Southern Living

...now browsing by tag

Coordinating the Bed and Bath

Friday, February 11th, 2011

Does your bedroom and bath visually flow together ?

Hattie Wolfe and Abby Rizor

Would you like to coordinate the two rooms together? Design an ensuite?

via Apartment Therapy

“Ensuite refers to a bedroom constructed with its own toilet and bathroom (i.e. it does not share these facilities with any room). All Ensuite means is that all bedrooms have their own toilet and bathroom,” states Neptune Shelter Limited (the name ensuite came from France-those fancy naming people! hee hee).

When decorating a master bathroom, the first thing I do is look at the master bedroom. For most people, the master bathroom needs to be a reflection of the master bedroom. Homeowner’s like it to effortlessly flow from one to the other, and they need to complement one another. So if the bedroom is already established, then I look at the bathroom and think of how going to make this look like a huge master suite.

Amanda Nisbet

I think that if the bathroom and bedroom are to work successfully together, their schemes need to relate, while at the same time maintaining their own individual character. An effective way of achieving this is by reversing the bedroom scheme in the bathroom – that is, taking the bedroom accent color and using this as the main color for the bathroom, and adopting the main bedroom color as an accent color in the bathroom.

As an example, in the picture below, I used a similar light blue violet color in the bathroom. I then used a deep, darker blue for the walls in the bedroom to continue the color scheme.

Here are just a few suggestions to keep in mind when choosing colors and fixtures for the bath:

Keep the expensive items – ceramic tile, countertops, bathroom fixtures – in neutral colors. Remember, neutral is not just white, gray, or ivory – but can be almost any color as long as it is muted. You will not be replacing these items very soon and you may want to change the color scheme. With neutral colors you can easily give the room a whole new look while not having to spend a fortune.

Elle Decor

Apply your dramatic color to the walls, towels, window treatments, rugs or accessories. These things are easily replaced.

Southern Living

Just be sure to use consistant elements in both rooms that coordinate in your paint choice, fabrics, flooring and decorative accessories. Stick to one mood, such as formal or informal.

Do you even want to coordinate your rooms together? Or do you like the idea of two separate rooms to design and decorate any way you wish?

Comments?

If you would like help combining your bed and bath, contact me today!

Perfect, Neutral Gray

Wednesday, March 24th, 2010

Did you know gray is considered to be the perfect neutral color?

: Robert Allen Design

Color and design experts have agreed gray has become a comfortable companion in the decorating world that is here to stay. Gray is considered to be the most neutral of all colors because it plays well with all the other colors. Gray is a quiet color that enjoys being in the background and not competing with other colors.

Sophisticated shades of gray on the walls and ceiling provide a cool backdrop that contrasts with the artwork.


WARM GRAY	COOL GRAY
Mixed with 6% yellow.	Mixed with 6% blue.

Most gray tones have a cool or warm cast to them. Yellow, orange, and red create a “warm gray”. Green, blue, and violet create a “cool gray”.When there is no cast at all, it is referred to as “neutral gray”, “achromatic gray” or simply “gray”.

The above photo is painted a beige-gray to create an elegant backdrop for the trendy combination of robin’s egg blue and chocolate brown. This would be an example of a “warm gray.” Other examples of warm grays include Ben Moore’s, Greige Avenue 991; (equal mix of gray and beige), Sag Harbor Gray, HC-95; Waynesboro Taupe, 1544; and Cummulus Gray 1551.

Cool Grays

These grays above are considered “cool” because of their blue undertones. Colors in this family include Ben Moore’s Smoke, 2122-40; Misty Gray, 2124-60; November Skies, 2128-50; and James River Grey, AC-23.

Alessandra Branca

This bedroom is an example of neutral gray. Think of it as a gray with no undertones, true grays. They include Boothbay Gray, HC-165; Pelican Gray, 1612; Seattle Gray, 2130-70 and Coventry Gray, HC-169.

Whichever gray you choose, always be sure to test your paint colors at home. The colors will not look the same as in the store! It absolutely is worth the extra time and the $6.00 paint sample to be sure that looks well with your lighting and amount of sunlight you receive.