Since 1702 when Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne, Sieur de Bienville sailed into the Gulf of Mexico the Gulf Coast has been “French.” And that my friends, means everything when decorating a room.
The French influence on the Gulf Coast is best defined in two words, excess and restraint. Two seemingly incompatible ideas that are perhaps more easily understood when discussion cooking, and not, Mardi Gras itself. The French Farmhouse style is like creole cooking—a wonderful mix of a lot of things that in the end are simple, uncomplicated and so, so satisfying. See--excess and restraint. French Farmhouse style incorporates the wonderful antiques and decor of the southeast and blends them with delicate French style, so like our beloved creole cooking—are homes are always awesome but never created the same way twice, not created in a day, but curated from well-loved family favorites and well-considered new furniture and accessory finds, just like our gumbo recipes. As for the French Farmhouse style and Mardi Gras--well “Laissez les bons temps rouler” or “let the good times roll.” Each Spring we enjoy weeks of fun and tons of excess as we head into Lent, the long season of reflection and restraint. Like Mardi Gras celebrations, the French Farmhouse decor begins with a lot of choices and then distills down the patterns, and colors and finishes into the best possible mix for results that are considered and unexpected combinations of styles not normally found together. During Mardi Gras, downtown streets are blocked to create parade routes for the lavish floats and costumed masquers throwing trinkets to the crowd. The mélange is an eclectic and welcoming gathering of friends and families, children on the shoulders of parents, ball guests in the streets in all their formal finery, street vendors selling everything from treasured Mardi Gras trinkets to bunt cake sprinkled with powdered sugar. Aromas fill the air, and the beer and wine are flowing. Like Mardi Gras, French Farmhouse Style is an eclectic mix, encouraged to be spontaneous and easygoing, “aged to perfection but never perfect.” Bringing diverse objet’s together to become fast friends. Does this design style make your heart sing and want to dance in the streets? How do you develop this style that is practical, unique and engaging? Look for our next blog entry later this month, as we continue to celebrate Mardi Gras, our rich Southern heritage and one of our favorite Gulf Coast La Z-Boy lifestyles, French Farmhouse. In the meantime, “Laissez les bons temps rouler”!
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Steps to avoid the BULLY –
Is there a room in your house you avoid, every day? Does the thought of company make your stomach hurt? Are you purposely trying to steer clear of this room by closing a door, using another entrance, looking straight ahead when you walk by? Are you trying not to pay attention to this room’s merciless taunts? You could be the target of room bullying. My nephew was a target. I was visiting my sister and her family. She said, “His stomach hurts, he isn’t going to school today.” I looked at him and thought he looked pretty healthy. I wondered what really was going on. When his mother left the room I asked him, “who is being mean to you at school?” After all, I am the older sister with plenty of experience in stomach aches and school. He immediately said, “James”. “Oh, and what is James doing to make your stomach hurt?” My nephew replied, “He said my back pack looks like a baby’s backpack”. I reported the intel to his mom. She immediately took all of the appropriate steps that mom’s take when their children are under attack. I am happy to report, my nephew is well, James is good and all is right with the elementary school world. So, what are you doing about the room that is assaulting you on a daily basis? The first step in being a target is to avoid the bully, if possible. If you are the target for room abuse you probably have this step down. The only way to stop these ferocious attacks on your senses is to stand up to the bully. In this case, stand up to the room. One of the characteristics of a bully is a sense of entitlement and superiority over others. In other words, these bully rooms lack compassion, impulse control and social skills, but you probably already know that. Take the room back. Hold this room accountable. You paid a lot of money to have this space. Think of what it meant to you when you first saw it. Have your dreams of a beautiful space become a memory. Even worse are you living a nightmare? Take control, make your space accountable to you. This is the only way to stop the bully room. Don’t show you are hurt by this bully room’s daily violation to your senses. Get some support. Have you addressed all seven layers of design in your room? Have the final two layers of the room been ignored? Have you accessorized this room? Have you put a rug on the floor that ties the room together? A rug that brings out color and pattern in the room. A rug that connects all of the pieces and creates a softer, gentler feel in the space. Have you added pillows that make the room zing? Not those small postage stamp pillows that feel like cardboard covered with an irritating fabric that brings no energy to the room, but nice large fluffy pillows. Pillows that say come and flop on me. Have you added collections of the things you love to the table tops? Are there cozy throws on the sofa and chairs? These are the things that make the room your sanctuary. Rooms need more than sofas, chairs, and tables, they need you. YOU NAILED IT
