Designing Decor: Experiments In Space
We live in an age of finite space. Not all of us are lucky enough to own or rent large and spacious homes, in fact small cars and small apartments are the norm of city life and most of us live in cities where by definition space is premium. Interior design helps us create the illusion of space where no space exists.
My particular home is about 50 square metres, it has one small double bedroom and one wet/shower room. My kitchen, dining room and living room are all squeezed together in one room. It doesn’t feel cramped but I do spend a lot time putting things away, like most of us that live in a smaller home. My husband bought the apartment before we met so it seemed perfectly reasonable for us to live here after we got married. Just before we got married we renovated the flat, taking it from a studio apartment with separate kitchen to a one bedroomed apartment. We had a lot of help in arranging the flat from my parents-in-law after the reno and for the last four years I’ve been perfectly content with how the space worked.
Also the position of my dining table though useful as a work table meant that it was more likely to be used as a dumping ground. Since it was right in front of the hall way door any thing that needed to used in the living area would end up on the table. We hardly ever ate there because it was always filled with random stuff that took too much effort to move. It was the bane of my housewife-ish aspirations, it never seemed to be tidy.
BEFORE: Gorgeous, of course, but not quite so good as….
…AFTER: Pure genius!
With interior design, out of the box is never wrong. Thinking in new ways is my new mission. I hope this gives you ideas, or at least impetus to see your own home in a new light. Please subscribe in the top left corner, and comment below.
Till next time.
Davita
My particular home is about 50 square metres, it has one small double bedroom and one wet/shower room. My kitchen, dining room and living room are all squeezed together in one room. It doesn’t feel cramped but I do spend a lot time putting things away, like most of us that live in a smaller home. My husband bought the apartment before we met so it seemed perfectly reasonable for us to live here after we got married. Just before we got married we renovated the flat, taking it from a studio apartment with separate kitchen to a one bedroomed apartment. We had a lot of help in arranging the flat from my parents-in-law after the reno and for the last four years I’ve been perfectly content with how the space worked.
Modern Home/Cosy Feel
Then last Easter weekend(17th April 2014) we visited some friends of ours who have four beautiful children. They live in a new build house that is in the what you might describe as new Scandinavia style. My dear friend Samantha however loves the feel of country cottage style and has taken the bones of her quite modern home and decked it out with a modern country cottage style, making it feel very cosy with her beautiful farmhouse dining table and six old fashioned dining chairs around it, right next to a beautiful floor to ceiling picture window. I was so in love with the idea that I just had to try it out and see if somehow I could achieve a feeling of space and still have my very old and somewhat decrepit dining table with its IKEA dining chairs nearer my large window. So I embarked on about an hour of heavy lifting with my patient and long suffering husband.
A Beautiful View Unseen
Our kitchen/dining/living room is very square, and for the last four years we’ve had our sofa pushed against one wall, our kitchen on another wall, our television on yet another wall and my dining table a dumping ground next to my over- filled bookcases which are against the same wall as the TV. We have a beautiful view across the Bergen Fjord, but for years we haven’t really been able to see it as well I thought it deserved to be seen. Why? Well two reasons:- The height of the window.
- The position of the sofa.
Also the position of my dining table though useful as a work table meant that it was more likely to be used as a dumping ground. Since it was right in front of the hall way door any thing that needed to used in the living area would end up on the table. We hardly ever ate there because it was always filled with random stuff that took too much effort to move. It was the bane of my housewife-ish aspirations, it never seemed to be tidy.
BEFORE: Gorgeous, of course, but not quite so good as….
…AFTER: Pure genius!
An Extra Room
Okay, so maybe I’m making a big deal out of nothing. Interior design is an indulgent hobby of mine. I really enjoy trying to bring a new mood to some place. I feel like with this new arrangement of furniture I have gotten an extra room, from where I can type this blog, eat my breakfast, work on my numerous amounts of projects… etc. I love the fact I can now see our beautiful view in its entirety through the glass door, that I have acquired a more cosy conversational seating arrangement. It feels like a completely new space.With interior design, out of the box is never wrong. Thinking in new ways is my new mission. I hope this gives you ideas, or at least impetus to see your own home in a new light. Please subscribe in the top left corner, and comment below.
Till next time.
Davita
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