The final entry in the series, this post will discuss the principle of Harmony.
Harmony
An excerpt from Inside Today’s Home:
Defined as consonance, concord, or agreement among parts, harmony suggests carrying through a single unifying theme that consistently relates the varied components of an interior, whether a single room or an entire house.
Have you ever been in a house where the homeowner decorated each room completely differently from all the others? Maybe the kitchen had a country feel, the living room was a formal Queen Anne space, and the bathroom was out of Louis XIV. While each on its own may be well executed, the mish mash of styles within one home feels awkward somehow. What’s needed is unity, one aspect of harmony that is illustrated in the definition above.
Unity can be achieved in a number of ways. One hallmark is to have the trim throughout the house be all one color. Stained or painted, it is the same in every room. Color schemes in general are a great way to unify a collection of spaces. For instance, you might pick three or four colors and use them in varying shades thoughout the house. My house is done in red, yellow, green and beige. I have soft golden yellow walls in the kitchen, with accents of red in the window coverings and accessories. The neutral spaces, such as hallways, are done in a neutral color - beige. My office is a soft green, but my living room uses a darker green as an accent color.
The other aspect is variety. Too much unity can be boring. Notice how I don’t use the same color of green in the office and living room. Green itself is unifying, but variety is introduced through different tints and shades. You might juxtapose contemporary and antique furnishings, while keeping the wood tone the same.
I hope you’ve been able to pick up some new information in this series. With practice, implementing these concepts becomes second nature. If you have questions, please feel free to email me or post a comment. I appreciate any feedback you may have!
