Bring some color in through plates on a wall as shown here. Each plate has a special meaning to Holly. ?Beyond aesthetics, it makes my heart happy to see these plates,? she writes. ?That is my goal when I display ? to conjure up positive thoughts.?
Design Inspiration
By Janet Reynolds/Life@Home
Taking the first steps toward creating your own design style can be intimidating. Who can possibly create something as cool as any one of the dozens of style stars on TV, not to mention interior designers who?ve trained for years to get it right?
Home d?cor/design blogger Holly Becker ? founder and author of the wildly popular Decor8 blog, wants to change that thought. And her new book, Decorate Workshop, is her answer to design phobia.
Becker got the idea for this book shortly after the best-selling success of her first book, Decorate. While that book is filled with inspirational ideas and photos, this book is meant to be filled with ideas created by you. Yes, Becker features plenty of wonderful photos for ideas and inspiration. But what she really wants is to walk beside?readers as they discover their own design vibe.
To that end, Decorate Workshop is more of a workbook. Readers are encouraged to write directly into the book and Becker provides plenty of writing prompts and space to get readers thinking and homing in on their design feelings, as well as lots of questions to help fine-tune ideas. What are your ?safe? colors? What is your ideal scent? List five cities that you adore and why.
While some of the questions might seem unrelated to choosing a paint color for your dining room, they reveal Becker?s understanding that design isn?t about ?stuff? as much as it is about how you feel. It?s your interior that will dictate your happiest exterior.
Becker lives in Hanover, Germany, so we caught up with her by e-mail. Here are a few of her thoughts about her newest book.
Decorate Workshop: Design and Style Your Space in 8 Creative Steps, by Holly Becker, photographs by Debi Treloar, Chronicle Books, $27.50
What prompted you to write this creative notebook, rather than another book?
I felt strongly that fans of the book would want more of my tips and ideas that would encourage them to dig deeper. They learned the nuts and bolts in Decorate from myself and co-author Joanna Copestick, but in Decorate Workshop, they?d have a chance to really dig deep and consider a layer of decorating that most design books do not cover ? the importance of tapping in to your personal style and what story you want your home to tell about you ? not the quest to live a ?lifestyle? but to tap into how you live and how to make a home support you the best emotionally, spiritually, physically, etc.
Also, I thought to solely author a book about decorating would be an exciting adventure for me and I craved to make a deeper connection to the process of writing in general and to my fans. When you are co-authoring with someone, you have them to fall back on when it comes to exploring topics that you may typically not feel so strongly to write about. ?
With Decorate Workshop, I didn?t have anyone to fall back on so I had to dig very deep and really think about my perspective on everything. I made sure every word was from my heart and that what I wrote was something that I myself practice and also believe in.
Mix in some color: Holly painted this bookcase gray to enhance its size and provide a moody backdrop for her books. The stool is deliberately out of scale. ?Things don?t always have to make sense or be ?by the book,?? she writes. ?As long as it makes sense to you, then it works!?
What do you think is one of the greatest obstacles people face about ?finding their inner design goddess?? How do you suggest they overcome it?
Self confidence. So much has to do with confidence ? everything in our life, don?t you think? Confident people can pull off anything ? even bad taste! ? Decorate Workshop helps people to gain confidence in decorating in many ways, but I believe that, mainly, it celebrates the beauty of being yourself and chilling out a bit when it comes to decorating. ? In the grand scheme of things, it?s not the end of the world if the wallpaper doesn?t end up working; you tear it down and move on or simply learn to live with the things you don?t love (if you rent) and enhance what works for you.
A home is a lot like our body type, nothing is perfect but we dress our body to show off the good stuff and hide the bits we?re not so keen on. Same with the home; it?s a matter of learning how to dress the home in a way that accentuates the positive.
Your overall style and approach are very much focused on ?regular? folks, i.e. that making your home a special place is within everyone?s grasp. How does this square with actual interior designers who, of course, would hope we would hire them to come up with the great ideas? Do you ever get grief about this from people in your field?
Naturally Neutral: Here?s some proof neutral doesn?t have to be boring. Holly urges people to consider the details, as illustrated here. First step: mix your neutrals. ?This keeps things interesting, so try combining beige and cream,? she suggests. And don?t forget texture!
No, never. There is enough to go around. You need Barneys and you need Target; one doesn?t take away from the other and often people will shop at both depending on what they need or where they are at in their life. When I have more money, I splurge on high-end stuff. I went to Bergdorf?s last year and bought a gorgeous dress for my NYC book signing from Diane von Furstenberg,
But the same day I was at Duane Reade buying $8 lipstick to match the dress.
You need the high and the low and I think anyone who is working with clients who can afford $10,000 sofas isn?t threatened by me in the first place. There are always plenty of clients who can afford the high-end luxury, but there are also plenty who cannot and I?m here to say ?there, there ? I?m like you; let?s focus on making what we have better since none of us will ever have the penthouse in Soho. Let?s just pretend we do and give it our best shot and work with what we have.? It?s best to deal with the reality of our situation and then to make improvement from there. But no, I doubt Nate Berkus or Kelly Wearstler are sitting around feeling intimidated by me! I think one hand washes the other in the design world anyway. We all create an energy and drive for design and the need to create, dream, explore, examine ? by lending our voices and it?s inspiring.
Holly?s Instant Update Tips
- Paint a piece of furniture or your walls
- Add a new area rug
- Swap out throws and cushions with something fresh
Photos by Debi Treloar/Chronicle Books
Source: http://blog.timesunion.com/lifeathome/interior-design-discovering-your-inner-decor-goddess/12561/
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