November 9, 2006

Study of “Interior Design” as a reflection of the mind.

Filed under: Interior Design, Decor, Home — smvpune @ 11:35 am

Dear friends, we as humans are a composite of mind, body and spirit. All these three in proper coordination, create the world around us. The things, which we want in life, are first created in our mind, then our mind sends signals to our brain and the brain sends signals to various parts of our body to take action and thus “reality” gets created.

This means that whatever we imagine in our minds gets converted in reality. The program of our mind decides what we imagine. I mean if I want to decorate my bedroom, everything from the type of furniture I choose to the budget decision will depend upon my “broader attitude” towards life.

If I am a “budget conscious” person, then this will affect right from the initial stages of the design. I will look at the design from a conservative point of view. Thus everything, which gets created in reality will have an influence of my personality.

Here I am not trying to say that only high budget designs are good. I have seen works of many interior designers, who have spent their entire lives on studying low cost design projects and also have won awards for their magnificent work.

That’s why any interior design project can not be fulfilled without active participation of the client or the user. Creativity doesn’t have any boundaries of budget. Any piece of art which fulfils the functional need and also the aesthetical need can be easily accepted as an architectural element. Budget is not a constraint at all. On the other hand the budget constraint sometimes is useful to generate some good ideas for a particular problem.

An interior designer is not an artist, because an artist basically performs his acts to satisfy his own desire. This could be any performing art or other forms of arts. His piece of work
may not have any functional use from user’s point of view.

An interior designer is not even a technician or engineer. Because when an engineer builds a design he need not worry of making it “beautiful”. His primary aim is to make it functional. He puts his entire energy in making the design functional.

That’s why an interior designer is one who satisfies both the functional as well as aesthetical part of the design. Sometimes it is easy to accomplish the functional part of an interior design, but since the definition of beauty is different for everyone, it is extremely difficult to satisfy each and every user’s aesthetic hunger.

This is particularly true about interiors in public spaces. For example a bank building has a definite use and function for all the users. We can safely create a list of functions a person
would perform when he visits a bank. But this does not mean the bank reflects his personality, like the first paragraph of this article mentions.

That’s why interiors in public spaces always are designed by taking into consideration something called as “mass personality”. This is a general attitude of the kind of mindset everyone would have or is likely to have when he/she visits that space. If  you visit large corporate software office premise, you will see this picture.

Office interiors always have a certain kind of order in them. The use of colors, design styles have a kind of commitment in them, which is expected from you when you work there.

On the other hand a bar or a restaurant has some sort of mood generating atmosphere, which sets you loose. Because this is what is expected in a public space like a restaurant.

Thus any interior space is always associated with people. A space which serves its functions best and makes the users comfortable is bound to succeed as a favorite place.

I hope this article was informative to everyone.

Copyright Shrinivas Vaidya

Shrinivas Vaidya is the webmaster of Bedroom-Design-And-Decorating-Ideas.com .Here you will find some great concept level design tips for bedooms, teen bedrooms and guest bedrooms

September 24, 2006

How To Choose The Perfect Color Scheme For Your Home

Filed under: Interior Design, Decor, Home — smvpune @ 4:37 am

Here are great recommendations on choosing the right color schemes for home interiors.

The Color Scheme Bible: Inspirational Palettes for Designing Home Interiors
Amazon Price: $19.77


Customer Review: This book has a lot of ideas and inspiration about colours. Some schemes are daring, but all of them seems an professional work!

The Beader’s Color Mixing Directory: 200 Failsafe Color Schemes for Beautiful…
Amazon Price: $17.93


Customer Review: I have been looking for something which would help me in designing with beads, and now I have it. It was the easiest book I have found to have the use of colors, to be pleasing to the eye. When I get into theory, I don’t under stand it, or at least …

Color Schemes Made Easy (Better Homes & Gardens)
Amazon Price: $13.57


Customer Review: Learning from experience takes too long. It is better to read this book so that designing with the right combination of colours is more cost effective and less hassle.

