What are some of your sources of inspiration when approaching a design challenge in your home?

Using a mix of neutrals, honey-colored woods, and pops of wave-crested blues, the Amalfi Coast is the inspiration for the color palette of my new hotel project, The Fairfax in South Beach. It's beachy and easy, but with a certain elegance.What are some of your sources of inspiration when approaching a design challenge in your home?
Hi, Todd. I am an artist as well and what inspires me in my surroundings is usually what I am "into" at the time. I look for really different offbeat looks to enjoy. Nothing like anyone else would have, and that includes influences in my fave books, music, comic books....I look for things that reflect my attitudes and make sure that however I decorate or furnish, it can be changed or altered easily to accomodate my ever-changing moods... but I never shy from bold colour pallettes as these can be worked around for me. Light purple hue walls in the bedroom can look quite different just by changing my bed linen colours. Throw on a light balsam or olive green spread and sheer drapes and i have springtime. Use red and i have my arabian nights look... basic pieces of furniture with strong lines are my fave centerpieces to work around and the look of that will inspire me further!!!
Well I just moved into the home 10 month's ago which I am now starting to decorate.Since the house was built in 1910 and has allot of the original window's and wood work I am trying to stay with in that realm and not take to much away from the classic Victorian style,while bringing in warm and neutral red's,tans,brown's and greens which in turn brings the out door color's in from our beautiful 300sq.ft. lot filled with wonderful tree's,flowers and bushes.Also adding a little touch of updating.What are some of your sources of inspiration when approaching a design challenge in your home?
I often read magazines and visit websites on redecorating. for example I often go to www.oprah.com to read what Nate suggests as easy and quick ways of solving design challenges.



I have a small living room which was originally painted light green by my landlord. I have painted it white to reflect more light and to give a visual impression of a larger room. I'm yet

to add some mirrors.



I love to change the arrangement of photos and decorations in my book shelf to make the living room look different at least once a month.
Well, everyone has to agree on something that is reasonable for the type of room. Thats number one priority,
I pick my colors first, then paint my walls, my furniture, and my floor. Then I visit the fabrics at Wal-Mart for a cheap yard of fabric for my blind. Then I edit the neutral accessories in my room to fit the new scheme. Throw down a rug from another room, pick out a new set of sheets from my solid color sheet collection, then finish it off with a new thick blanket. All in all I spend maybe a hundred dollars.
Does Yahoo charge you to plug your hotel project?
When I get the urge to move out of this state but we can't for various reasons, I re-decorate in order to make it feel like a new house again. I have been decorating since I was 6, and I have alot of ideas that I like. But I have come to learn that if you like it, it will go together. Someday I am going to move to farm and decorate my forever house. The house where my husband and I will hopefully raise kids till we get old, and so spending money on that house will be something we definitley not regret.
I have a tendency to base an entire room around one really great accent piece, the colors or the style of it, will generally set the whole mood for the room.



Like the year my husband and I got a big set of 5 very large natural mahogany wood picture frames, we designed the whole room around that because they were positively gorgeous! =)
When you where there did you take photos, I base my designs on this I take Black and white photos. This way the colors are not clouded buy the process in development, use your memory, you being a great designer you know color and texture I then try to relate my color to the paintings first, I always hang art related to my design. Then choose colors from the art work to choose my wall colors, then my woods, then pillows and such, furniture is easy something that will always take a slip cover, so you can always refresh the design
My "inspiration" is what my right-side of the brain designs once I've studied the problem and identified the space %26amp; the orientation to the sun, and understood the climatic factors such as wind direction, hours and direction of winds, uses to which the room is to be put, whether it's to be horizontal or vertical, unobstructed or divided, and in what tonal range.

I prefer Mediterraneans or the two-shades darker Etruscan earth tone range, in natural order floor to ceiling.

And I expect by not thinking about the problem--after cramming on it--that my insight will come up with the right arrangement for the major furniture to be used; the rest orients around that.

