Posts Tagged ‘Space Planning’
Pangaea Interior Design: How to Arrange Furniture in Long Narrow Spaces
Wednesday, December 28th, 2011
Is your room so long and narrow that you get the urge to put on some tacky shoes with big numbers on the back and throw a ball down a bowling lane?
Well, unless you love living in a bowling alley, check out the following Ideabook and get tips on furniture arrangements that WON’T make you feel like you live in a tunnel.
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Tags: Bedroom, Design Tips, design trends, furniture arrangement, Interior Design, interior design portland, Living Room, modern design, narrow rooms, Space Planning
Posted in Bedroom, Colors, Cool Ideas, Design Tips, Dining Room, Furniture, Home Office, Interior Design, Living Room, Lofts, Seating, Space Planning, Uncategorized | No Comments »
Daring Style: Bedroom and Bath All In One
Wednesday, December 14th, 2011
In lofts and open plan homes, leaving out walls opens up the floor plan and creates a spacious feeling. One trend is to have the bathroom and bedroom completely open to each other. Definitely not an option for the shy! What do you think? Is that going too far in the quest for open space?
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Tags: Bathroom, Bedroom, Bedroon and Bathroom All In One, design trends, Interior Design, interior design portland, loft, Lofts, modern design, open space plan, Space Planning
Posted in Bathroom, Bedroom, Design Tips, Interior Design, Lighting, Lofts, Uncategorized | No Comments »
Pangaea Interior Design’s 32 Creative Ideas for your Nightstand
Wednesday, November 9th, 2011
When finding that perfect bedside table there are SO many things to consider, and who says it even needs to be a table? Well I certainly don’t. If you have been spending hours shopping around to find the perfect side tables to hold your bonbons & that nightly glass of wine, check out all the things to consider when finding your dream nightstands.
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Tags: Bedroom, bedside tables, Design Tips, end tables, furniture arrangement, Interior Design, Lighting, Night stands, pedestals, Space Planning, storage, task lighting
Posted in Bedroom, Colors, Cool Ideas, Cool Stuff, Design Tips, Furniture, Interior Design, Lighting, Shopping, Trends, Uncategorized | No Comments »
Pangaea Interior Design’s Fall Premiere Season: Where to put your TV
Friday, November 4th, 2011
If you are a TV addict and you want to make sure you don’t miss a minute of your favorite shows, there’s always a way to sneak a TV into any room, whether you want to watch your soaps in the Kitchen or bath tub, sitcoms in the living room, or sports in your man-cave.
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Tags: bath tub, Bathroom, Bedroom, Design Tips, Dining Room, Fireplace, Flat screen, furniture arrangement, home theater, Interior Design, Kitchen, Living Room, Lofts, man cave, modern design, Space Planning, storage, tv, tv placement
Posted in Bathroom, Bedroom, Cool Ideas, Design Tips, Dining Room, Fireplace, Home Office, Interior Design, Kitchen, Live/Work Spaces, Living Room, Lofts, Mistakes: Avoiding & Fixing, Seating, Space Planning, Storage Solutions, Uncategorized | No Comments »
Getting the Room Right: Avoid the Top 10 Decorating Mistakes – Part 1
Thursday, August 25th, 2011
If you have been struggling with decorating your home and just don’t seem to be getting the room right, chances are you’ve made one — or two, or seven — of the top ten decorating mistakes. Check out these great examples of rooms that have successfully dealt with these common design issues. This is just half of the list, so if you don’t see your particular issue, read Part ll for the second half of the list. The link is below the photo.
Navigate through the photos by clicking on the little dots under the photo, or click on the text under the photo to open the full Ideabook, complete with other readers’ comments. See what others have to say on the topic.
