How to Brighten a Naturally Dark Room: Tips from an Interior Designer

interior design in VaughanAre you thinking about redecorating your house? Getting the right paint shades for your walls is an essential part of the process. Choosing a colour scheme can be tricky in any case, but dimly-lit rooms are particularly difficult. How do you make a dark and gloomy room look brighter? In this article, we’ll tell you how.

Colours to Use in Rooms that Lack Natural Light

  • Avoid White and Off-White – There was a time when white paint was widely-used to make homes appear sleek and minimalistic. However, trends have since moved on. Plus, while white walls can make a room appear larger, it’s not so effective at making them look brighter. This is because white looks best when it reflects light. In rooms that have a lack of sufficient natural light, the effect is lost.
  • No Pastel Colours – Like white, pastel paints don’t look their best in dimly-lit rooms. They require sunlight to bring the best out of their shades. Without enough light to complement them, they’ll simply appear greyish and drab in the shadows.
  • Choose Rich Tones – You can’t create natural light in a room where it simply doesn’t exist. A light shade of paint won’t get the job done. Instead, embrace the room for what it is and choose a shade that truly compliments it. Choose deep, rich tones that will stand out in the shade, and the room will come alive.
  • Try a Neutral Grey – Grey has become a hot new trend for interior design in Vaughan. When used correctly, it can create a neutral, elegant look that is easily accentuated with black or white furnishings and accessories.
  • Warm Orange – Orange is often associated with outdated, retro designs that would generally be considered ugly by today’s standards. However, it’s much more versatile than that. A strong shade of orange can add warmth and depth to a room. It works well when paired with white woodwork, linen or furniture in a bedroom or living room. In a kitchen, it can also look great against grey and black kitchenware.
  • Use an Accent Wall – An accent wall can add a splash of colour without being too overwhelming. If you’re looking to create an interesting and modern look without taking over the entire room, this is a great choice. Choose the placement of your accent wall depending on where the light hits in order to get the most out of it.

Hire a Professional Interior Designer in Vaughan

If you’re having trouble choosing the right colours yourself, don’t worry. Instead of agonizing over different shades and constantly looking through swatches, get a professional opinion from an interior designer in Vaughan. At Bright Ideas, we offer a colour consulting service. We understand how different shades look under different lighting, and will help you bring the best out of your home with colours you’ll love.

5 Rules Your Interior Designer Says It’s OK to Break

interior designer in Vaughan There are some interior decorating rules you should adhere to if you want to avoid making a complete mess of your next home renovation project but there are quite a few that it is fine to break if the occasion calls for it. The problem for most amateur painters and decorators is that they are not sure which rules it is safe to break and when it is safe to break them. After reading the advice below, condensed from a conversation with one of our in-house experts, we hope you will be in a better position to decide when you can deviate from received wisdom and when you should stick to the rules.

Rules That Our Interior Designer in Vaughan Often Breaks

The following rules can all be broken in the search for the perfect interior design, especially if you have the confidence and experience to go your own way.

  1. Never Mix Periods – Some interior design professionals, usually those of a more conservative bent, believe that it is wrong to mix periods and styles but unless you are trying to create a museum exhibit, there is nothing wrong in mixing Georgian with Victorian, or Art Deco with Minimalist design motifs, as long as it is tastefully done.
  2. Ceilings Should Always Be White – Whilst it is true that white has a number of advantages when it comes to ceiling paint, if you are creating a lush Moroccan interior and you fancy a deep red or even a glittery gold ceiling, you should go for it. Our interior designer in Vaughan believes that people need to trust their instincts when attempting to create more unusual interiors and not feel duty bound to follow conventional rules.
  3. Chairs and Tables Should Always Match – Cast your mind back a few years and you can probably recall numerous homes with matching dining tables and chairs and if you spend too long thinking about the effect this furniture had on you, you may be in danger of falling asleep! According to our interior designer in Vaughan, mixing different wood tones, or even different species of wood, is perfectly fine and normally results in a far more interesting interior.
  4. Bold Colours Only Work in Large Spaces – Lighter colours can help to make smaller spaces appear larger but if you would like to create the illusion of depth in a small room, combining darker, bold tones with lighter ones can work very well.
  5. Never Use Fake Plants – Real plants are undoubtedly preferable if you have the time to take care of them properly but if you have a busy professional and home life, good quality silk plants are an excellent alternative to the real thing that will never wilt and die due to neglect.

If you are the sort of person that likes to break the rules but you do not have the necessary experience to do so with confidence when it comes to home décor themes, feel free to consult our interior designer in Vaughan whenever you wish.

Attractive But Functional Design: How an Interior Designer Can Help You Achieve This

Interior Designer in VaughanWhen renovating a residential property, the main challenge that owners face is how to ensure the new interior design is both aesthetically pleasing and practical. For those that decide to go it alone and create their own designs for each room, this is a goal that can be almost impossible to achieve: often the resulting décors are either beautiful and impractical or very functional but visually unappealing. If you want to make sure that you do not fall short when faced with this challenge, enlisting the help of an interior design expert is probably your best option.

Working with Your Interior Designer in Vaughan

if you live in Vaughan or nearby, we will be delighted to help you create a new décor for your home that is both beautiful and easy to live with. Whether you decide to work with us or not, the following points should help you to make the most of the services of your local design expert.