Color in Interior Design
Amazon Price: $40.92


Customer Review: it’s a really helpful book for designers.you can find whatever you need about colors…

Authentic Color Schemes for Victorian Houses: Comstock’s Modern House Paintin…
Amazon Price: $12.21


Customer Review: To quote the book, “Those of our readers who expect to find lists comprising all the various scales of color, giving definite information as to what particular color should be used to harmonize with this or that shade, and telling just what combinati…

August 2, 2006

How to use accessories in a bedroom decorating project?

Filed under: Interior Design, Decor, Design — smvpune @ 10:44 am

Any interior space is primarily composed of walls, floor and ceiling. These elements give a habitable character to the interior space.

Apart from providing protection from natural elements such as rain, snow, wind and other natural calamities, an interior space is also responsible for creating moods, depending upon the theme of the decoration.

Depending upon the functional purpose of the interior space, the quality and quantity of the furniture and other elements may change. For example a “meditation center” might not require any furniture at all, but a gymnasium on the other hand requires specially designed equipment.

For the sake of this article we are only going to concentrate on bedrooms. A bedroom is a space, which is close to our heart. This is the space where we take rest and regain the vital energy force for the next day’s work. A typical bedroom consists of a double/single bed depending upon the size and occupancy of the room, wardrobe, study table, chairs for informal gathering, dressing table, side tables adjacent to the bed for keeping items such as telephone, watch, etc..

Since a bulk of volume gets occupied with the furniture pieces, the beauty of a bedroom greatly depends upon the quality of the furniture. But that’s not all. Any interior space can be greatly enhanced using “accessories” and some great amount of detailing can be added to an existing bedroom with furniture.

1)Use of decorative curtains.

These are called as valances and are a very good means to decorate the windows and other openings. These decorative curtains have 2 purposes. a) They define a window opening b) They diffuse the incoming sunlight and help the dispersion of light evenly. valances can be easily be prepared at home with some basic knowledge of stitching.

2)Wall Hangings
 
wall hangings are used as an alternative for wall paintings. These have a great advantage that they can be prepared from almost any material. Some possible options for material use could be matt finished paper, handmade paper, silk cloth, bamboo sticks, jeans cloth!, wool, plastic sheets, crape papers, etc…Small square pieces of these materials along with bits of mirrors pieces can be creatively used to prepare a wall hanging.

3)Wall Paintings.

The choice of the wall paintings in this case highly depends upon the likes/dislikes of the user. Also the nature of the surface on which the painting is going to be, is also important.

4)Photographs

Most people like to use framed photographs of the family members, ancestors, or some live stills from outside world. This method has got a great advantage. The user has got perfect control over which kind of photos to choose. Photographs of real people can greatly add a human touch to an interior space.

5)Statues

These greatly add to the quality of the space. In case of bedrooms the statues which can add some interest to the overall theme can be used. Some gift articles come in the form of statues or a watch embedded in it can serve two purposes at a time. They add some grace to the design and at the same time, become a useful functional piece.

6)Shade Loving Plants.

Depending upon the size of the bedroom, lots of varieties of shade loving plants are available today. If the plant is a flowering one, then this can be very creatively used. A flowering plant can greatly add to the mood of an space because of its changing nature of foliage and color.

7)Decorative Lamp Shades.

Decorative lamp shades have a very unique quality attached to them. Because they are functional mostly at night times, the shape of the lampshade itself can be chosen in such a way, that will add some interest in the bedroom. During its functional times a lampshade which is made of semitransparent cloth covers can add some wonderful ambience in the interior space.

8)Free standing wooden partitions.

These are used in large bedroom to define certain areas of the same space into different parts. for example a wooden partition can be used to segregate a study space inside a bedroom or a decorative wooden partitions can be used to hide the direct entry to the toilet, by creating a private area.