Click here for Part ll of Getting the Room Right: Avoid the Top 10 Decorating Mistakes
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Tags: accent lighting, curtains, dining chair, Dining Room, drapery, fabric, furniture arrangement, Lighting, Space Planning, task lighting, Window Treatments
Posted in Design Tips, Dining Room, Furniture, Interior Design, Lighting, Living Room, Mistakes: Avoiding & Fixing, Seating, Space Planning, Top Ten, Uncategorized, Window Treatments, windows | No Comments »
Where to Put the TV When the Wall Won’t Work
Saturday, August 20th, 2011
Finding a great spot for the TV is a challenge in many homes. For people with open plan homes or lofts with few walls, placing the television can be even tougher. You can float the TV away from the wall if you follow these practical design tips.
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Tags: furniture arrangement, hide tv, IR repeater, open floor plan, placing tv, Space Planning, television, television placement, tv, tv placement
Posted in Cool Ideas, Design Tips, Furniture, Interior Design, Live/Work Spaces, Living Room, Lofts, Space Planning, Storage Solutions, Uncategorized | No Comments »
Portland Interior Designer Shares How to Float Your Bed – Loft Style!
Wednesday, July 20th, 2011
In Portland, lots of us know how to float a boat — plenty of water for that! But this post is about how to float your bed! If you live in a wide open loft or have an extra large bedroom, floating your bed away from the wall can be an option for you — or maybe even a necessity! I have tips on how to handle your bedside tables and lighting when you decide to float the bed.
Tags: bed, Bedroom, floating bed, houzz bedrooms, Interior Design, loft, loft bedroom, Pangaea, Space Planning
Posted in Bedroom, Cool Ideas, Design Tips, Furniture, Interior Design, Lighting, Live/Work Spaces, Lofts, Space Planning, Uncategorized | No Comments »
Could Your Living Room Be Better Without a Sofa?
Wednesday, June 1st, 2011
Do you find that just about no matter where you place your sofa in your living room, it just never seems to work? With smaller homes, the living room may have doorways or windows on almost all walls making it tough to find a good direction for the sofa. Well — did you ever think that maybe you don’t actually need a sofa? After all, there is no “design law” that says you must. Check out these examples of living rooms that work beautifully without a sofa in sight.
Click on the dots under the photo to navigate to other photos. Click on the text below the photo to open up the full Ideabook and also see the comments from other readers. People had definite opinions about this!
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Tags: chair, chaise, couch, daybed, Design Tips, furniture arrangement, Living Room, Seating, sofa, Space Planning
Posted in Cool Ideas, Design Tips, Furniture, Interior Design, Living Room, Lofts, Seating, Space Planning, Trends, Uncategorized | No Comments »
Bold Moves: Thomas O’Brien Validated My Creative Interior Design Instincts
Sunday, January 24th, 2010
Today I got a big boost of validation for my creative interior design instincts from Thomas O’Brien! Not that he has any idea he did this, of course. But I found out today that I have something interesting in common with this famous designer who has designed residential interiors for the likes of Giorgio Armani and Ralph Lauren, and who has become known to the masses with his Modern Vintage® line of home furnishings and accessories for Target just to name a little of what he has done. At this point in my career I can’t name celebrities as my clients and so far my designs are not found at Target. So what could have happened that makes me feel that he and I are in sync regarding interior design and that he would approve of my instincts?
I’m getting there, but I’m going to make you wait for it another minute or two.
If you know me, you know that I totally love lofts. I’m crazy about their open space and the total freedom to arrange your space any way you like. I want to live in a loft! However, my husband and I live with our six cats and two dogs in a 1970′s modern tri-level house. It’s architectural style is very contemporary with a pretty open floor plan, which we love, and it is in the forest next to the Sandy River, where we have total privacy. As much as we love it, and are grateful to have this home, there are some aspects of the floor plan that just don’t work for us and that have bothered us more and more lately. Here goes — it has a big sunken living room facing South with big windows and fantastic views of the river plus a big family room off the kitchen that opens onto a deck over the river, also with fantastic views. It’s just the two of us, so we don’t need both. Also, we recently got rid of our old sectional, so the living room was empty and unused. While these two rooms face South and have loads of natural light, the master bedroom is on the Northwest corner of the house, so it gets no morning light at all – dark as a tomb! – and it doesn’t have a view of the river. Another negative is that the en suite master bath just has a shower, no bathtub. My husband and I love bubble baths and the only tub is in the downstairs bath just off the living room. To top it off, my husband has been affected in a very pronounced way with Seasonal Affective Disorder and the lack of natural light in our bedroom has become a HUGE issue. Add two big dogs and their beds into the mix, and the room was crowded!
