Design Talk | Creating Balance in a Room

By Lisa Hoekstra, Sew Beautiful | Photography by Geoffrey Hodgdon

 

“A man travels the world over in search of what he needs and returns home to find it.”
– George A. Moore, Irish Poet

 

Creating balance in this room presented a challenge. While the vaulted ceiling’s dramatic angle opened the room and made it feel more spacious, the varying uneven lines of the ceiling, a soffit and smaller windows made the room feel somewhat intimidating, restless, and uneasy. So we sought to evoke feelings of stability by giving the eye a place to rest.

We began by creating a strong architectural line around the room starting with new built-ins flanking the fireplace and continuing with the decorative drapery rod of the custom window treatments. The woven wood roman shades and drapery panels were designed and installed to give the illusion of larger and taller windows. Lastly, the contractor had an excellent suggestion: to expand the room’s small entrance by taking out half of the stair wall. Upon entering, the eye is directed to the built-ins.

Once line and balance were achieved, we could refresh the space. Our client chose to keep the room’s original color palette of greys and pinks but painted over the once-popular faux finished walls with an updated millennial pale petal pink. They selected a neutral gray tweed sofa, a subtle but fun pattern for their accent chairs, and a beautiful wool and silk rug to anchor the seating area. New lamps, coffee table, and accent tables with metallic, glass, and marble connect beautifully with the fireplace’s new stone surround. We transformed the two smaller, separate windows with embroidered geometric drapery panels and light-reflective woven wood roman shades. And the built-ins showcase the client’s collection of art and souvenirs gathered from their world travels.

BEFORE

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sew Beautiful provides custom window coverings and soft furnishings with an emphasis on specialty and challenging window projects.

 

 RESOURCES:

CUSTOM WINDOW TREATMENTS & ROOM STYLING: Sew Beautiful, sewbeautifulwindows.com (Lisa Hoekstra, Lead Designer), Severna Park, Maryland | CUSTOM BUILT-INS: TailorCraft Builders, tailorcraftbuilders.com, Severna Park, Maryland | FURNITURE SOURCING: Shofer’s Furniture, shofers.com, Baltimore, Maryland | ARTWORK: Nancy Hammond Editions, nancyhammondeditions.com, Annapolis, Maryland

 

Annapolis Home Magazine
Vol. 9, No. 3 2018