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Interior Designer Victoria Hagan Captures Comfort and Style With Quiet Sophistication

Sunday, February 3, 2013

To be truly inspired for interior design ideas, one has only to look at the interiors by Victoria Hagan. One of the top New York interior designers today, Hagan's interiors epitomize refined sophistication and exhibit her talent for combining various styles. Her interiors showcase her ability to balance the old with the new and to create spaces that are full of texture, harmonious color and strong silhouettes. Interior designer Victoria Hagan captures comfort and style with quiet sophistication.

Victoria Hagan graduated the Parsons School of Design in 1984 and began an internship with designer Simone Feldman. This relationship led to a partnership up until Feldman's death in 1991. At that time, Hagan opened her own design firm and has been recognized by many as one of the leading interior designers. She was inducted into the Interior Design Hall of Fame in 2004 and has been listed in Architectural Digest's "Top 100."

In 2002 Hagan introduced a line of furniture, fabric and accessories that represents the inspiration that she finds in the people and places around her. She refers to her collections as the "new American classics." Victoria Hagan's designs illustrate her trademark tailored upholstery, strong silhouettes and innovative textures.

When implementing Hagan's style into your own home think simple, comfortable and interesting. You won't see an overabundance of embellishments. What you will see is an expert use of color, clean lines, interesting textures and the unexpected. You won't see one particular style of furniture or décor. What you will see is an eclectic mix that is well blended.

Hagan's interiors seem to be filled with light and have a well-balanced blend of comfort and style. Texture is definitely a trademark of the designer's, whether it is achieved with a luxurious throw, a unique piece of art, a decorative pillow or even the upholstery.

When you work with texture and concentrate on the scale of furniture, color should be used with discretion. That's not to say a room should be boring. Certainly, Hagan's interiors are far from boring. However, they exude a restful respite from overwhelming color proving that a dash of color in an unexpected form or place more than makes up for a roomful of overindulgence.

The trick to capturing the essence of Victoria Hagan in your own interiors is to keep it sophisticated, subtle and mix it up a bit. Choose neutral wall colors, blend subtle upholstered pieces for a sophisticated look and accessorize for touches of texture, color and interest. You would be surprised what a few interesting pillows will do for a sofa.

Don't be afraid to mix styles. It's okay to blend a contemporary acrylic coffee table with a traditional style modular sofa. That antique desk of Uncle Bob's would fit beautifully next to that upholstered club chair. The modern art sculpture that you just had to buy at that new gallery in town will work its magic as your "something unexpected."

Above all, make your space livable and make it yours. Add your treasured collections or furniture pieces. Keep the space uncluttered, enabling you to move freely about in total comfort. Experiment with different arrangements of furniture and accessories, as well as with mixing styles. Use Victoria Hagan's own mantra as your guide, "the beauty is in the mix." Above all else, take a cue from Hagan's approach to decorating: keep it fun. That's advice you can use from one of the top New York interior designers.

Spanish Interior Design - Step Into the Sunshine!

Do you want to make a wonderful, colourful statement in your home?

Have you ever holidayed in Spain? If so, I am sure you will be familiar with the fresh and vibrant Mediterranean style. Think about sun-kissed, rustic Spanish villas, slow, sleepy siestas, excitement-filled fiestas, and a good, old-fashioned sense of family.

This bold and colorful look will bring a really vibrant, warm and friendly feel to your home. Buzzing with energy, but at the same time, a warm and comforting place, to hold you in the bosom of your family.

This is a look which is as easy to achieve, as it is to live with. Just follow these few, simple guidelines.

Walls

Try a textured, rustic style wall, for a really authentic Spanish interior design look.

Combine this with beautiful, vibrant colors, to fill your home with Spanish sunshine style. Choose Mediterranean type colors for your look - red, orange, blue, green, brown, turquoise, terracotta, peach and pink. Use a neutral base of black and white to lighten and freshen the colors, and stop it all becoming too much of a jumble!

Flooring and Furniture

Carpet and Spanish interior design don't really go -so try to stick to a hard floor for the most authentic Spanish feel. Hardwood flooring, stone, or terracotta or ceramic tiles will all look great.

Soften the look up a little - and keep your toes warm! - by including plenty of rugs, in warm, rustic styles and tones.