I never fail; the specific idea may not be practical or evendesirable, but there's always a different way of looking at the possibilities...And this is how I tap into my creative sources...
Definitely trees...I like to bring nature inside, so to speak. I have a wooded lot and I draw on that to set to motif much of my house, using faux trees, rough birdhouses and nests, greenery, sticks and twigs, rattan, bamboo. I like brown, green black, and off-white. I also like heavy wooded furniture, planks and the arches of Gothic architecture, mixing in crude iron works and even giving them a faux rust. I also have a flair for the medieval, stone, torches and castle-like qualities...
I look to my garden with day lillies, roses, tulips, and all the other colors. I planted a couple of butterfly bushes to attract them and its amazing to see the colors in their wings!



Living 3 miles off Lake Michigan gives us ome spectacular sunrises and lake front Fall colors!!



Pattie
When I was looking to redo my kitchen, It was the pattern of the slate 2X2 tile on a 12 X 12 square. I bought the amount I needed for the backsplash. Then I found the counter top (granite tiles) and my heart was racing. Then I found some hand painted tiles of fruit baskets and I knew I wanted them for the stove backsplash.. Then it was the color of the wood a riverstone color with the cabinet doors light in color and I wanted lots of bright light so the light fixture needed to be changed. I think it really is what makes your heart race and being comfortable with the total look. One that will take your breath away. and that is what happens when I step into my kitchen. Now I am really to do the same with the master bath.
I had a lot of work to do before I got to the "picking colors" stage. Spending hours in those rooms during different times of the day and night helped me to envision the colors I wanted. Other inspiration comes from looking at travel pics, design mags, design TV, colors from nature (I used apples in my kitchen), and art.



I have a variety of colors (no white) in my 1928 home which has an eclectic decor of modern and period pieces. I love it and when I had my 1st Open House after a 3-year renovation, everyone felt comfortable and at ease.



My next project is the basement. It starts this Saturday. I have no idea what colors I'll go with, but I have some time. What ever it is, it will be light because the basement is pretty dark...well, we'll fix that a little, but still.
I just take the look I want from a magazine
I would ask home depot. they usually know.
idk
Architecture and function of the room is usually my largest inspiration, however I often times design a whole room from a color pallet that clicks with me or the individual or even a piece of decor that I particularly like. I like a simple yet elegant with a touch of Tuscan design, but have designed rooms for children, contemporary rooms, flats, beachy, French Country, ....you name it I've done it! Alot of my inspiration comes from or for my husband and 5 children!
Thats indeed a great way to start a designer's mind, a landscape. Nature is everywhere so why not in the home design? When faced with common problems of designing, money budgets, space, size, visual effects, durability, etc, its best to draw a comparison chart and comparing the benefits of adding something to a certain location. Ask questions...why there?...Orientation?...Uses?

This will give you the necessary ideas for starting but a design is like a musical composition, every part needs to contribute to make the whole a masterpiece. Its a good idea to get a basic setup with materials that are easily removable/replacable and practice moving things around until it looks "right".
I usually look to movies for inspiration. Not that I can make my apartment look like the mansion in Edward Scissorhands, but I've taken a lot of inspiration from Jim Carrey's apartment in "Eternal Sunshine" -- the little knicknacky crap, the foldout couch, etc. Sometimes I take inspiration from one or two things I've picked out, such as my red shag rug and the hospital blue wall paint I picked out. Othertimes a theme will develop almost accidentally, like my kitchen that's covered in religious artwork and ephemera (huge Last Supper tapestry, calendar of images of the Madonna, animated light-up image of Jesus, etc.). It really probably depends on the space, although I'm headed more and more towards a minimalist approach, as I might attempt with my next apartment. I also should add that I like really retro and tacky crap, so I'd look to Archie McPhee for some fun stuff.
I grew up moving all over the world so I have very eclectic tastes. My inspiration comes from a multitude of areas, but primarily my travels, nature and the seasons. I also get inspiration from programs I watch on TV as they provide additional ideas to make a space more efficient, more usable, and still keep it comfortable and relaxing. Sometimes I have trouble combining my Southwest USA/ American Indian, Asian, late Victorian/ Eastlake and contemporary designs with one another and look to color as both a unifying factor and inspiration.
What triggers it is functionality. I'll have a room, or just a part of a room, that doesn't quite work for some reason. Maybe a chair is too big and blocks part of a pathway, or there's too much clutter, the purpose of the room isn't sufficiently utilized or even just the wrong light in the wrong spot. This is immediately followed by a complete overhaul done with the most taste I can muster based on eliminating the original dysfunction and trying not to create anymore, while still pulling together the colors and general feel that would compliment that room's purpose best. That is to say I completely demolish my surroundings, and then put them back together in a satisfying manner. Most people find it initially terrifying, but I'm always satisfied with the end result.
The inspiration I use are the things that mean the most to me. The trinkets that hold the memories from family trips such as a papyrus painting from NYC, or an aged map of my home town. For me, design isn't about what's "in" its more about what makes me feel like "I'm home".
The design ideas for my home radiate from the core idea that the psychology of design is important to each respective room. I want people to come in and feel 'at home' in my home. My kitchen should make you want to sit, visit %26amp; eat. Bedrooms should have beds that beg to be snuggled into! The family room- lots of sprawl spaces. After I decide how I want someone to feel when they enter a room, I go for color/design continuity so there is a flow from room to room... not a shock. I like the idea of psychology in design, taking memories and good feelings (even scents!) from one's life and infusing them into a space, making it beautiful and new at the same time it feels wonderfully familiar. I could go on about the whole thing, but I'll spare you.
My number one source of information when it comes to designing my home is the color palate provided by Mother Nature. The colors are awesome! Why do you think everyone loves the great outdoors?

