Home Design - What's Hot For 2011

Summer is behind us and we’re officially into “Fall” mode, and for many of us the thought of getting our homes “holiday ready” is slowly becoming a reality.

Finding fresh design inspirations for fall 2011 and adding some warmth to your home is as easy as ever – particularly when the runways, magazines, newspapers and television shows keep us abreast as to what’s hot and what’s not from one year to the next.

Here are just a few of the home design trends that have been making their mark recently. I feel most of these trends have the staying power and are on the verge of becoming the new lifestyle standard.

What’s Hot!

Investing in Your Home: 

Yes the economy remains unpredictable but more and more homeowners are finally “ready” to enhance their quality of life at home. “Nesting” is here to stay and re-thinking the way we really want to live is now a reality.  Implementing high quality sustainable, recycled and renewable materials and products into our homes – is an investment worth making and will withstand the test of time.  It’s smarter, healthier and greener!

 

Multi-Functional Spaces:

Maximizing every inch of space – within the existing footprint – and providing creative and integrated storage solutions throughout your entire home is more important now than ever. Less clutter and greater organization will contain your “stuff” and still allow your home to feel more spacious, uncluttered and inviting.

Re-Interpretation of Design Styles:

From coast to coast the design showrooms are displaying a distinct softening and refinement of the modern interior with a departure from the harsher lines and minimalist trends of the past few years.  Introducing a mixture of many design genres into your room creates an immediate personality and lifestyle – something many design savvy homeowners are craving these days.  With fewer rules than ever before, re-interpreting the past and blending it with the new creates a more authentic and personal interior design style.  Infusing character which has evolved over time – creates that “Timeless” interior.

The New “It” Color:

Each season the color forecasters share the new colors of the moment.  This fall it’s the color – purple!  It defines elegance and refined luxury at the same time represents royalty (and who doesn’t NEED to feel regal from time to time!) This spiritual color also works beautifully with various shades of grey, cream, yellows, rich woods and metallics.

Interior Design

If you are looking for interior design ideas for your own home then there are endless sources of inspiration just about everywhere, in fact, the biggest challenge is probably identifying your own particular taste and style out of the many that are out there and of course choosing the appropriate colour schemes, fabrics, fixtures and fittings to go along with it.

To get an idea of what you like, browse through magazines and brochures dedicated to homes, visit showrooms and exhibitions, take note of what you like about friends and families homes, search the Internet, watch TV programmes that focus on transforming homes and you will soon get an idea of what kind of style appeals to you and what doesn't.

The following list represents just a small sample of the kind of interior design ideas and styles that might be of interest with a very broad description of each one. This list is by no means exhaustive and the descriptions are there just to spark some ideas as there are no firmly fixed rules regarding different styles, it is all about what looks and feels right for you.

A traditional style

The traditional style is arguably one of the more popular choices. It is characterised by practical furniture, which is also functional and of course comfortable. There are no big statements being made here. The colour schemes are not loud and fussy and the overall impression is a homely one that is restful to the eye, in other words it isn't at all outrageous or bold in design but has a more elegant look and feel to it.

The modern approach

A modern style allows for a more daring approach with brighter colour mixes, symmetrical, angular and straight lines and possibly stark colour contrasts. Leather furniture and metallic fittings can add a nice touch and lighting can be used effectively to highlight different areas. Modern styles are generally clean cut and slick and sleek and so don't go well with too many extra accessories.

A cottage in the country

Imagine a quaint cottage in the country and what it might look like on the inside and you can begin to get an idea of a country or cottage style. The country style has more of a rustic, informal look and feel. It could include attractive fabrics on the furniture, subtle colour schemes, country patterns and prints, and flowers. The "worn" look works very well as do antique style fittings, wooden furniture, rugs and cotton table cloths.

The minimalist look

This works on the basic principle that less is so much more. It has a very simple, clean cut and spacious look to it with minimal furniture, and very few accessories. There are no extras, just the absolute bare essentials and nothing else.

