Planning a Multi-Functional Space

Quite often clients come to me wondering how they can make the most use of their space, especially when they are dealing with a small space and need their space to perform many functions.

Small spaces can be challenging, however even small spaces can be designed to function for you in order to take full advantage of the space you have. The first thing you should do is assess the space and determine what is working for you and what is not working for you. Determine your needs so you can include them in your plan. Many small spaces can be designed to serve several purposes. For example, you may require office or work space and do not have an extra room to house a desk, files, and other materials. This is a common problem for more and more people who are working from home. Don’t worry; there probably is a solution to your dilemma. The first thing you want to do is look at your current floor plan and determine how it can be changed to accomplish this multi-tasking space.  Can you rearrange the main pieces of furniture to open up a space for the new office and still keep the floor plan open and functional?  There may be a corner or wall that is not being used to its maximum advantage that you can incorporate into your plan. Keep your options open. Draw your plan on graph paper before moving anything to be sure it works. Remember your traffic patterns and minimum allowances for walkways. Ideally you should leave a minimum opening of 36 inches. With smart planning you won’t require a lot of room for your new space. Be sure you design your office space to flow nicely with the rest of the room using the same style and colors and giving it a residential feel. Avoid industrial, office furniture. Instead choose similar style woods and materials for your office furniture that complement the rest of the room. Choose an upholstered Parsons side chair instead of a standard office desk chair.  Take advantage of vertical space and install shelving or cabinetry up the walls.  Use the shelving for your files to get them up and out of the way to free up maximum desk space. Keep magazines, notes and clippings in a uniform collection using magazine files which will look neat on the shelves and keep you organized. You can also use attractive baskets to store supplies. Complete the space by adding artwork, accessories, an interesting area rug and another comfy chair if space allows.

This same concept can apply to any room.  An extra bedroom can double as a guest bedroom and office using the same principles. Keep the furnishings non-industrial and choose pieces that complement the style of the bedroom.  If space is really at a premium, consider a Murphy bed which folds up onto the wall when not in use to give you the full use of space in the room for other activities.

When space is limited and you need your rooms to be multi-functional a little planning can go a long way. Just remember to tie the areas together by having the same feel for the spaces rather than making them look distinctly different. The result will be an attractive, functional space.  As always when in doubt consult a professional Interior Designer for ideas and inspiration.

 

Christmas Decorating Ideas

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving.  Christmas is right around the corner so it’s time to get started decorating your home for the Holidays. The next few weeks I’ll be sharing some inexpensive, easy DIY decorating ideas with my Rancho Interior Design clients. If you have ideas, please send them to me and I will share them on my blog.

1. I love using natural elements in my decorating. Gather natural branches or find them at your local craft or floral supply store and spray paint them silver or gold. Place them in different size and shape vases for an elegant display. You can add ribbon or ornaments for an even more festive look.

2. Decorate with ornaments in a sophisticated way. Gather clear glass tumbler vases in different heights and sizes. Purchase glass ornaments in 1 or 2 colors. Fill the glass vases with the ornaments and arrange the vases as a collection. Use an odd number of vases which is most appealing visually. You can add candles in glass vases or small votive candles to the display for even more impact. The display will be beautiful when the light reflects off all the glass vases.

3. A fun idea is to wrap some sofa throw pillows with fabric and ribbon. Toss them on your sofa for a festive look.

4. Find or purchase some cute frames and frame pretty gift wrap paper or Christmas cards. Place the frames on a mantel or table or group them on a wall.

5. Fill holiday plates or chargers with ornaments, pinecones, berries and branches. Add candles in hurricane lamp vases and use as a centerpiece.

Try some of these ideas to add a festive look to your home this Holiday Season.

