Having a clear understanding of your own personal interior design style can be a tricky thing to master. For most of us we know exactly what we like (and dislike) with the help of visuals. Often though, it can be difficult to put into words exactly which aspects of a design concept we like. This is made especially challenging when there’s technical terminology being used. Professionals working in the design industry will inevitably use these phrases everyday; it can be a difficult thing to switch off!
We understand how frustrating this can be, so we’ve come up with style guide to help steer you in the right direction. Our aim with this guide is to ensure that we get a grasp and clear sense of your personal style – most importantly, what you like and dislike. This is to make sure that by the end of the process, you are in love with the space that we design for you!
Our Guide
In our guide we will take you through different interior styles, step by step. Some styles derive from particular design periods, or different architectural styles, whereas others have developed from modern design trends. We have used some keywords in our descriptions to make it easier to narrow down the elements that you like the most, as well as beautiful real-life images of these styles to see how they translate to different spaces.
What the guide will include
- Short explanations of each style genre with some key characteristics
- Visual images to help connect the descriptions to a real life set-up
- An interactive page where you can note down your preferences so you don’t forget!
- An overview of the different ways that we can use colour effectively in your design
Who can get their hands on the new style guide?
To access your free copy of our style guide, sign up to our newsletter here. If you are interested in how our services can help you with an upcoming renovation project, get in touch here to book your free consultation.
One thing we notice when speaking with our clients is that they sometimes love elements of contrasting design styles and periods. For example, they may love the clean lines of minimalism, but also the texture and pattern of the country style. There is absolutely no problem with this, our personal style is after all completely unique; we cannot expect it to fall exactly into one style. Within our guide we discuss the ‘transitional’ style that many of our clients decide to pursue. Transitional style takes influences from two or more styles with the intention of creating a cohesive scheme. So, we could look at incorporating the elements which you pinpoint into your design concept.
Once you’ve had a read through our guide, we would recommend getting on Pinterest. This is one of the best visual resources and is saturated with interior inspiration in every style you can think of. It can therefore become a little overwhelming at times. As Alex Kalita from Common Bond Design suggests: ‘Look at the Pinterest boards of an individual whose style you admire: a friend, influencer, or designer’. By focusing on one or two people you can really hone in on what it is that you find visually appealing, rather than trawling through masses of images. Once you’ve narrowed down your search, choose an image of an interior which you love and write down a list of the specific elements that your eye is drawn to. This will help you to understand your tastes in more detail.
You can also gather inspiration in real-life too! Let’s not forget that we are surrounded by beautiful design every day – why not look closely at a well-designed space when you’re out and about (we’re thinking shops, hotel rooms, homes of your friends and family, your hairdressers, the list goes on!). When you’re there try to pick out the features you like and dislike.
Once you have a clear idea of the style of furniture, colours, prints, textiles you enjoy, have a think about how your space can influence your ideal design. The architecture of a home can sometimes dictate what can and can’t be done. We will obviously offer a lot of guidance here to make sure that the design elements which you want to include are compatible. You might notice in our guide that a lot of the images used for a particular style are all used in similar style architecture. For instance the industrial style homes all tend to have very high ceilings and contain exposed piping. You wouldn’t then attempt to replicate this in a small cottage – the style just wouldn’t work! The architecture would be much more suited to the homely, inviting country or rustic style.
For more information on our interior design services get in touch with us today! To receive access to our style guide and other design resources you can sign up to our newsletter here.