LOVE AT FIRST SIGHT!
LOVE AT FIRST SIGHT!
Creating Focal Points in your Home
a focal point is defined as
The central or principal wall you see upon entering a room, or the wall facing the room’s dominant flow of traffic.
Why are focal points such a necessary function in creating a beautiful home? The answer is … “Love at first sight!” Fashion a home where you have the feeling that you have finally “arrived”, and that all is right with the world, giving each room order and a sense of balance.
It is a starting point, an epicenter for the room. Focal points give the eye a place of impact at which to start before beginning your visual tour. They help you maintain focus and act like a homing device which you can return to again and again. If a room lacks a focal point, it can invoke feelings of chaos and restlessness. A well-defined focal point will invite you to linger and enjoy the surroundings in a comfortable and serene environment.
Identify the focal point—a camera’s eye view
How do you identify a focal point? If no logical focal points exist, how do you create one? What establishes a valid focal point? Let’s explore these questions.
In order to identify a focal point, determine where the viewer’s eye will be drawn first. If at first blush, there is no obvious answer, try looking at the room through the eye of a camera. Position yourself in doorways and entryways, and snap a photo of your first glimpse of each room. With this method, you will have a “frozen image” of your first impression of each room. Evaluate each photograph and try to anticipate how a visitor would react. You may be amazed at the results!. Sometimes, you just can’t see the forest for the trees!
EXAMPLE
In one client’s home, the predominant focal wall had only an end table. We flipped the bed to its proper placement on the focal wall, end tables flanking it, and by doing so gained the opportunity to hang impressive artwork above the bed, creating a stage for gracious living.
There should always be a center of interest and you can apply this principle to your entire home. Using your own furniture and simply rearranging it, improves the room and establishes a clear focal point.
Natural Focal Points
Some focal points occur naturally in a home. They are inherent in the architectural features. Most commonly, these include fireplaces. A fireplace with built-in cabinets creates a natural focal point. By lightening, decluttering and editing accessories we set a beautiful stage. Bookshelves and built-in cabinetry or prominent windows are features that should always be highlighted and accentuated. Love at first sight!
If your walls are a subtle color, you can use a contrasting paint color, such as an off-white semi-gloss on a fireplace or on built- ins for an elegant, neutral sheen. Keep trim color consistent for uniformity.
EXAMPLE
Bookshelves and built-in cabinetry or prominent windows are features that should always be highlighted and accentuated.
Creating Focal Points
If a room is lacking focal points, you can create your own dramatic points of interest. Center a sofa, a bed, or any large piece of furniture on the most important wall. On a sofa, use colorful toss pillows and throws to add contrast, texture and visual interest.
In the bedrooms, whenever possible, the bed should be the focal point. Always use headboards and hang visually strong artwork over it to emphasize the bed and firmly “plant” it in place. Bed linens should be fresh and sumptuous to create an optimal effect. A pair of nightstands with lamps of equal height will give the bed more prominence and establish a stronger focal point. Set the stage and design a bed that beckons and invites you to dive right in!
Embellish your wall with interesting art or a grouping of art and/or textiles to enhance it. Take care to hang art so that it is centered in your line of sight. To help bring the eye up, hang artwork in sets, such as two over two.
To embellish your focal point, windows should be minimally dressed to soften and highlight them, and to allow as much natural light in as possible. Consider placing a light weight/open desk or console with a lamp and accessories in front of a window to create a beautiful silhouette, which does not block the window light or view, but evokes lifestyle or “a slice of life”.
An area rug is another good device, which may be used to emphasize the importance of and define a focal point or area.
Using Accessories to Enhance Focal Points
“Less IS MORE”
Mies Van Der Rohe
Accessories should be minimal in these areas, so they don’t compete with each other. Use those pieces which are unusual or have the most impact (color and size). This concept is the biggest secret to successful design, often overlooked in residential interior design and a key reason why clients consult me.
Every piece can’t be equally important. Some pieces are the blank canvas, while other pieces are the colorful brush strokes.
The Rule of “Take One Away”
“Before you leave the house, look in the mirror and take one thing off”
All talented designers and artists understand this concept and it applies equally to interior design in residential homes. In regard to your Accessories, take one away, stand back and look. Take one more away, stand back and look. When you feel it is lacking, stop and add one piece back.
Competing Focal points
In smaller spaces, take care to avoid competing focal points. This can make a room feel disjointed and lack balance. If there is more than one focal point, for example a fireplace and bank of windows or built-in in the same room, you can establish one of them as an obvious priority. Use contrast, such as color and pattern, or by virtue of sheer size, to establish one as more dominant over the other. In larger rooms, more than 20 feet in length or width, you have the opportunity to institute more than one focal point. It is essential however, that they balance one and other in weight, placement and character.
EXAMPLE
If there is more than one focal point, for example a fireplace and bank of windows or built-in, in the same room, you can establish one of them as an obvious priority.
Well-ordered spaces with clear points of interest tend to evoke positive feelings. People tend to be drawn to rooms with successful focal points, as they are ultimately more “livable” environments, which encourage conversation, intimacy and conviviality.
Creating effective and memorable focal points will make your home feel peaceful, inviting and welcoming.
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