You paid enough for your space, put every inch of it to work. Address the vertical, use that unused and often neglected wall space between the floor and the ceiling. In other words, express yourself! “If a house is made of walls and beams;” and “a home is built with love and dreams”, why do so many well-loved and well-intentioned projects become nightmares? Does this sound familiar, “I did it my way and my dream became a nightmare?” Could be, you haven’t “NAILED IT”. Think of it this way, if home is a shelter from storms, the walls are the guardians of grace. As a designer, an unfinished, neglected blank wall is a sad and unnecessary thing. There are many reasons to access the vertical space in your room. Below are just a few. 1) Art is fundamental to defining who you are. It makes your space your own. Where else can you show off the things that bring you joy. Nail ‘em up! 2) Art will take your room to the next level. Are you ready for the ride? Are you ready to step up and create a space that really pleases the spirit and the soul and at the same time tells all of those who visit how truly savvy and awesome you are? Visitors probably won’t consciously realize the true greatness of your space, they will only bask in the glory of your goodness and think, how did she do that? 3) Art shakes up the interior. It can turn the wall where the beautiful sofa, that usually seems to cost more than it should, sits, into a masterpiece, a symphony. How often have you placed a beautiful sofa in your room only to have it melt into the wall? Art and wall hangings can make your place sing with glory. Without a focal point the room can become bland, banal, and just plan boring, no matter how much you spend on the furniture. What are the art rules? That is just the point, there are only a couple and they are S I M P L E. 1) Do not hang your art or any wall hanging so high that it loses all relevance to the room. (12-18 inches above something is the general rule) 2) Do not spread it art out. If you only have a couple of pieces they will not fill the room no matter how far apart you place them. Remember, there is safety in numbers. Keep ‘em together and keep ‘em strong. Above all have fun. If you love it use it. If you fall out of love or grow beyond it, we all know this can happen, remove it, sell it, or share it with someone. This is your space, express yourself! Bright lights bad vibes?
It could be because you are in the spotlight. Take the living room test. Think about your living room. Does it shine as the star of your home or is it so bright you cannot stay in it for too long? Lighting influences your emotions. The brighter the light the more intense the emotion. Think of it this way, bright lights lots of fights, softer light all is right. This is especially true for the rooms of your home where you want to have a soft place to relax and unwind. It has been said that emotions, like wrinkles, are harsher under bright lights. Studies suggest that emotions are experienced more intensely under bright lights, possibly, because, light is perceived as heat, and the perception of heat can trigger emotions. Quick question, who wants to live in a hothouse that magnifies feelings and wrinkles? No one I know of, maybe a lizard with good botox, but that is a discussion for another time. Back to LAYER 4, Lighting. Design circles agree that there are three types of lighting required to complete a room. That’s right, required, not recommended. The first is ambient lighting. This is the soft “natural” light that comes in from windows, doors and ceiling lights. Windows and doors can give a room daytime zing. Beautiful sun beams streaming through the windows and French doors creating warmth and beauty, washing the room in a warm glow, and quite possibly fading very thing in its path (but that is another design discussion). The ambient lighting for this discussion is commonly called the ceiling light. There are several types of those. A flush mount ceiling light is like lightening, it blazes in the night from an isolated switch on the wall. Casting harsh, odd shadows on all the objects that fall in its path. This is the cruelest of all lights. Floors and furniture reveal the soils and stains that are cleverly hidden in the light of day. This unrelenting source of energy in addition to revealing all that is hidden can also add years and pounds to unsuspecting victims who happen to sit or stand under her intensive gaze. Note, the extra five pounds that is so cleverly hidden during the daylight hours is unmasked even the for savviest of dressers. Solution? Dimmers, recessed lighting, chandeliers and wall scones. While overhead fixtures can act like the cruel masters of room light, a dimmer can tame that mean revealer of all secrets into a benign and even affectionate fixture. The second sister is task lighting. She is a remarkable addition to the room. Not only does she bring a warm downward glow enabling those who bask in her light to read, visit or work on the computer, she can bring beauty into the space, adding value and definition to the overall look of the room. And as is so often the case with the middle sibling her value is often overlooked. She can be so accommodating offering a three-way switch that will let the user have the light strength needed for the task. Finally, there is the baby sister, accent lighting. Like all baby sisters, she is the favorite. She brings elegance and grace. Unlike her second sister, who casts warm downward light, this sister is upwardly mobile. Her focus is to point out and shine on the interesting pieces in the room, a piece of art, interesting architecture or to disguise any architectural flaws in the room. There you have it the three sisters, each brining something vital, functional and beautiful to your space. Step into to the light, enjoy. I CAN’T TAKE IT ANYMORE! CAN YOU H E L P ME?
