Principles of Design

There are seven main design principles in the Interior Design field. These consist of unity and harmony, balance, focal point, rhythm, and details. If you know these basic design elements you will be able to distinguish the difference between a well designed room and one that is only mediocre. It will also help you in your next designing experience. The above picture is an example of a space designed off  of a few of the principles.
 
Unity and Harmony is the commonality in a space. Bringing this principle to a space would consist of using a consistent them and style throughout the room. Everything in the space should work together and flow. Another way to create unity is through color, for best results here, using three of four different colors will create a successful space. In the room shown above they used unity and harmony through the colors used. The seating ties into the curtains, which ties into the walls, it is a flowing space that keeps your eyes moving.
           
Balance is the distribution of weight in a room. There are three kinds of balance which are symmetrical, asymmetrical and radial. Asymmetrical balance is more popular for interiors at this day and age. The example picture shows this because nothing is centered as it would be with radial or symmetrical. At the same time, it all flows successfully and keeps moving so that is works for this space. The tall walls lead your eyes upward will the low height of the ceiling pulls them down to eve everything out.
           
Focal points are used to create interest in a space, it is dominant and there are sometimes more than one depending on the size on the room. The catch about a focal point is not making it to prominent to where it steals the attention from the rest of the room. The way to doing this successfully is maintain a sense of balance and staying with the theme. The focal point in this room is the window and the large plant and vase to the left.
           
Rhythm consists of the repetition, progression, transition or contrast of a space and is the organized movement that happens. Repetition is in this space through furniture use and line use on the walls. The arched window leads the eye to the lower portion of the space, this is transition. Contrast is used through the black and white houndstooth pillow, which does not go with the space but creates just enough variety to work.
           
The last design principle is details, this is the color and scale used in a space. The scale and proportions works well in this room because all the other principles come together to allow it to do so, from the height of the ceiling, to the lowness of the couch, and then to the largeness of the vase and plants.

Unusual Materials

In today’s world, more and more people are recycling anything and everything that they have and making things out of them. They are using usual, everyday items in an unusual way. An example of this is skateboard lounge chairs. Most of these chairs are made from reclaimed skateboards found at skate parks or just from previous owners.

The skateboard lounge chair originated from a headrest which resembled the shape and size of a skateboard. Designed by Skate Study House, their most popular chair, the Godfather chair is a modern chair inspired by a Charles Eames design. It is a row of seven skateboards aligned and covered with material for comfort. These are also available for indoor and outdoor use. The outdoor designs are covered in the same material as a surfer’s wet suit. The designers of Skate Study House’s goal is to build furniture in the eyes of a skateboarder. In other words,  make anything they can of skateboard materials and parts. Skate Study House also designs many other pieces of furniture from skateboards. All of their designs have a Californian West Coast influence to them. One of these is the Skateboard Stool made entirely of skateboard parts sculpted into a stool. They alsocreate benches, lamps, bookshelves, coffee tables, and loveseats. This company strives to recreate for skateboards and they do it in a very desirable and tasteful way.

Almost anything can be reused in a different way to create something functional and original. Skateboards are just one of the endless examples of how an ordinary object can be pieced together in an unusual way. Other types of unusual materials are being used, for example bottles used to construct real full scale house or ice to build a hotel. There is always something out there that can be reused and made into something completely new, and as designers this is very important to know if you want to stand out from a crowd!

Information from: www.skatestudyhouse.com

Color is one of the most important factors in a room. It creates a sense of feeling in a space and often determines the success of a design. One of the number one paint manufacturers in the United States is Sherwin-Williams. They have hundreds of colors to choose from and many resources to help when choosing a paint color. Some of the most popular of these resources include an application for smart phones, color fan deck and box, and magazine issues.

ColorSnap is the new smart phone application for iPhones and Androids. It is a free downloadable app that allows for color matching. For example, there is an item that you love on a flower outside your house and you wonder what color that is because you know your living room would look beautiful painted that way! With this Sherwin-Williams ColorSnap app a picture can be taken from your smart phone’s camera and the closest match to that color will appear. You may also scroll for more shades of that color if it is not what you are looking for. Once the desired color is found it can be saved for future reference and the Sherwin-Williams number will be given to you to take to your local Sherwin-Williams store. With this app it will also show you coordinating palettes and find a store near you.

The Sherwin-Williams fan deck and box are some of the most used items in the design world for paint. Included in the fan deck are over 1,000 different colors organized by the saturation level of that color. This is widely used for finding a desired color for a space. Each sample contains the Sherwin-Williams color number. And if the color is needed for a design board, larger samples are available in your local store or through ordering on the Sherwin-Williams website. If you are a design professional you may be qualified to order a Color File which contains both interior and exterior large paint samples in a portable box.

The third most popular Sherwin-Williams resource is their magazine issues called Stir. These issues contain information on the current color trends and advice on color. It is a resource that helps you in your color knowledge all together! The most current 2011 Stir issue contains articles on high spirited, bright hues and how to approach these kinds of colors. It also contains the 2012 Colormix which reflects earth’s natural colors, such as neutrals, greens, blues, and reds. There is also a STIRvey, which is a survey done by Sherwin-Williams which evaluates how valuable resources such as blogs, technology, and media are in the design world for finding and using color.

Sherwin-Williams is a great design source for your paint and color needs and they have excellent resources for their customers. Visit www.sherwin-williams.com for more design ideas, tips, etc. or visit your local Sherwin-Williams store.

Campus Materials

In any commercial space certain materials must be obtained, and with these materialsthere is criteria that must be met. Schools are a major type of commercial building. People pass in and out of these facilities on a daily basis, therefore every textile, material, and surface must be durable. There are six types of fabric application, seating, window covering, wall covering, panel systems, floor covering, and fiber-based art. Most of these are used in every commercial space.


In the Student Union Building at Texas Tech University, many different fabric applications may be found. One of these is seating. Because the Student Union Building is a high traffic area and is used on a daily basis, durable material must be used. On most of the upholstered chairs you may find a polyester blend material. The application of this material is actually quite successful. It is a comfortable material and because of its material blend of polyester it is easy to clean and fairly durable. This material can be found on these chairs in geometric shapes and in solids. Durability is very important because students sit on the chairs every day, even sleep on them sometimes! The chairs have been upholstered in this material for a few years and have hardly any wear to them, if not any, and will probably stay that way for a couple more years. Unfortunately, users tend to get tired of the material and want something new and updated, despite the condition it may be in. The ability for the fabric to stay clean is also an important factor because people are always on them and the chairs are located near areas of food.


Texas Tech University was very successful at choosing a very durable material for their seating. It has held up for a few years and a lot of students eating, sleeping, drinking, etc. on them. The pattern placement was also good. It showed a flow match placement. This where the pattern of the fabric matches where each cushion ends and the next starts. This is very pleasing to the aesthetics side of the building. Overall the seating in the Student Union Building was very successful in their application.