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HOW TO ADD INTEREST WITH TEXTURE
Texture is as pervasive a design element as color, and does as much as
color in creating a mood in a room. Floors, walls and furniture have
texture, as well as all fabrics. It’s all about the touch and feel of
objects, whether they are smooth, tough, nubby, furry, hard or soft.
Since texture is both visual and tactile, we must be aware of the mood
it creates. The soft, smooth touch of silk has a feeling of fineness and
richness that we associate with the living room or bedroom. Coarser,
heavy fabrics like leather and wool, we assign to the family room.
Traditional rooms are a mixture of various textures that may include a
wood fireplace, pile carpeting, papered walls, chenille fabric,
tapestries and sculpture. But too much texture can make the room too
busy, and it will appear smaller.
For smaller rooms keep texture to a minimum so your eye keeps moving.
Use low pile carpeting, ceramic or wood flooring. Keep the walls a solid
color rather than patterned wallpaper or high contrast faux finishing.
Use smooth rather than highly carved art frames. Add smooth metal or
glass lamps, and limit the number of accessories.
Contemporary styling calls for sleek textures, which promotes a
lightweight, more open feel that is a great choice for small spaces. But
if all the surfaces are streamlined we soon lose interest. If the walls
and floors are smooth, we need to add ribbed chenille or corduroy
fabric, a textured painting over a marbled tiled fireplace, and a bowl
of prickly artichokes on top of a stainless kitchen counter.
If you’re considering a monochromatic color scheme for a living room or
bedroom, know that texture is vital to hold our attention. A bedroom
done in one shade of mocha cream will be successful if you mix the
bedding with perhaps a quilted matlasse coverlet, silk and beaded
pillows, a shaggy carpet, and open weave window treatments.
A current trend in furniture is emphasizing the natural appeal of
texture. Sofas and chairs feature frames made of sea grass, rattans and
other reeds. The cushions have a wide variety of fabric coverings that
range from cotton to leather. This look is not just for beach houses,
but is geared to an upscale lifestyle.
Keep in mind that smooth textures reflect more light, which is why
contemporary homes usually have a lighter, more open feel. Rougher
textures hold some of the light, which is why traditional homes have
more shadows and depth.
View your own home to see if you need to add or subtract texture. Add
plants, pottery, baskets, carvings and pattern to rooms that seem flat
and lifeless. Pull back on texture by blending the color of window
blinds to the wall color, replace patterned window panels with solid
fabric, slipcover floral sofas with solids, and replace wallpaper with
paint.
Stay tuned for more insights into design elements, with a series on the
keystone element of color.
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