  • Colours – One of the easiest mistakes to make when tackling a major redecoration or renovation project on your own is that of choosing colours that just won’t look very good in a few months’ time. You may, for example, think that pristine white walls are a good choice for the kitchen but every speck of grease and cooking oil will show up on pure white paint, which is why it really isn’t the best choice in any home where the kitchen must be functional as well as stylish. If you work with an experienced interior designer in Vaughan, they will be able to steer you away from bad colour choices and suggest alternatives that meet with your approval from both an aesthetic and functional perspective.
  • Materials – A beautiful sheepskin rug in front of an open fire in your living room might sound very appealing but if you have young children in your household, the rug is not likely to stay looking beautiful for very long. This is another instance where your interior designer in Vaughan can be relied on to suggest appropriate alternatives that will fulfil your desire to create an attractive home while making it easier to maintain in excellent condition. The insight of an industry expert can be invaluable when making such choices as they are likely to be aware of gorgeous materials that may not have even crossed your mind yet.
  • Layout – Creating a layout for each room in your home that is both practical and beautiful to behold is a task that could be exceedingly difficult for you to achieve without professional assistance. If you hire a skilled interior designer in Vaughan, they will be familiar with all the common pitfalls that are encountered when designing residential interiors and can guide you through this task with ease.

To ensure first-class results the next time you redecorate or renovate your home, call to speak to us today and arrange your free initial consultation. Once we know what you require, we will prepare a proposal for you to consider.

An Interior Designer in Vaughan for Discerning Homeowners

Interior Designer in Vaughan Many homeowners handle interior décor choices such as colour schemes, furnishings, and lighting fixtures by themselves, or with the assistance of the painters and decorators they hire to work on their property. The idea of paying a professional interior design consultant for their opinions may seem like a needless extravagance as far as the majority are concerned. However, once you have completed a redecoration project with the assistance of an experienced interior décor consultant, you will wonder how you ever managed on your own. A talented designer like Anita Ricci can make an enormous difference to the results you achieve when redecorating your home, more than justifying her very reasonable fees in the process!

How to Work with an Interior Designer in Vaughan or Elsewhere

If you like the sound of working with an experienced interior design expert but you are not sure how to get the most out of it, consider the points below.

  • Compatibility – It is not really important if your furnace maintenance man has completely different tastes to you and is difficult to converse with but if you are to make the most of what an interior designer in Vaughan has to offer, you will need to find a consultant whose personality is a good fit with yours: a professional designer who you can talk to without trying too hard and who hopefully has similar tastes as far as furniture and interior décor are concerned.
  • Consistent Communication – Designing the interior of every room in your house is not a task that can be completed in a couple of hours. It is a task that should be approached with a fair amount of patience and with the expectation that a number of iterative changes will need to be made to the overall design before it is declared complete. During the iterative design phase, it is vital that you stay in touch with your interior designer in Vaughan on a regular basis. You may be paying them to come up with great ideas but you will want to have an input at every stage too: after all, it is your house that will be the focus of all this hard work.

What Your Interior Design Consultant Can Help You Achieve

If you decide that you would like us to assist you with your next redecoration project, we will make sure that by the time we have finished, the interior of every room in your home will exceed your wildest dreams. We aim to provide a wow factor on every job we undertake that makes our clients step back and pause for breath when they see the finished result. We will take your ideas and preferences, refine them into designs that make every room a pleasure to spend time in, and ensure that when viewed as a whole, the designs for each room unite your home into a beautiful whole. Call the best interior designer in Vaughan today to start your redecoration venture on the right foot.

The Benefits of Hiring an Interior Designer Over Going It Alone

interior designer vaughanA home is indeed a castle but it’s also more than that. It’s the largest single investment you are ever likely to make. For that reason changes to your home should always be carefully considered and thoughtfully implemented. Talk to a dozen people who decided to act as their own designer and you’re likely to find a solid majority who will tell you they wish they’d hired a professional.

An Interior Designer is Not an Expense, They’re an Investment

The proliferation of DIY TV shows and websites has encouraged everyone to take a stab at design. But designers are not simply people with a knack for tinkering with colour; they’re trained professionals who know their design history, their colour theory and are fully versed in the effects that can be achieved through juxtaposition of various shapes and textures. An interior designer will:

  • Help You Discover Your Home’s Innate Style – Every structure has its strengths. When a house looks shabby, it’s usually because its strengths have been ignored. An experienced interior design professional will know how to bring out your home’s strengths and minimize its weaknesses.
  • Help You Prevent Costly Redo’s – Nearly everyone who has attempted to handle a home redesign themselves winds up – at some point – redoing aspects of the project that never worked. These redo’s can sometimes cost nearly as much as the original project. You won’t ever have that problem when you hire a properly trained interior designer.
  • Liaise with Other Contractors – An experienced designer will be able to act as a liaison between you and the assorted craftsmen and women working to renovate your home. The designer will know what goes where and why and who should be doing what and when. All important things to know in order to achieve a successful outcome to a renovation project.

The job of the interior designer is to add value to your home: aesthetic value, emotional value and yes, bottom line value as well. In the end a good design is a value-added proposition that will stand on its own and be its own justification.

Your home is your largest investment. Invest in a professional interior designer to help you get the most from it. Give Bright Ideas a call today on 416-671-6236 and let Anita Ricci help you reshape your home into the warm, welcoming oasis of style and comfort you’ve always wanted it to be.