These are some of the ideas I have come up with randomly. These can be a good starting point. You can always come up with more good and creative ideas of your own. A very creative use of these accessories can definitely sheer up an interior space.

I hope this article was informative to everyone.

Copyright Shrinivas Vaidya

Shrinivas Vaidya is the webmaster of
Bedroom-Design-And-Decorating-Ideas.com .Here you will find some great concept level design tips for all types of bedrooms

July 21, 2006

The Oriental Vs. Contemporary bedroom design theory

Filed under: Interior Design, Home, Design — smvpune @ 10:56 am

If you have read any interior design books/articles, visited a few websites on the internet, you will find the word theme used quite often.

What exactly is a theme-based design?

A theme according to me is a collection of various parameters of design of an interior space. So a theme may include a certain set colors, materials, repetition of a certain element, such as a decorative item, etc…

Primarily there are two basic themes under which a design can be categorized, 1)Oriental 2)Contemporary.

Oriental Bedroom Design Theme:

These kind of themes have a still drilled down niche design themes, such as country, rustic, vintage, elegant, etc… One of the major thing about these kind of themes is that much emphasis is given on the natural beauty of any material. These designs are close to nature or are shown to be close to nature.

These kind of design styles are very rarely found in the urban city interiors. Mostly the countryside homes adopt these kind if themes, to replicate the flora and fauna of the outside environment.

The designer tries to include the patters seen in nature, such as leaves, flowers, plants. All these natural patterns are seen on wallpaper patterns, decorative lamps, curtains, furniture upholstery, wall paintings, etc…

Homes which are build on country side such as farm houses, the scarcity of space is not an issue, but this creates another problem as far as designing interiors is concerned.

A bedroom, no matter of what size it is, requires some basic furniture elements as functional needs, such as a double bed, dressing table, wardrobes, study tables, a book shelf etc..

It is sometimes possible that because of the large spaces, the bedroom looks empty after the furniture is arranged. At such times “decoration” plays a major role. During ancient years the palaces and castles had such large built spaces, where extensive use of decoration was used in the form of paintings, heavy decorative flooring patterns, carvings, moldings as a decorative architectural elements.

So in this oriental design trend, decoration of the space using various accessories plays a major role.

Contemporary design Theme:

These kind of design themes are very new as compared to the previously mentioned oriental design theme. But how did the designers came along using these kind of designs?

During the starting years of the 20th century, the “Industrial Revolution” in Europe changed the face of our planet. It was easy to design and manufacture goods on a mass scale with amazing speed and efficiency. This created a flood of industries in and around the cities. These cities attracted large amount of people to migrate from rural areas to city centers in search of a living.

Because of this migratory effect there was a sudden need of housing requirement for the workers. This is where the concept of an “apartment” was introduced. Because of the pressure of demand, a school of thoughts emerged within the architects, who believed that “simplicity” is the need of today’s era.

They thought that, the design of the building has to be simple and easy to build, then only we can compete with the growing demand of housing needs in cities. That’s why simple designs with mostly plane and square faces with square or rectangular openings were used. These forms and masses were easy to build and still beautiful. If everything from “safety pins” to “space ships” could be built on a mass scale, why not “buildings”.

The school of thought believed that a plane rectangular form is in itself beautiful and they proved this using infinite permutations and combinations of the basic square form. That’s why decoration was given a second preference. Today we call this school of thought as “contemporary”. In contemporary design every element has an order.

That’s why in today’s modern interior design, simplicity is the key to an efficient design. Unlike the previous oriental design theme, the contemporary design theme states that any kind of architectural decoration is always dependent on the basic form of the building. The form itself is so beautiful, that the need to further decorate it is not required. Today’s modern interiors spaces are simple to understand, simple to construct, and project a kind of simplicity.

By reading the above paragraphs some of you might say that, decoration is no more needed. But this is not true. I am not trying to force some ideas here. But most people confuse the whole concept of “Interior Design” and “Interior Decoration”. Both are quite different and both have a unique value in today’s complex society.

