“To see takes time” – Georgia O’Keeffe

 

Years ago I learned the importance of letting your place tell you what it needs, everything in a house or apartment should flow freely. If the house speaks, listen to it.

If you own a small place or if you are downsizing you come to realize the importance of the smart use of space. You start looking for the right cabinet, desk, side table, etc., and you don’t find it anywhere.

You search the internet and find no piece of furniture that would meet the dimensions you have at home, you visit furniture stores and nothing you see matches the color of wood, has enough storage, and has doors or the right hinges.

You feel frustrated when you check catalogs and nothing is close to what you have in mind. Don’t lose heart.

Have you drawn your ideas? Is it clear what your needs are? It can be very useful to mark with tape the area of the house where you want to place that piece of furniture.

Will there be enough space to walk by it? Is the height correct to watch TV if it is a media center what you are designing? – An excellent tip would be to measure the distance between the floor and your eyes when you are sitting in the chair you are going be watching TV from.

A carpenter or a welder might be able to help you make your design, depending on their experience making furniture. They can give you some suggestions, but you are better off going to the experts. Years ago I happened to see how a welder was building a wine’s rack with the angle of inclination backwards! An important fact if you want to keep the cork wet.

At Diseños Casa y Jardín we can help you keep scale, balance and match any color in your home. There are advantages when you work with a designer, together, you and he or she, can have a more creative synergy.

He or she will have much more experience making custom pieces of furniture; his observations are going to be very clever. His sources for materials are going to be larger and he will check the safety and aesthetics of your design.

Do you need ideas for the overall design? Look around, there are great designs taken from nature, there are sofa tables designed to look as some of the most beautiful bridges in the world!

Never underestimate the power of imagination, take your time to decide the final touches, color, handles, hinges and so forth.  Be open to incorporate different materials, glass, fabric, tile, paper, etc. In other words feel free to experiment.

Picture the piece of furniture while you go for a walk; visualize yourself using your design, reaching into it, displaying your keepsakes.

At the end of the creative process you will end up with a unique piece of furniture that will serve your purposes and it will add personality and flare to your room.

 

Written by Eddie Wharez® – Owner and designer at Diseños Casa y Jardín