Secondly, I watched HGTV before I went to closing on my home, I was ready to decorate before I got here. Design on a Dime, Matt and Sherry and others realy inspired me to get 'er done so to speak if I may borrow from a certain comedian momentarily. I am very excited about David's new show. He loves color and so do I! Yeah, David!

I would recommend anyone designing a home to spend some time in your fave outdoor location, drink it in, take notes and go for it.

Thanks HGTV, thanks for making my house a home. Of course, the equity has increased as I borrowed some ideas from the show and did the bathroom update and the kitchen and the...

Now that I have done the remodel, I am thinking of selling just so I can reap the rewards AND start with a fresh canvas. We're looking at land in a couple days.
My own interests and ideas I see on those home improvement shows. Go with what makes you feel good - you have to live there, so you need to like it. I like a lot of styles and each room in my home is different - from a black/gray/blue-green theme in the living room, to a cherry bedroom suit and burgandy curtains against bright yellow walls in the master bedroom and a white wrought iron day bed with blue %26amp; purple comforter %26amp; curtains against a sky blue/white trimmed wall with several pieces of fantasy art in the spare room. My kitchen is a dark pink %26amp; burgundy, the bathroom dark blue and dark green against light green walls. My best inspiration is my own photography - I shoot landscapes, enlarge the photos and frame them for my artwork - except for the "professional" fantasy art in the spare room.
When I am evolving in my life, I need my surroundings to express my inner development. So my flat is my canvas and you can see what is going on in my life by visiting it. It never goes too far away from my true designing ambitions, which are ethnic and pure lines with dry colors and wood. Accesories may change and I use sketching and altered patterns, with plants and water elements. I also use objects transposition, only by that u can start changing the vision of the room, I like to alter the horizon of the place as well, or dividing it into ambiances or individual spaces, portable devices such as small lamps, curtains or plants create visual barrier and that's enough usually. I consider smell very important to decoration as well. So, my current achievements, smell, beach%26amp;sea elements, and my need for easy movement in a space, this takes me to an ecclectic beach spot, in the middle of downtown. This is what inspires me when i wanna change something in my flat.
Lighting influences every choice I make. It also influences my mood and can change it if I adjust the lights.
Paul Deffleson paintings. Forgive me if the spelling is not correct. Isn't your picture from the recent Met Home with the "Hotties 24-7" inscription one of his?

Thanks,

Steve
My inspiration comes from my family. I like to create spaces that are functional for people of different ages, and sizes. I like to watch my family and how they react in different spaces. Who gathers where? What does each person appreciate in these spaces? Inspiring decor? comfortable seating? Many commercial prodjects begin with me taking my family to the space or a similar space to the one I will be working on. http://www.bigmodern.com
My inspiration is the body of a queen or goddess sculpted in the temples of India....in terms of colors, I think of rich colors such as gold, plum, red, pink and black....in terms of texture, I think of silk and sateen, beaded or embrodiered silk cushions, dark wood furniture that is finely furnished and daintly shaped. Such a thematic design inspiration evokes a lost era of richness and tradition, elegance and sexuality.