The Spanish interior design look is quite simple and uncluttered - so go for a few basics of furniture, in a good quality, rustic style. Look out for dark woods, and a slightly distressed or worn finish.

If you want to go a touch more elegant, try some more decorative pieces with ornate wrought iron features.

Accessories

Wrought iron is a good look for accessories, as well as for furniture. Try chandeliers, wall-sconces and candlesticks, as well as beautiful, decorative wall-art, made from wrought iron. It will make a really unusual focal point for your room.

Also consider textile wall-hangings and tapestries - this gives a really warm look (ideal for chillier parts of the world!) and an air of real old-fashioned elegance - you know the kind - that comes without really trying...!

Religious paintings and statues (in a classic, old Catholic style) will also help you to get an authentic, elegant look in your room.

Look out for pieces of beautiful rustic, Spanish pottery - in plain terracotta, or in vibrant colors and glazes. These will give a simple, friendly, family feel to your home.

The Spanish interior design style is a great look to go for. It will give you a wonderfully bright, vibrant, warm and friendly feel to your home. It is a very dramatic look, really reminiscent of the sunny, relaxed Spain of your holidays.

Things To Consider Before You Start Your Bedroom Interior Design Project

In the world of home interior decorating, bedroom interior design is the single most commonly attempted project. As the room that you'll spend a great amount of your time at home in, it makes sense - even if most of the time you are there, you will be sleeping!

You may wake up and decide you don't like the color, or you don't like the furnishings, or that you want things oriented in a different way. Either way, you want to recognize which elements of your current bedroom layout you want to change, and use that for your baseline.

Now you might want to come up with a budget. It doesn't have to be excessive, you can simply paint and rearrange furniture for a new look. Storage space is one thing to consider when redoing yoru bedroom. Several innovative solutions - such as cabinets that can hang in a closet, stackable wooden storage crates with doors that face out, and shelving units can help with that, as can simply arranging the furniture to clear more floor space in the walk way areas - it doesn't matter how much space is in your closet if it's inconvenient to get to.

In order for your bedroom design plant to flow smoothly, it's important to take the time to plan the room out. You might try getting some design software to help you figure out just where to place everything. Decide if you want your bedroom to match the overall décor of the house, or if, being a private sanctum, it's allowed to develop its own ambiance and style.

Next, pick out color schemes and patterns. As always, darker colors make a room seem larger, as they recede from vision, while brighter colors make the room seem more stimulating and friendly - a handy set of adjectives when one has to get up in the morning! Consider the lighting carefully - you want a bright overhead or recessed lighting but also accent lamps for a more romantic glow. When shopping for bedding, window treatments and carpeting make sure you choose items that have at least 1 matching color - this will help pull the room together and give it a professional look.

Think about replacing accessories and furniture to get the interior design you want - in particular, wall art, knick knacks, lamps and chairs. Consider colors and themes that go with the rooms overall design, and look for utilitarian advantages, such as a cedar chest for the foot of the bed, or headboards with shelves on them for reading lights, alarm clocks and books. If you want a TV in the room, you will have to plan it so that it is situated in an area that is comfortable for viewing from the bed - putting the TV remote on a tether tied to the head board can also be useful.

The Importance Of Lighting In Interior Design

How you light your house is an important part of redecorating. A change in the lighting can change how the room is viewed. Lighting interior design contributes greatly to the look and feel of a room. There are many types of lighting which can be used in various rooms. We are no longer restricted to a few lamps around the room.

Ambient lighting is a hidden light source that washes the room with a glow. This creates very few shadows and tends to flatten a room. Japanese paper lanterns and wall sconces both produce ambient lighting. For temporary ambient effects, use a dimmer with your ordinary lighting.

Accent lighting provides interest to a room. This method of lighting interior design highlights and object or architectural feature. To use accent lighting, you only need a bulb and a shield to direct the light to the desired focus. Halogen spotlights and opaquely shaded table lamps both provide accent lighting.

Another kind of lighting used in interior design is task lighting. This is a more practical lighting strategy, highlighting an area for daily activities such as reading, cooking, and sewing. Effective task lighting prevents eyes strain and helps with the performance of vital activities. The kitchen is a particularly good place to incorporate task lighting in your interior design. Task lighting sources should be unobtrusive and shielded to prevent glare. Task lighting can be effectively combined with accent lighting to produce lovely effects.