 

 

Thanksgiving

We have all gone through  difficult economic times these past few years. Most of us have felt the squeeze in one way or another. Some of us have lost our jobs. Some of us have lost our homes. Some of us have seen our life savings disappear. Many of us have had to tighten our belts and cut down on the non-essentials. Despite all this I remain optimistic that the future holds promise for us all. I am thankful this Thanksgiving for the blessings that I have been given.

We at Rancho Interior Design are thankful for all the wonderful clients we have had throughout the years. Thank you for your confidence and trust as we worked together to design your lovely homes. We look forward to meeting and working with many more wonderful people in the coming year and helping them make their interior design dreams a reality. Remember we can work with any budget so don’t hesitate to give us a call for some interior design ideas.  Have a wonderful Thanksgiving.

Cute Alternative DIY Christmas Tree ideas

We here at Rancho Interior Design love CB2.  It is a favorite resource of mine. They specialize in Modern and Mid-Century Interior Design. I want to share some cute ideas for alternate Christmas Trees they posted in their blog. These ideas for trees can be used instead of a live tree where space is limited or in addition to your live tree to decorate any room. Hope you enjoy and try a few of these innovative, modern Holiday interior design ideas. http://blog.cb2.com/home/category/how-to

Staying Home is the New Going Out to a Fancy Place

I saw an ad recently in Architectural Digest for Linge Roset furniture. The headline was “Staying Home is the New Going Out to a Fancy Place”. I thought what a great ad!  In these rough economic times, we are all modifying the way we spend and for a lot of us that means cutting back on how often we go out to a restaurant or club. We’re staying home and entertaining at home more than we have in recent times. It is reminiscent of Mid-Century America where cocktail parties and bridge clubs were a weekly occurrence. We are embracing the lifestyle, enjoying shows set in those times and even decorating our homes with the look of that era, 1950’s-1960’s America. So with that in mind, many of us are choosing to stay home and spend money on making our homes more comfortable and cozy. Here are a few remodeling design ideas to get you started.

Begin by deciding how much you want to spend on design changes. Look at your space and determine the function of the room and the mood you want for the space. Look at the furniture arrangement and determine if it is working for you. Determine what is working for you and what is not working. Do you have enough seating? Do you have adequate surfaces for food and drinks? Will you need extra tables when entertaining? How about lighting? You should have adequate task and ambient lighting in the room. How about style? Are you happy with the style or do you want a complete new look? Maybe you want to add or change wall colors. Paint can transform the mood of a room instantly. If your budget allows, add a new piece of furniture like a sofa for more seating and a style update. If you can’t afford new furnishings add new pillows in fun colors and patterns. Add carefully chosen unique accessories with a similar look or color to tie the room together. In place of greenery or plants try filling glass vases with real branches to add a pretty, natural look to a room. Add new area rugs to define your seating areas and add color and texture to the room. Speaking of Mid-Century design, a new fun idea is to add some vintage pieces to the room. How about a 50’s style bar you can pull out from the wall when entertaining and then put back along the wall as a console/sofa table to display some accessories, books or additional lighting.  Check out local antique and resale stores to find authentic pieces that will work for your space. Frames are a trendy way to decorate your walls. Use different styles and group them together with photos, artwork, mirrors, other interesting items or even display them empty. Interesting, pretty, unique or distressed frames become art in themselves when grouped together. Accessorize with care and thought.

Be careful to keep the space uncluttered and welcoming. You want to create a space that is comfortable for you and your family to enjoy as well as entertain in with your family and friends. Start with your plan, follow some simple design rules and be creative.  Don’t be afraid to add vintage touches to the space and not be all matchy-matchy. Your space will be more interesting and welcoming. For more ideas call Rancho Interior Design for In-Home Consultation  951-956-0661

 

 

Interior Design Ideas for your home

Alford-master-bath-w-mirrorRancho Interior Design specializes in Residential Interior Design. In our blog we will be sharing the latest new ideas and trends in the Interior Design world. Watch for our new posts and feel free to send us your design dilemmas. We’ll be happy to help you out with design advice.