Decoration was something the primitive man learned, looking at the nature around him. He saw plants, flowers, birds, animals and tried to copy these elements. We still use “embroidery” on our dresses. But the modern design theory says that any sort of decoration can only “enhance” the existing form, but can not be an element of design.

What does this mean?

In the above said example the “embroidery” pattern can certainly add to the beauty of the cloth, but the modern theory denies to accept the cloth to be of a cheap quality. It states that every form, texture, material, shape is in itself beautiful and must be accepted as it is. Because of this the need to further decorate it does not arise.

Thus decoration whether used in architecture or elsewhere is always dependant on the form on which it is used, but design is an independent entity which does not need any justification from the external factors.

The two design themes mentioned above are still widely used today. The user must look upon them from a point of view of what best suits his/her likes and dislikes. Only then can you give yourself and your family the best quality of living.

I hope this article was informative to everyone.

Copyright Shrinivas Vaidya
Shrinivas Vaidya is the webmaster of Bedroom-Design-And-Decorating-Ideas.com .Visit TODAY to get an in-depth knowledge of Bedroom Design, Bedroom Furniture Sets and Bedroom Decorating Ideas.

June 22, 2006

The truth about color schemes in an interior design project.

Filed under: Interior Design, Design — smvpune @ 8:29 am

Dear friends, It is a universally accepted truth that color impacts human mind and therefore must be used wisely in an interior space.

There is a normal practice amongst interior designers, to use “color schemes” to enhance the beauty of an interior space.

A color scheme normally has more that one color. The type of color used and the type of combinations used will decide what kind of interest the space will express when it’s been painted with a color scheme.

Let’s see what are the types of colors

1)Hot Color Schemes

Primarily red and Yellow color lies in this category. These colors have an excitatory effect on human mind and hence are used in spaces where human activity is rapid and excitatory.

Such spaces are Circus Tents, Pubs, Sports Complexes, etc.. In all these spaces physical activity is the primary function and
hence a proper use of hot color scheme can greatly add to the quality of space.

2)Cool Color Schemes

Primarily Blue and Green fall under these category. These colors tend to create a soothing effect. Because its cool nature these are used where physical activity is of less importance.

Such spaces are bedrooms, hospitals, etc… You will extensive green in hospitals because of its cool nature.

3)Neutral color schemes.

Primarily White, Black and shades of these two i.e. Gray fall under this category. Black and white when use with the hot or cool color scheme can shift the effect of hotness or coolness of both predominant color schemes.

Apart from these three basic color schemes infinite combinations of all these colors is possible which can give rise to qualities such as contrast, brightness, shallowness, etc…

In spite of such enduring qualities of the color schemes in interior design, color has a certain weakness built in itself.

The kind of emotion the color will evoke in human mind is directly dependant on two major factors.

1)The quality of surface on which it is applied.
2)The quality of light which falls on the colored surface.

These two factors must never be ignored. If there is no light, there is no identification of the color itself. A red colored surface will look different in morning dim sunlight, afternoon harsh sunlight and evening sunlight. Also it will have some more exciting effect if an artificial light is projected on the surface.

A rough surface painted with a soothing color such as white will have different appearance that a plain surface painted with white. Also if sunlight falls of a rough surface, it will cast minute shadows of the details caused because of the roughness, thus limiting the smooth effect, the white color can cause.

Some designers have actually used this as a benefit to arouse interest in a space. Apart from these every material on this planet has his own color. The brick exposed walls already have their own reddish/brown color with a rough surface. The mortar joints between the bricks also have their own color and texture.

That’s why color in interior design is not something, which must be applied or not applied, but it is only a visual element which is already present in our environment. The space is more important than the color and the appropriate color scheme will greatly enhance the visual quality of the space attained by its form.

What does this mean?

We are used to live in rectangular spaces. The rooms in our home are predominantly rectangular in volume. But imagine a bedroom which is circular and also has a domical roof on top.

