher in Color Gently?
57. Any Encouragement for a Color Coward?
58. I m Inspired for a Color Scheme. Now What?
59. Will Paint Pull Together a Look?
60. Sign Me Up for Paint Terminology 101.
61. Will You Shed Light on Selecting Paint Colors?
62. So. Many. Colors. How Do I Choose?
63. How Do I Choose from the Array of Grays?
64. Will Painted Furniture Paint Me into a Corner?
65. Are Kids and Neutrals Allowed to Coexist?
66. Can Different Colors + Patterns = Cohesive?
67. Can I Express Creativity and Avoid Clash?
68. How Do I Decorate with Fabrics?
Organization
69. How Do I Downsize My D cor?
70. Can Style Success Happen in This Mess?
71. Can I Host and Have a Life?
72. Which Changes Will Maximize a Small Entry?
73. My Junk Drawer Takes Over My D cor. Ideas?
74. How Can I Avoid Mid-Project Mayhem?
75. And Where Do I Put My Toaster?
76. Is There Storage Hope for a Small Kitchen?
77. Help Me Keep an Open Mind About Open Shelves.
78. How Do I Turn My Bathroom into a Spa?
79. What Will Unite the Look of a Multipurpose Room?
80. My Family Uses the Family Room So There s That .
81. Can Function and Beauty Work Together in a Home Office?
82. I Need a Post-Holiday Pep Talk (and Tips)!
83. How Can I Simplify Decorating All Year?
Accessories Styling
84. I m Ready for Accessories. Now What?
85. How Do I Showcase the Things I Love?
86. I Want Pretty Things Now (and Cheap) Is That a Problem?
87. How Do I Own My Style While Renting?
88. How Do I Balance Sentiment and Style?
89. What Are the Tricks to Displaying Art?
90. Can I Really Take Photos Worth Displaying?
91. What Are Design Basics for a Gallery Wall?
92. Mirror, Mirror on My Wall And Where Else?
93. Can My D cor Secret Be an Open Book?
94. When Is an Arrangement Just Right?
95. Which Natural Elements Are Ideal Accessories?
96. Are There DIYs to Design with Signs?
97. What Turns a Mantelpiece into a Masterpiece?
98. What Makes a Guest Suite Special?
99. How Can I Create an Oasis for Outdoor Entertaining?
100. Which Seasonal Touches Are Easiest to Add In?
101. Is There Victory After (Multiple) D cor Fails?
About the Authors

Getting Started
How do I start when I don t know where to start? Whether you re refinishing a table or furnishing an entire home, often the hardest part of decorating is the whole getting started process. Maybe you have a distinct vision of what you want, but you don t have the budget or can t find the pieces to make it work. Maybe your home is hopelessly out of date and you re completely lost as to where to begin. Or maybe you ve collected pieces you love and have a Pinterest board full of inspiration, but you re terrified to take that first step.
You got this, friend.
Truly.
The secret to getting started is getting started. Even when you feel a little overwhelmed and are second-guessing your decorating decisions. Getting started is where it s at. That s really the only solution. There isn t a tried-and-true method for decorating-only what works for you . Once you take that first step, once you begin, once you follow your heart and step out in faith, you are well on your way to turning your decorating dreams into reality.
But Where Do I Put the Couch?

Help! I really want to turn my house into a home, but I have no idea where to start! I m not even sure where to put the couch! I keep staring at my living room and I m stumped. Is there a rule I should follow? Or maybe I just need the confidence to try something unexpected. Can you help?
Kathleen M.

Melissa KariAnne say...
Whether you re staring at a wide-open, empty space or have embraced the same decorating scheme for decades, knowing where to start decorating or redecorating can be intimidating. What if you choose the wrong style? What if things don t end up matching well? What if you put the couch in the wrong place and the room just doesn t make sense?
Truth? Every room can throw you a curve ball-or an angled wall! But don t worry. We ve both stood in your shoes (or slippers), overwhelmed with furniture placement and unsure of where exactly to set that sofa.
Perhaps you ve had your couch in the same place for ten or more years and have always assumed that s where it goes. But now? You want to redo and rearrange and get a new look. Or you re starting from scratch with an empty room. You ve moved the couch from wall to wall, but you just can t decide on the perfect place. And no matter where you place it, it s hard to envision the rest of the room.
Here are some suggestions to help you get past this decorating hurdle:

Start by finding the focal point of a room. Determine your focal point by following your eye. What draws your attention when you walk into the room? In many cases, this is the fireplace or mantel. It could also be a large picture window with an incredible view or an oversized painting. Place the couch facing the wall with the focal point. Next, add chairs, side tables, and other furniture and accessories based on your couch s location in the room. Your focal point is now center stage in your space.

If you have a larger room with two sofas, keep the furniture arrangement symmetrical. Arrange the sofas across from each other. You want the bigger pieces in a room to be visually balanced, and arranging them in this manner is the best way to achieve that balance. (Note: It s best if the sofas match each other. If they re not the same, tie them together with coordinating pillow colors and patterns, as well as cozy throw blankets.)

It s generally not a good idea to block a window. But if you have a lower sofa and a big window, consider placing the sofa in front of that wall.

Resist the urge to shove the sofa against a wall. Depending on how much room you have available, try floating the sofa (as well as the other furniture) in the room. Ideally, you want to place your furniture about 12 from the wall. Moving the furniture into the room creates cozier spaces and helps with traffic flow. You can also add items of interest behind the sofa-a potted plant, an attractive floor lamp, a small shelf, or a narrow sofa table.

Get creative with sectionals. Often it s assumed the natural placement for a sectional is in the corner of a room, but instead, try pulling it away from the walls. With a sectional, you have a ton of seating space available, so you don t need as many other pieces for seating in the room. This gives you the freedom to try some creative layouts.

Improve a box-shaped room. Got a space lacking details (such as built-ins, chair rails, or coved ceilings)? Perhaps your furniture arrangement could shake thing