After more than 40 years in the decorating world, Thomas Britt has picked up a few tips in good design. Here, he shares some of his secrets.
Use color in a definitive manner. You may want to carry one color throughout the entire house, but you have to use different patterns, textures, or shade variations to create both contrast and interest. For instance, in the Water Mill house, the red paint on the walls of the dining room is carried through to the leather chairs in the library, and then appears again as the coral shade on the walls of the bedroom. Repeating similar colors from one room to another makes for a cohesive and unified house.
Color accents should not be random. A good rule to follow is that the wall color can be pulled forward into pillows as an accent color, or you can take a color from the rug to be used elsewhere throughout the space.
Ultimately, rooms with multiple colors need to have a controlled look. This ensures that there are not too many distracting or jarring elements. It is important to plan out the color story in advance in order to create a space that is welcoming.
Emphasize the height of a room by keeping surfaces low. In the library at the house in Water Mill, the chairs, tables, and sofa backs are low to the ground in order to highlight the space's tall ceilings. To further play with scale, put small furniture pieces next to larger ones.
Floor plans are the foundation of your house, and thus are extremely important. There is no exact formula for what works and what does not, so you must approach each room differently. Be sure to take into account the shape of the room and its architectural elements. Is there a view? A fireplace? Need room for a television? All of these factors and more should affect the flow of the room and where furniture is placed.
Above all, a room must be inviting with comfortable seating and furniture groupings that beckon you in to sit down. In especially large rooms, create seating areas using rugs to further define the space. This will make the room more intimate and cozy.
Bedrooms should have an atmosphere that is relaxing and makes you want to go to sleep in them. Having a writing desk in the bedroom is an ultimate luxury. And a television is a definite necessity.
