High quality artificial arrangements like this Mediterranean centerpiece from Foreside offer a low-maintenance alternative to real plants. Photo Courtesy of Foreside
Basic furniture and walls do not a room make,” explains Leslie Lewart, owner of the home accessories and décor store, Rugs to Riches, with locations in Ellicott City and Alexandria. “You need layers. You build a foundation, place furniture, pick colors and fabrics, and the process goes on from there. You add layers with lighting, textiles, books, and whatever else works for you based on what you need, as well as what you like.”
Layers of accessories—lamps, plants, ornamental boxes, candles, picture frames, artwork—are the details that take an average room and make it shine. It is okay to buy accessories on a gut instinct, objects that are beautiful, unique or fun, just do so thoughtfully. When placed incorrectly, accessories can be reduced to clutter. “Almost the same rules apply to setting up accessories as to setting up a room,” says Lewart, “scale, balance, and color.”
One of the common mistakes homeowners make when they purchase accessories is not buying items that are large enough to fill a space. Perhaps the eye is naturally drawn to precious little jewel boxes and unique candlesticks, but to display these items for maximum visual impact, the scale of the room must be considered. If a room has nine-foot ceilings, it may not be the place for a collection of antique snuffboxes; they could look silly and be lost in the large room. An oversized silk flower arrangement on a pedestal might be a better solution. Even on a mantelpiece or a shelf, scale and proportion are vital to creating a balanced appearance.
Gina Fitzsimmons of Fitzsimmons Design Associates in Annapolis, Maryland, frequently incorporates plant matter into her designs. “Plants bring a lot of fullness to a design and fill areas where, if you were to put a vase there, it would still look bare,” she explains. Although homeowners with a green thumb may want real plants, new high quality artificial arrangements and plants are available that are life-like and low maintenance. Another of Fitzsimmons’ trademark accessories is a simple box placed on the coffee table to artfully hide the remote controls and look good at the same time.
According to Fitzsimmons, her favorite tool to help accessorize a home is her camera. “I photograph the room from different angles and identify spaces that are bare,” says the designer, who also owns Details of Design, two retail stores in the Annapolis area. “A lot of people don’t see empty spaces in a room until I show them a photo of it.”
Often homeowners try to correct bare spots by filling the space with clutter, covering every available space with collectibles. A restrained hand will create a look that establishes balance in the room and lets collections and unique pieces shine through. “You need to balance things throughout the room,” explains Wanda Crossley, owner of English Manor Gardens and Interiors in Leesburg, Virginia. “You need overall symmetry and a few odd things that are unexpected. That’s what gives a room interest.”
Photo Gallery
Click to enlarge. Article continues below photos..
Taller plants and trees add height and balance in a large open room where a smaller floral arrangement would appear diminutive.Photo courtesy of Foreside. |
Palacek’s flamingo and stork stands. Photos |
Palacek’s footed display bowl holds magazines, blankets, and remote controls. Photos |
Mouse bookends and candleholders finished in green patina by America Retold. Photos |
Reed Geometric Planters from Palacek. Photos |
Buckey Wall Pocket in black and white stripe from Chelsea House. Photos |
The Boulder lamp from The Uttermost Co. is finished in a metallic bronze, then antiqued and washed in gray glaze. Photo courtesy of The Uttermost Company. |
A portable silverplated butler’s tray and stand by the Source Perrier Collection serve as a makeshift bar, table top, or side table. |
Crossley explains that when she buys items for her own store, she likes to purchase an eclectic mix of goods so that everything doesn’t match perfectly. “We like to pull from different periods and places, to give that look like you’ve traveled and picked these things up on the way.”
When placing objects together, the odd rule can be useful—the odd number rule that is. Organize collections, candles or groups of objects in sets of three or five. The accessories will still look balanced, but an odd number offsets the symmetry to create visual interest. Similarly, put accessories together in varied heights and sizes. Simply place three pillar candles of the exact size and shape together next to three that are of different heights and widths—the difference will be apparent.
“You need to have a good eye,” explains Missy Connolly, owner of Fern Hill Design and a home and garden décor store of the same name in Butler, Maryland. “Play around with things. You’ll know when it doesn’t work.”
Like many people, Connolly is a self-proclaimed collector. But just because one has a collection, does not mean it must take over the house. Collections show best in organized groups, not spread all over. Connolly frequently rotates the accessories in her own home so she can enjoy her favorite things while staying cognizant that less is more.
“Just because you got it as a wedding gift doesn’t mean you have to keep it,” says Connolly. “People have all kinds of stuff together with no rhyme or reason because they are afraid to edit. You always should edit your stuff.” As a collection grows, tastes change, or quality improves, there is no penalty for relegating old merchandise and even a few wedding gifts to a closet or a back bedroom.
Connolly also cautions that there is a fine line between creativity and clutter: “The picture frames, the lamps, the candlesticks—all of that works, but you can’t force too many styles together.”
Nowhere are accessories more universally mishandled than on bookshelves. Designers confess that nothing makes them cringe faster than collectibles and books in perfect, straight lines filling a bookcase. Utilizing the same concept of variable heights, shapes and sizes, intersperse books with collectibles, frames, and art. Lay some books on their side and stack items on top. These simple changes will give a bookshelf life, rather than marching the accessories across a shelf like an organized and boring regiment.
Each room has its own demand for accessories, but pillows, lamps, plants, and artwork are the accessories most designers cannot live without. Artwork can be a fine oil painting or something as simple as a collection of small prints interspersed with wall brackets. As long as the work is in proportion to the wall, art will bring a room together and is an essential accessory. “Art is so important,” says Terri Yellalonis, gallery manager of Sherwood Furnishings in Cockeysville, Maryland. “Buy it because it is beautiful and because it gives you an emotional response.” Just make sure that the piece is proportional to the room in which it will be displayed.
All accessories elicit a feeling. They present the mood of the room (structured, formal, or casual) and reflect the style of the homeowner, just like an eye-catching handbag speaks better than words about the woman carrying it. “I think accessories are the architecture of the room,” says Wanda Crossley. “Accessories are what bring interest; you need something to visually stimulate you when you walk into a room.” ß
Christianna McCausland is a frequent contributor to ChesapeakeHome.
Contacts:
Details of Design: (410) 269-1965 (Featuring The Uttermost Company)
English Manor Gardens and Interiors: (703) 669-3300
Fern Hill Design:(410) 472-0320 (Featuring Palacek and Foreside)
Fitzsimmons Design Associates: www.fitzsimmonsdesign.com or (410) 269-1965
Source Perrier Collection: www.sourceperrier.com or (888) 543-2804
Rugs to Riches: www.rugstoriches.com, (410) 750-8767, or (703) 739-4662 (Featuring Currey and Company and America Retold)
Sherwood Furnishings: (410) 666-5433 (Featuring Chelsea House)