Here the form of the space itself is so exciting, that color plays a secondary role. Here the form of the space itself creates excitement, which could otherwise be achieved using a hot color scheme in a rectangular volume.

That’s why any color scheme in interior design is always dependant on the form of the space, quality of the surface on which it is applied and the amount of light it accepts.

Color Schemes Made Easy (Better Homes & Gardens (Paperback))

For more in-depth information on choosing your very own color schemes I recommend Color Schemes Made Easy By Shelley Stewart.

I hope this article was informative to everyone.

Copyright Shrinivas Vaidya

Shrinivas Vaidya is the webmaster of Bedroom-Design-And-Decorating-Ideas.com .Visit TODAY to get an in-depth knowledge of Bedroom Design, Bedroom Furniture Sets and Bedroom Decorating Ideas.

June 20, 2006

The concept of dynamic space in bedroom design.

Filed under: Interior Design, Home — smvpune @ 10:51 am

Dear friends, can you define the term “space”. By space I don’t mean the universe or the astronomical point of view. A space is the area which is enclosed between walls, floor and ceiling and which can be used as a habitual room.

Any empty bedroom space has certain parameters attached to it the moment it gets created.

What are these  parameters?

First of all the length, width, and height , the physical dimensions of the bedroom. These three have a unique relation to each other. Rooms with less length and width and too much height or too broad length and width and less height are not proportionate and tend to create discomfort.

But there are special cases where too much of height is a necessity. Some examples are church buildings, cinema halls. Here it is necessary to accommodate large group of people and project a kind if grandness through design.

That’s why the space gets altered depending upon the use or function” of the space. Hence in a bedroom the space takes a form of its own depending upon inners activities of the space.

Let’s see how.

Any bedroom space has certain leakage points attached to it. By “leakage” I don’t mean rain water or any other kind of stuff coming in. The bedroom space is likely to have exit point attached to it, like following,

1)Exit to backyard.
2)Exit to attached toile block.
3)Exit to attached walk-in closet.
4)Exit to balcony or terrace.
5)Openings of windows.

Depending upon the location of these, an imaginary travel path gets fixed starting from the entrance door of the bedroom. This imaginary travel path forces the user to arrange the furniture, in a way which will not create obstruction in the path. After the furniture has been arranged, what remains is the space used for circulation inside  the bedroom. If the bedroom has a small area and too many exit points (as mentioned above), then the room is left with a fixed furniture layout.

At such times the success of the bedroom decorating project
lies in detailing. By detailing I mean small things such as upholstery materials, color schemes, furniture textures and finishes.

But with bedrooms which have large areas, the moment you change the furniture layout, the circulation space takes a new form and the entire room looks a new one. This is what I mean by “dynamic space” which takes a new shape.

It’s like that example of the glass half filled with water. The moment you change the quantity of water space alters and the glass looks different.

Here we have come to an interesting conclusion of this article. From the above discussion one thing is very clear. The “personality” of a space can be easily altered by allowing the empty circulation space to take a new form.

In interior design everyone talks about furniture, colors, textures, paints, wallpapers, etc… but no one talks about ”Empty Space” which is equally powerful. Finally it is the empty space which remains and is a measure of the comfort level for the user. If there is very less empty space remaining in a room after the furniture is placed, it is considered uncomfortable.

I hope this article was informative to everyone.

Copyright Shrinivas Vaidya

Shrinivas Vaidya is the webmaster of Bedroom-Design-And-Decorating-Ideas.com .Visit TODAY to get an in-depth knowledge of Bedroom Design, Bedroom Furniture Sets and Bedroom Decorating Ideas.

June 18, 2006

Thinking about Home Improvement? Then here’s a checklist!

Filed under: Interior Design, Home — smvpune @ 10:35 pm

Dear friends, if you are planning to improve/renovate or refurnish your home then this article can be a very useful guide and save your lot of time.

When it comes to home improvement, most people think that
it’s has to do with painting the house from inside out and forget about it.