That is what one of my darling customer’s said recently. She couldn’t take it anymore. The problem was a BLR (Bad Living Room Relationship). Her living room had failed the living room test. And she and it were now in a bad relationship. She was so frustrated. She said, “My living room is all brown, it doesn’t work, and I JUST CAN’T TAKE IT ANYMORE.” Turns out the room was monotonous. It was all the same color, brown; and the tables, lamps and accessories were not helping relieve the drabness or the boredom. That is one of the main issues with relationships isn’t? You just get bored and things get tedious. Her living room had worn out its welcome. It was no longer bringing anything to the table. What she wanted a GLR (Great Living Room Relationship). So, we got to work, to create room that was super G so she is could enjoy a GLR (Great Living Room Relationship). After we had visited a while, she realized she had held onto monotonous brown because it felt safe, but it was not loving and hugging on her. It was not giving her the quality relationship that she deserved. It had to change. This is what happened next. We stayed with earth tones, that is the name for brown when you spice it up, and we did just that, we spiced it up. We brought in some happy, brighter colors to give some zest to the space. We added some excitement, SPICEY! Now, you would think that would do it, right? It is a great start and upholstery is layer 2, but here is how layer 3, the tables, did their part to create a G space. Tables are considered the FUNCTIONAL layer. They work hard. They hold drinks, phones, remotes, lamps, books, feet and sometimes, even work like a chair. Rule #1, most rooms NEED a coffee table. It is the centerpiece. It brings everything together. It should not be closer that 18” to the sofa, after all, a good relationship gives you room to move doesn’t it? Rule #2, the upholstery, sofas, loveseats, and chairs should have a table nearby, (a side table that is). Also, always remember, one height doesn’t fit all. Rule of thumb, a side table works best when it is no lower than an inch or two below the arm of the seat next to it. You do want to be able to reach out and touch in a relationship, don’t you? Rule #3, you can mix and match the tables. If your room already has a lot of wood, mix in a metal or glass top table. They will bring in the energy you need to keep the monotony away. Plus, glass top tables are very practical in a room, you can just wipe the spills away...(don’t you wish you could do that in a human relationship?) Well, that’s what we do, and we sure have created a lot of beautiful rooms in the process jlapoam. (JUST LIKE A PICTURE OUT OF A MAGAZINE) The topic is RELATIONSHIPS.
Are you in a good relationship with your living room? A living room that loves and hugs on you and your family will help any relationship issue, won’t it? Think of it, pleasing place to go to celebrate victories, a comforting place to mourn losses, or a great spot that says GOOD MORNIN’ or WELCOME HOME. I was working with a darling woman the other day; she is redoing her whole life, making a clean break and building a beautiful, new relationship, one that will be fulfilling this time. (The last one was not so fulfilling). So, what does this have to do with decorating and redesigning a living room? Everything. Take the living room test. It’s easy – go into your living room and look around and then go to a mirror, if there is a smile on your face – then everything is just right, but if there is a frown – it is a bad relationship. To fix the pain, it may be time to start over… Layer 1 is the room itself – doors, windows, floor, ceiling, etc. (the givens for this conversation). If the room itself, LAYER 1, is the bone structure, then LAYER 2 is the muscle. Layer 2 is the UPHOLSTERY and it is where we begin for all of you in a BLR (BAD LIVINGROOM RELATIONSHIP) – SOFAS, CHAIRS, LOVESEATS, SECTIONALS (more on sectionals later) The largest piece in the room is generally the sofa, and it can be very bossy. Pick the cover with care, after all, like your mother always said, a tiger cannot change it’s stripes and neither can your sofa. Think about the number of seats you need, LOTS of people or just a few? LOTS of people and the room needs to be very intentional, and planned. One to two people everyday much more flexibility. Five people everyday – prescription: sofa, loveseat, two comfortable chairs, or two sofas and two chairs, or a sectional (more on sectionals later). Build a fulfilling relationship with your living room; make it “just like a picture out of a magazine”. La-Z-Boy Gulf Coast, Mobile, Spanish Fort, and Pensacola. Visit our website www.marksinteriors.com “Let it go ‘ho”, those are the words a friend of mine heard on a busy New Orleans street. She looked down just in time to see a diminutive thief grabbing her very expensive designer purse. His tiny criminal hands were wrapped around its beautifully hand stitched leather strap and he was ready to run. And he did run, with her new designer bag in tow. Do you feel that same criminal violation every time you walk into your house? Has something robbed you of your dream room? Now is time to identify that villainous offender of your happiness, and arrest the robber of your dreams.
It all begins with the structure and layout of your house. Think of your house as a whole; a series of spaces linked together by halls and stairways. The rooms should work together and complement each other, strengthen each other, you know the way your husband does. (Ok, not funny, maybe a little funny). It is very much like having a family. You know what you want, you take what you get and it just about always turns out to be just right. Take hope in the words of Elsie de Wolf, America’s first decorator, there is no house so bad that it can’t be made over into something worthwhile. To rid yourself of the goblins that rob you of the peace and harmony you seek in your home, consider story line of your house. Remember, you are expressing yourself in your house whether you want to or not. The structure or the bones of the house is the first layer of design. Think of your space, and now, think of all of the whole house. Livingroom, dining room, kitchen, bedrooms and baths, and don’t forget all of the extra spots, foyer, hallways, porches, sun porches, libraries, studies, playrooms, mud rooms and laundry rooms. You must get them all together marching in the same direction. In the words of Sun Tzu, “He will win whose army is animated by the same spirit throughout all its ranks.” Same with your house. |
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April 2020
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