Some lighting can be a work of art in and of itself. Aesthetic lighting is purely decorative, such as a neon sculpture or a spotlight illuminating a statue or painting. This type of lighting must not be used alone, but accompanied by other lighting strategies in your interior design.

Of course, no survey of lighting interior design would be complete without a mention of natural light. Rooms can be arranged to take advantage of the position of the sun at different times of day. This type of lighting is also called kinetic lighting because the light from outside moves. It is one of the less reliable types, as it is affected by the seasons and the weather, but natural lighting can produce an effect unequaled by any artificial light source when used properly.

Lighting is an important tool in your design collection. The way you do your lighting interior design affects the perception of any room. Lighting is also versatile. Using several strategies at once in a room allows you to turn any of them off, changing the look and feel with the flick of a switch. This can be effective for creating different moods in different rooms at night.

Timeless Decor and Furniture Pieces: Interior Design That Lasts

Like in the fashion world, trends in the interior design world come and go. Of course, just like in the fashion world, there are certain pieces and decorating ideas that are timeless. Fortunately though, trends in the interior design world tend to last just a little bit longer than they do in the fashion world. These classics come back year after year and never look dated or out-of-style. Plus, these pieces can be mixed with current trends to keep your overall look updated and fresh without having to remodel entire rooms or reupholster existing larger pieces.

Furniture

Furniture tends to be the largest purchases you make for each room, excluding the kitchen and bathroom. Therefore, it's important that you make furniture purchases that will last you several years.

To do so, interior designers everywhere, including those big-time New York interior designers or San Francisco interior designers, recommend choosing furniture that feature clean, simple lines. This means choosing sofas that feature clean lines or tables and chairs that feature simple, clean lines. It's all about the lines!

Then, you can pair your timeless sofa or dining chairs with funky new prints on pillows or seat cushions for a fresh, unexpected twist. This is how you create a room that always seems up to date, despite the fact that you may have purchased that sofa 7 years ago. Remember, good decorating ideas aren't spur of the moment--they're planned and well thought out.

Color Balance

Timeless interior design also features a good color balance between neutrals and color trends. To do this, your large main pieces should be in neutral colors. This allows you to choose accessories in different colors and even paint your walls bright, funky colors. Remember, a gallon of paint typically costs less than $20, so it's not too expensive to replace those bright pink walls. It is, however, expensive to reupholster a bright pink sofa.

For example, your sofa could be black, white, beige or any shade of brown. These colors will work best when you change the paint in the room from turquoise blue to poppy red. Neutral colors will also hep you make your color trend of the moment pop when it comes to the accessories you've chosen.

Personality

Last but not least, remember that you need to infuse your own personality into the space. The truth is that timeless pieces and decorating ideas are simply that: ideas and concepts. Without infusing a little of your own personality, the space may feel boring and in some instances, a little dated. Good interior design works with you, not against you! So, be functional, be visually appealing, be timeless and be yourself.

Home Bedroom Interior Design

Often times the bedroom is one of the last rooms to be decorated. You'll usually focus on the spaces that need a huge remodel such as that kitchen or bathroom. Plus, you want to focus in on the living room where your guests will be. However, the right bedroom interior design can help you sleep better and totally change your mood. It can be that finishing touch to your house as well as your secret getaway. You can accomplish this without spending a lot of money if you just follow these few tips.

One of the keys to bedroom interior design is to pick a defined style. Your style might just be a specific color or a feeling such as a spa retreat. Of course, you can also go with the basic decorating themes such as Tuscan, shabby chic, country, and traditional. Designing with a theme is really a great way for a beginner to get started because it will really help dictate all of your choices from furniture to bedding.

Sometimes less is more. You may feel a little bit discouraged and think that you can't do bedroom interior design just because you don't have several hundred dollars to spend on a new comforter. However, if you already have the focal point in your room you can probably just get away with a plain comforter or a white goose down blanket. It's important not to get discouraged and just focus on what you do have. When you really open up your eyes and start refinishing items and using basic DIY skills such as sewing and painting you can create a designer look for less.