But any architectural structure is much more than just walls and ceiling. There are many systems working simultaneously which keep the building under function.

Let’s have a look at these systems one by one.

1) Structural System:

This includes the support system of the entire building, namely foundation, columns, beams, slabs(in R.C.C structure). The most commonly used structural systems is R.C.C. Other types include steel and wood.

While renovating a building special attention must be given to the structural support system. Slabs should be checked to be leak proof. Columns and beams which are exposed to external atmosphere must be checked for damage. R.C.C structural members are always covered with plaster. This plaster must be without damage.

In case of steel structures, anti-rust treatment must be applied wherever necessary. In case of wooden structure anti-termite treatment must be applied wherever necessary.

2) Plumbing System:

All pipelines which carry water in and out of the structure must be checked for leakage. The main are of possible leakage is at the joints, hence must be carefully treated.

Water taps at the washbasins, inside bathrooms, kitchen sinks, toilet blocks, should be checked for good and smooth operating conditions.

3)Drainage System:

Drainage from kitchen, bathrooms, toilets should have an unobstructed and shortest path to outside chambers. Any clogging of these lines can cause overflowing of the chambers, hence should be checked and cleaned.

4)Electrical Systems:

This starts with the main supply of the electricity from the local authorities. The point of entering the main supply should be checked for any excessive disturbance in voltage levels, which might cause damage to electrical appliances inside.

All switch boards and switches in respective rooms should be checked for proper and safe functioning. Security systems such as earthing and M.C.B’s should be checked for safe functioning.

5) Doors and Windows

These form an important part of any structure as far as safety is concerned. Proper functioning of the doors and window shutters is necessary. If your home has a security alarm system installed, then it must be kept updated and in proper working condition.

Door and window shutter hinges should be applied with lubricants for smooth operations. In case of sliding doors and windows, tracks which allow sliding should be dust free.

6) Glass Panes

All glass panes used on windows and doors should be dust free. Any broken or cracked glass panes should be replaced immediately.

If the building has a skylight, then it should be checked to be
leak proof and clean, to allow clear and unobstructed sunlight in the interiors.

7) Flooring Materials

In most cases tiles are used for flooring. All tiles should be checked for cracks and most importantly leveling.

In every home flooring has a natural slope to avoid clogging
of water if any such situation arises. Tiled flooring must be checked at joints. Any cracks in joins must be checked with proper bonding material.

In case of wooden flooring, extra care must be taken to keep
the flooring termite-free.

8) Wall Plaster and Wall Paint.

All external walls must be checked from outside for a proper layer of plaster. Plaster prevents the rainwater to seep inside the structure. If external plaster gets damaged, rain water seeps inside causing dampening of walls.

All internal walls must be checked for scraping of paint.

8) Furniture and Carpentry Items.

All furniture items must be termite free and sturdy at the joints. A coat of good quality wooden polish can add life to the furniture pieces.

Other carpentry work includes door and window shutters, door and window frames.

9) Other Accessories.

This includes small thing which matter a lot, such as all the locking arrangement at doors, windows, towel rods in the bathroom/wash basins, arrangement to dry washed clothes, storage arrangements in kitchen/bathroom.

10)External Systems

This can include a solar water heater, electric pumps to push
the water from underground water tank to Overhead water tank, Cable TV antennas.

All these systems must be checked for proper functioning.

From the above discussion it is clear that proper functioning of any architectural structure is dependant of many complex systems which work simultaneously.

Hence all these must be given attention and respect. Any building is just like a human body, with movable and stationary parts. If dealt with proper care can give a very healthy living experience for years to come.

I hope this article was helpful to everyone.

Copyright 2005 Shrinivas Vaidya

Shrinivas Vaidya is the webmaster of Bedroom-Design-And-Decorating-Ideas.com .Visit TODAY to get an in-depth knowledge of Bedroom Design, Bedroom Furniture Sets, Bedroom Decorating Ideas.

