Think Out-Of-The Box For Creating Interior Design Improvements

Recently a couple came to me and expressed the urge to make a change and increase the warm energy in their home.  I say increase because their home already feels incredibly warm.  As soon as you enter you are washed with warmth and positive energy.  All is orderly, each item and piece of furniture placed thoughtfully throughout and reflective of their lifestyle and personal aesthetic.  The color palette does exactly as it should – envelop you with comfort.  One of the owners is an artist in his spare time and his engaging work is displayed in certain areas.   His other half is a professional organizer so the accessories she has carefully chosen and placed don’t create clutter, they tell the story of her family’s life.  I love the kitchen, too.   The design of the kitchen is a result of its daily use.   Steel shelving,  a butcher block island and a large chalkboard with colorfully written daily thoughts and to-do lists join forces that are so pleasing to the eye you want to pull up a stool and hang out in there.

So, on a tight budget, and not wanting to paint the entire house where could they make a change?  The solution was a frequently ignored area in everyone’s home – the stairwell.  How many times a day does a family run or walk up and down the stairs?  Here was the spot to infuse a burst of energy and light into their home.   I noticed some great photography on the walls walking up the stairs and an opportune built- in shelf on the landing wall where some lovely framed photos and knick-knacks perched, and immediately felt something sacred about this space.  The home’s color palette was muted and relatively neutral.  The landing was the perfect spot to be bold and create movement in a relatively static space.  When we painted the wall lime green, and washed the once white walls with a warm neutral, the space immediately came alive and a once ignored spot in the house became an equally experienced happy place.

The next time you feel like you need a change but don’t know why or how, think out-of-the box and look to areas in your home that you don’t usually give a second thought to.  You never know the magic you can create!