Compromise is another element of bedroom interior decorating. You'll probably have to talk to your spouse about the colors and overall style of the room. It's important to do give-and-take so the finished product is a space that you enjoy and want to live in. He might not be convinced about pink walls, but maybe he's okay with a vase of pink flowers on the table. Remember to work together so that the outcome is something that you can both live with.

You might not even need to bring in anything new to do your bedroom interior. You may just need to take items out of the room. You can scale down your nightstands or even eliminate them completely if you don't use them. Get rid of any bulky furniture pieces and replace them with more petite versions so you get all of the function without all the clutter. This will help small rooms to feel larger and also provides you a free way to decorate.

Guide to Online Interior Design and Decorating

There are a bunch of tools available online that can really help you in the decorating world. This is a way to become your own interior designer. Design it so that you can save a lot of money. Here are a few tips and a basic overview of the different interior design tools that are available online and how to use them to really maximize your time and budget.

Use online interior design tools to find the perfect color. You'll need to be aware that the perfect paint color depends on the light and size of your space. However, you can get a pretty good idea of what your room will look like in various colors just by using a basic imaging program. Some of these tools are available online but you'll usually have to pay money to add your own picture in. You can combat this for free just by using your favorite photo editing software and masking off the walls of your room. This will give you a basic idea of what the color will look like in your space. Then you might notice that that pink rose paint really clashes with your hardwood floors. It allows you to have a little bit of a design perspective between you and your space.

Another invaluable source of online interior design information are all of the free magazines. If these magazines were delivered to your home you'd probably have to pay a few dollars a month and then figure out a way to store them. However, most of these magazines also have a corresponding website. You might even be able to access a lot of the same articles for free. You can just use basic of bookmarks to save all of the rooms that you love and be able to create a design inspiration portfolio without having to go through the hassle of cutting them out of magazines and gluing them into a binder.

The advantage when you choose to use online interior decorating is that you have people from all over the world who can help you. You can explore different forums and even show pictures of your space so you can get a lot of different input. All of these people will have different views and design styles and really give you a range of ideas and creativity to draw from. They can also keep you aware of pitfalls of different do-it-yourself projects, which is really invaluable information for the beginner. This really opens you up to an entire community of amateur designers. This way you don't feel like you're the only one that is facing that particular decorating dilemma because you can talk to people all over the world, some of which have probably already solved the problem for you.

Interior Design and Home Decoration - Basic Ideas

Homes are decorated through interior design ideas thus turned into a place that invites and helps relaxing. Such ideas assist you on your way to designing a modern interior.

A wide area of your home is subject to interior decoration. Examples include carpeting, painting, tiling, furniture, wallpaper, lighting fixtures, paintings and other. The ideas for designing the interior of your home are always a subject of change and improvement. Nearly each day design styles that are new appear. Through them an individual expresses his vision of the home interior and his personal tastes in numerous ways.

To have a home that is large is not a necessity in order for you to have good furniture and fixtures. You can make it so that you adapt a limited space by integrating your bookcase within a wall thus saving a lot of space. Creativity is necessary should you desire a modern home. Next we'll talk about ideas concerning the modern design of the interior.

Have a basic idea what your room should look like before you start shopping. What is it that must be accomplished? Small details often rely upon basic features so start with them first. Shapes and lines should be taken into consideration. Find what qualities a particular room has. Examine the way textures help creating visual effects. Consider that a room that should gather the whole family probably will have to be full of children and even pets. A room that will host so much action perhaps will have different needs from a quiet room so it's worth considering the paint color, lighting and the fabrics used. If you begin with this in mind it might prove to be a method for decoration your home that is the most simple and economic.

You can start thinking about items such as furniture, lampshades, wallpaper and linens. When making your choice among them consider your budget too as you don't have to spend a fortune just to have it all. Having extra money at your disposal means you can go for wall moderation or even add an additional room.

Art deco is a style that is popular for interior design. In it most lines take angular fashion that look beautiful. The colors resonate.

Another popular design style is the Asian. Both colorful and bold it is used for effect to maximize a limited space. The wooden design is common for this furniture type and so are the details painted by hand. Often the accessories rely on featuring animals.

An interior design not so common is occasionally named an eclectic style. A variety of styles that differ make up for a unique look that adds creativity.

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