June 16, 2006

6 Factors that affect a bedroom design project.

Filed under: Home — smvpune @ 11:19 am

If you are planning to design and decorate your own bedroom, then you must know that there are many factors that can affect the outcome of your creative exercise.

Let’s have a look at some of the possible factors.

1)Furniture: Furniture occupies maximum space in a room. The size and style of the furniture you choose will directly affect the way the space is perceived after the decoration is complete.

Furniture pieces, which are abutting the walls such as dressing tables, wardrobes, cabinets, form the face of the walls which were previously blank in an empty room. Because of this the face of the furniture is a major factor is creating the mood of an space.

2)Interior Color Scheme: Color has a direct effect on human mind. Color can make the room smaller or bigger than it is. For example dark rooms are perceived smaller in volume than those with bright and cheerful colors.

It’s not the room which changes, it’s the effect of the color which our mind picks up.

3)Wallpapers: Wallpaper is a good alternative to using paints on walls. The greatest advantage of using wallpapers is that they can be applied quickly.

Using wallpapers with design patterns can quickly alter a space and give a “rich” look to a space. Wallpapers are available in washable types as well.

The only problem with wallpapers is that they can get torn because of sharp edges of furniture items. If you have children in your family then maintaining a them can be a little nuisance.

4)Upholstery and Linen: This includes bed sheets, cushion covers, curtains, carpets, etc.. All these are dependent on something else. What does this mean?

Curtains are always in association with doors, windows or other openings in walls. So the texture/color/finish of curtains define a frame to the openings thus affecting the interior pace.

Other upholstery items are dependant on shape and size of the furniture on which they are used. That’s why a clever use
of color/texture/finishes can greatly enhance the furniture piece thus altering the overall grade of the space.

5)Lighting: A well planned electrical and lighting plan can greatly enhance the interior space. Depending upon the internal arrangement of the furniture lighting can be used to enhance certain areas of the space.

Spotlights and filler lights can be used as and where required. Filler lights are used to achieve a uniform lighting, which is normally available during daytime from sunlight.

Spotlights used in the form of lampshades can be used to cater a specific area such as study tables, bedsides. Apart from these two types decorative lamps used as hangings can add extra mood to the space.

6)Project Budget: Budget is a very important factor in any project. Professional designers are very skilled in maintaining a balance between creative designs and economical design.

A design which is economical yet projects a highly creative mood is very hard to achieve. However a good market research can easily make you a good and sensitive designer. Keeping in mind the various materials available in market and proposing them in designs is a good practice.

I would like to make one important point here. A design with expensive an expensive budget is not necessarily a good design. A simple and aesthetically pleasing design solution can easily be achieved with creative thinking of what you already have with you.

From the above discussion you can fairly assume that a slight change in any one of the above factors can alter the appearance your bedroom. If you are planning to refurnish your bedroom, you can use this as a dummy checklist to organize the entire process.

I hope this article was helpful for everyone.

Copyright Shrinivas Vaidya.

Shrinivas Vaidya is the webmaster of Bedroom-Design-And-Decorating-Ideas.com. Visit today for great bedroom design tips and ideas.

How to design a bedroom for kids?

Filed under: Kids — smvpune @ 3:39 am

Children at age of 1 1/2 start to walk, talk and express themselves. Their parents are the role models for them. They learn to perform action which their parent teach them.

Based on these teachings children vey quickly learn a taste about everything in life. This includes, the food they eat, the kind of toys they play with, the kind of friends they will make etc..

For a growing child it is necessary to expolre new things, apart from what his/her mom/dad teaches. A bedroom is a great place to do this. When planned properly, a child bedroom can greatly enhance his/her learning experience.

Children have a curious mind. Even a child which is yet to speak, this curiosity can be easily traced by looking at the broken toys, torn books, etc..

That’s why as a bedroom designer creating spaces within the structural walls, using intersting furniture elements, can greatly help to add some curious thinking. Furniture pieces specifically designed to create an adventure can be proposed.

