Kellie Clements, a talented in house designer at Blindsgalore with an exclusive line of window treatments, breaks down the steps of designing a room, offers window advice and discloses the big mistakes when decorating a room. Read on!
I am always curious to designer’s biases, because we all tend to have them. What is your favorite room in the house and why?
I don’t really have a favorite room, per say. I like working best in the rooms that a client uses the most. So if it’s the kitchen, it’s the kitchen. Because of my out of the box thinking, I have developed a reputation for being the type of designer who can figure out the most useful way to use a space both functionally and practically. I work with a lot of young families so I really enjoy the process of creating rooms that are beautiful AND kid friendly. There is a misconception that you can’t have both but…..you can!
In your opinion, what is the most important aspect of designing a room?
Function! It doesn’t matter how beautiful a room is if it doesn’t “work” for the client like it should.
Functionality is key to everything, which brings me to one of the most functional features of any given home, the windows! When designing a room, do you like to dress windows first or are window treatments one of the last accents you add?
My first step is to find some inspiration. From there, it’s a process of finding out the best way to get all the needed elements in the space. One thing is for sure……NEVER IGNORE THE WINDOWS! It’s one of the biggest missed opportunities in a space
I always like to tell people that windows allow you to bring décor up the length of the walls, why waster all of that gorgeous space? Tell us the number one mistake you see people make when decorating a room.
Oh if I had a nickel!!!! There are actually 2:
- They start buying things before they have a cohesive plan for the entire room. This enviably leads to feeling of remorse with their purchase because they get further through the design process and discover how things can change. The giant sectional that they bought because they “needed a sofa” ends up being a “d’oh!”
- They buy things BEACAUSE they were on sale. If something you love happens to go on sale, snag it. But I always tell people to ask themselves…..”if it were full price, would you still buy it” If the answer is no…..back up slowly then turn and run!
That’s great advice, Kellie! Unfortunately, that wouldn’t work for my on sale candy buying behavior after the holidays. Stay tuned for part 3 where Kellie and I discuss what’s in and what’s out in 2016. You’ll be surprised what the experts are up to this year!