So, about a week ago in a burst of defiant creativity, I decided it was stupid not to use the house in the way that works best for us, and I moved our bedroom into the living room. Yes, that’s right. I have turned the living room of this 2100 square foot house into our master bedroom. We LOVE it! Waking up to have this enormous volume of space and big tall windows letting in all of this light has been so good for us. We now have a fireplace next to our bed which we’ve used every night. And, there’s a lot more room for our dogs and their beds so we aren’t tripping over those anymore. The bathroom with the tub feels as if it is our en suite master bath, and our guest room on the same level is going to be my new giant walk-in closet. We’ll put the guest room upstairs in the old master bedroom. After all, it’s just me and my husband so who cares where we sleep?
So, back to Thomas O’Brien. Today I was in Borders Book Store and I picked up a copy of Elle Decor’s “So Chic: Glamorous Lives, Stylish Places“, written by Margaret Russell and the Elle Decor Staff. I usually just flip through these books looking at the pictures, but for some reason actually began reading the story on Thomas O’Brien’s New York City 1100 square foot, one bedroom apartment. And yes, you’ve probably figured it out by now. Thomas O’Brien moved his bedroom into his living room. He also concluded that his apartment wasn’t being used to it’s full potential and he just went for it. He loves his living-room-turned-master-bedroom too!
I just can’t begin to tell you how happy that made me! I had been embarrassed to let anyone (especially clients) know that we had moved the bedroom into the living room. I thought people would think I was out of my mind and that I didn’t know what I was doing when it came to good use of space. But when I read that a famous and wonderful designer like Thomas O’Brien had come to the same conclusion in his home and took the bold move of using his space however it suited him, I didn’t feel embarrassed anymore. In fact, I just realized that I’ve been wanting an open loft to live in all this time, and without having to spend a dime to remodel, I was creative enough to create a loft out of the space I have.
Have you ever used a room in your home in a completely creative and unexpected way? Did it work out for you? Did people laugh at you, or were they envious that you had the nerve to think outside the box? I’d love to hear your own stories. And Thomas, if you ever read this, thanks for sharing your unusual and creative use of your living space. You made my day!
Tags: Bathroom, Bedroom, creative, en suite, Giorgio Armani, guest room, Interior Design, Living Room, loft, master bedroom, Ralph Lauren, So Chic: Glamorous Lives Stylish Places, Space Planning, Thomas O'Brien, walk-in closet
Posted in Bathroom, Bedroom, Cool Ideas, Design Tips, Interior Design, Living Room, Lofts, Space Planning, Uncategorized | No Comments »
Great Home Office Design: Portland Interior Designer Shares 4 Key Design Elements
Saturday, January 16th, 2010
It all started last year when I finally bought a laptop computer with my Christmas money. I was so excited because I could finally do some work while I sat in the shade on our deck overlooking the river. But I still thought I would need to use my older desk top computer in my home office. Boy, was I wrong! After a whole year, I have never again sat in my office to use the desktop computer. My laptop has everything I need.
The second thing that happened — my new business coach talked to me about creating a work space that was comfortable and free of distractions. I realized my office wasn’t comfortable because I hate sitting in an office style chair. I’m much more comfortable sitting in a lounge chair with my laptop — um, well — on top of my lap.
Then the third thing — one of my technologically savvy clients turned me on to various wireless technology that makes it so I no longer have to deal with a hideous mass of cords hanging under my desk.
