Decoration is really about creating a quality of life, and a beauty in that life that nourishes the soul, that makes life beautiful.
Decorating is not about making stage sets, it's not about making pretty pictures for the magazines, it's really about creating a quality of life, a beauty that nourishes the soul.
The essence of interior design will always be about people and how they live. It is about the realities of what makes for an attractive, civilized, meaningful environment, not about fashion or what's in or what's out. This is not an easy job.
I deeply believe that a beautiful decor can have a beneficial influence on our lives.
Design is coming to grips with one’s real lifestyle, one’s real place in the world. Rooms should not be put together for show but to nourish one’s wellbeing.
Beige is atmosphere. It's bisque, it's ivory, it's cream, it's stone, it's toast, it's cappuccino. It;s well, it's magic.
The essence of interior design will always be about people and how they live.
Make your home as comfortable and attractive as possible and then get on with living. There's more to life than decorating.
Flair is a primitive kind of style. It is innate and cannot be taught. It can be polished and refined. When a person has flair, a grounding in the principle of design, and self-discipline, that person has the potential of being an outstanding designer.
Design is defined by light and shade, and appropriate lighting is enormously important.
Nothing comes cheap, though the educated eye will always spot very nice things for the least money.
....the designer must be able to see - make a concentrated effort to absorb the essence of the project. Seeing is a very difficult thing to do. Most people "look" at a lot of thing but never "see" anything. Looking is emotional; seeing is an intellectual process.
Ceilings must always be considered. They are the most neglected surface in a room.
Decorating is not a look, it's a point of view.
So many young decorators are trying to reinvent the wheel, and the results are sometimes very dubious. They're striving to do things that have never been done before. Quite often it is done without authority, without knowledge, and without a background in taste. They need to be educated about the past, and they need a richer vocabulary.
Life is all about manners. Nothing else matters.
Forget the floor plans. Arrange the furniture where it is the most comfortable and will look best.
An interior designer must be able to clarify his intent keeping ever in mind that decorating is not a look, it's a point of view.
Decorators should always remember that letting a client see too many beautiful things is a pitfall.
I have always believed that the more educated the clients are, the easier they are to work with. Clients with a knowledge of decorating, and an ability to articulate what they want from the finished project, make the designer's job easier.
A good decorator not only plans and schemes, but he also knows how the job is done.
Flair-a primitive kind of style-may be innate, but I think knowledgeable taste is learned, the result of travel, experience, living, education.
A decorator, no matter how talented, can't always get the desired results because sometimes there is resistance or maybe a lack of understanding on the part of the client. I think it is the decorator's job to work as a guide, to bring out the best qualities and the best attitudes.
To create an interior, the designer must develop an overall concept and stick to it.
So many people arrange furniture in order to see what's going on outside. But why? The view isn't going anywhere.