Instead of using plain colored walls, theme base paintings, such as AESOP stories, fairy tales, can be painted on walls. These picturesd can include animals, trees, vehicles, human beings of different age  groups. This gives an extra learning edge, because there is lot to learn about the world as a whole.

Creative flooring patterns can also be a good starting point. At the same time use of ceiling space as a storyboard can be used to give a knowledge of the “sun and moon”.

Furniture with level differences can act as a way which tends to give physical exercise and at the same time create a space of their own.

As far as linen is concerned, it should be easy to maintain, because it is more likely to get dirty and messy frequently. Above all these factors what is most important is a good natural light and free flowing air can add to the healthy atomsphere.

From above discussipn it is quite clear that bedroom design is not just arranging a few furniture pieces and arranging them in the physical space. It is much related to how humans react to diferent artificially created materials, which includes their color, texture, finishes, etc..

Kids Rooms (Pottery Barn Kids)

If used creatively it can greatly improve the quality of human life. I hope this article was helpful for moms/dads and also for the designers.

Copyright 2005 Shrinivas Vaidya

If you want more detailed information about bedroom design and the psychological concepts behind every type of bedroom visit Bedroom-design-And-Decorating-Ideas.com today for a fresh insight and some good books on this subject.

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June 13, 2006

The two pillars of a successful interior design project!

Filed under: Decor — smvpune @ 10:43 pm

Whenever I think of any design, be it interior design or product design, a few things very naturally come up in my mind. These are in the form of questions.

The best part is, answers to these questions can give rise to
a very successful design in itself. Let’s see how.

If I am planning to design a piece of furniture, let’s say a double bed, immediate I start relating to what I already know about double beds, some picture/image I have already seen, something I have seen in some furniture shop, etc… Then I start thinking about what material I should think about, the budget, dimensions, age group of people who are going to use it, etc… If you answer these questions one by one on a paper, you will get a blueprint of the design process, so that you can convert in into technical drawings, with all the joinery details and finally the product.

Amongst above mentioned questions some are directly related to function of the double bed as a piece of furniture.

What does this mean?

When I ask myself, what should be the dimensions of a double bed? I have very little freedom to decide the dimensions of the bed, because there are certain norms to be followed in order to serve it’s basic function and that’s comfort.

But what if I say that I will keep the overall surface area of the bed same , but make it round in plan. Will it be ok..

Now here I am trying to achieve both function and aesthetics,
without sacrificing the comfort of the person who will use it. So during any design process there will be times when the designer need to take some decisions where he has to keep
aside his wildest ideas and pay attention to function first.

That’s why the true success of an interior design project is a good balance between function and aesthetics.

Expressing this kind of balance through design is not an easy
task, because function is universally accepted, but aesthetics, not always.

What does this mean?

Beauty is always relative. A washbasin has a common universal function of an appliance to be used for washing hands, but it’s beauty is relative. What is beautiful for me, might not hold true for you.

So a design expression can have a unique style of the designer himself. It is possible that the designer is more comfortable with certain kinds of materials/finishes/color schemes, etc.. which can reflect in his designs.

In spite of these personal touches a good designs always
caters the needs of the user first. A good designer has a certain kind of convincing power in his/her style which he uses to expresses in the design without sacrificing the likes/dislikes of the user.

There are designers who are more comfortable in designing only a certain kind space such as bathrooms, bedrooms, living rooms, public spaces such as restaurants, clubs, gymnasiums.

Of course this is entirely of a personal choice, but there is this same message in their designs, shell out your ego and design for the best parameters with worst possibilities taken into considerations. This is what gives birth to a great design.

I hope this article was helpful.

Copyright 2005 Shrinivas Vaidya

For more powerful and in-depth concept level knowledge of bedroom design visit Bedroom-Design-And-decorating-Ideas.com. You will find some good tips on designing various kinds of bedrooms.

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