So, I’m completely re-thinking my home office and turning it into a haven — yes, that’s right, a haven — where I can retreat to focus on work. I’m re-examining everything in there to make it function just right for me. If you are ready to re-vamp your home office, or setting one up for the first time, the following questions and tips will help you create an office that works for YOU!
1. Equipment:
Do you still use a land-line telephone? I disconnected mine when I realized that I only used my fax machine 3 times last year and I make and receive all of my calls on my cell phone. I’m saving $40 per month by getting rid of the land line. That got rid of an ugly phone and answering machine on my desk and eliminated 2 phone cords and an electrical cord – Yay!
Do you still use a desk top computer? Some people need them for the large screens. Mine was 6 years old, and my 1 year old laptop actually has 8 times as much memory capacity. So, for me, the laptop is all I need and that eliminates a whole bunch of stuff from the top of my desk.
Wireless docking stations and wireless printing: My techno-savvy client told me about these advances in modern technology. Why would an interior designer be so excited about this? Well, it means that you are no longer forced to put your desk on the wall right next to the cable or phone outlet. You don’t even have to put your desk or docking station in the same room as the cable outlet! It totally eliminates so many cords hanging under your desk, so you can sit your desk in the middle of the room if you feel like it and only need to be concerned with an electrical cord or two. This is amazing design freedom!
2. Layout:
Now that you have all this freedom to put your furniture where you want it, you can arrange things any way you like. Here are some tips on layout.
If clients come to your home office, the best impression is made by having your desk face the entrance to your office. Having your back to the door is also bad feng shui.
If you are the only one who goes into your office, then consider placing your desk to take advantage of a nice view. No view? Then treat yourself to some nice art so you have something beautiful to rest your eyes on when you’re thinking.
An L-shaped desk is generally more efficient and comfortable to use (as opposed to a desk in front of you and a credenza behind you) when you have many items you need to reach for over and over. Place the things you need frequently closest to you, and the rest further away.
3. Furnishings & Aesthetics:
Your chair is the single most important piece of furniture in your office. If you will spend hours sitting in it, it’s worth it to invest in a very comfortable one. If you sit at a desk to work, having a foot rest is great for taking stress off your lower back. I personally don’t spend much time at my desk. Instead, I have a work table for when I need to do a design board. So, in my office, I brought in a deliciously comfortable lounge chair, an ottoman and a side table to hold my drink. You might like to have a sofa or loveseat if you have the space. If all your work is done via laptop — maybe you don’t even need a desk!
Closed storage will hide less attractive items behind doors and keep your office feeling serene and uncluttered. Open storage is best used for items you want on display and for items you have to reach for repeatedly throughout the day. Lateral file cases are generally easier to place in a small room than traditional file drawers.
Beautiful furniture will make you feel pampered and lend an air of graciousness to your work space better than pieces that look like they belong in a commercial office.
4. Location & Separation:
If you have a separate room for your home office, you are fortunate because you can close the door on distractions in your home and you can also close the door when you’re done for the day. If you must locate your work space in the main living rooms of your home, then look for ways to give yourself some separation.
A closet turned into a workspace can be closed up when you finish work. An armoire with fold out desk can do the same thing.
Sliding doors, curtains, or free-standing screens can all be employed to provide separation as needed — either to keep distractions out or to hide the workspace when the work day is done.
This is a big subject. I haven’t even addressed lighting or paint colors yet. So, keep an eye out for the e-book I’m writing on the subject. I hope to have it launched next month.
With careful thought about your personal needs, technology that gives you freedom, and the space available for your home office, you can create a place to work that will help you achieve your goals for 2010.
Tags: chair, Design Tips, desk, furniture placement, Home Office, Interior Design, layout, office, redesign, Seating, Space Planning
Posted in Cool Ideas, Design Tips, Home Office, Interior Design, Seating, Space Planning, Trends, Uncategorized | No Comments »