A themed style

Perhaps you'd prefer a themed style, for example, a nature theme based on water, the forest or wildlife. You could also choose Japanese, Asian, Mexican, or Wild West themes, in fact, whatever you can think of. There are no restrictions, just whatever has an individual appeal for you.

What about Feng shui?

Feng shui literally means "wind-water" and is a Chinese school of thought based on the idea that how a room is laid out and furnished has an impact on the health and wellbeing of its occupants. If this appeals to you then colour is important and so is the layout of the furniture and the fittings. Furniture must be placed in such as way as to create an atmosphere of comfort that is also in harmony with the surroundings. There are a number of "rules" attached to Feng Shui so you would have to familiarise yourself with these first.

Using a mixture of styles

Interior design ideas often bring a mix of two or more styles together to produce striking results. However, a word of caution, mixing lots of different styles together can also look cluttered, messy and downright chaotic unless you have some artistic flair and an eye for detail in order to get it right. The best way to spark off your own interior design ideas is to take a look at other styles and find out what appeals to you and expand on that. Take a note of what colours are used, what "feelings" you get from the rooms and of course, you will also be able identify what you simply don't like and want to avoid.

Getting it right

Think about and try to imagine what impression or mood you want to create in each room, for example romantic, risqué, tranquil, vibrant, earthy, homely, playful, and exciting and so on. Looking at lots of other rooms will give you an idea of what appeals to you and you can then base your own interior design ideas on that. Once you have identified the kind of style, colours, fixtures and fittings you like, you can choose to hire a designer to do the work for you or you may decide to do it yourself, in any event, with a little thought and fore planning you will be able to create rooms that are both functional and beautiful and that totally reflect who you are.

Interior Design Ideas

Interior design ideas are a wonderful place to begin for those who wish to create look that is uniquely their own. For people with a modern taste, it can be exasperating to live with outdated designs or old furniture and it may be hard to know where to begin. Luckily, there are a lot of ways to save cash and upgrade your interiors without huge remodelling or hustling out to buy designer brands. There is no need to throw away heirloom items in favour of IKEA merchandise with no personal significance to your life, as well. No matter how outdated your home interior design is, there can still be hope.

You may not notice it at present, but your historic house can actually have a number of old-world elegance that may be contrasted, with terrific success, with the contemporary accents you wish to use. Crown moulding, door and window frames, structural beams, and other interior design ideas may be refinished and displayed for their classic grace even in the presence of the contemporary furniture. Replacing, refinishing, stripping, and painting hardware are all things that may be at the top of your to-do list to contemporize an old home design.

Hanging light functions may be eliminated in favour of buried lighting as a fast way to carry spaces up to modern style. Consider updating your walls to a monochromatic colour scheme if they are still painted in country blues or retro pales. Bold swashes of colour can be incorporated to relief walls in order to give an exciting vibe and depth on a landing wall or through the unexpected entryway. There is any blend of palettes and textures that can give you a modern space in spite of older accents.

Working with outdated and aged furniture may actually be exciting and fun. There are a lot of interior design ideas to help you change those unattractive artefacts over the week. Among the hardest to update may be the weighty wood furniture, which may be refurnished in a lighter colour in the theme of other contemporary furniture. Decorative or scrolled legs may be simple replaces with a big assortment of straight, neat, modern styles that may also be refurnished in order to meet your satisfaction. To end up the task, eliminate or replace hardware items where possible, selecting less decorative yet highly unique styles. Be bold, your house is packed with interior design ideas.

Upholstery is something that has seen a spectacular transformation in famous style over many years. It does not only become faded and tattered, but the designs and patterns just do not blend in a contemporary setting. It may simply be replaced with crisp fabrics and solid colours for a notable change in look. Very simple patterns or clean stripes may be borrowed from present decoration in order to really unite the space design.

Reusing current items in place of buying new ones is a wonderful way to modernize your look. A lot of designers may even say that sustainability is the irrefutable future of contemporary design.