Summary

TEN MASTER DESIGN STEPS
by Caroline Millett

1. FIND OUT WHO YOU ARE AT HOME.

• Evaluate your entire personal environment.
• Consider radical alternatives, like renovating or moving.
• Identify your place in the realm of fashion and period of styles.
• Determine whether or not you need expert assistance.

2. DISCOVER TREASURES YOU ALREADY HAVE.

• Learn to perceive with all six senses
• Keep what you love; reject what’s useless and ugly.
• Discover how to “read rooms”.
• Use your own imagination as a treasure.

3. DEVELOP ONE-OF-A-KIND CONCEPTS.

• Create a theme: art requires organization of ideas.
• Practicing envisioning techniques.
• Make your totally personal statement

4. BASE A BUDGET ON REALITY.

• Appraise your existing assets and disposable income.
• Check prices for proposed purchases.
• Get estimates from design professionals and contractors.
• Establish priorities, making sure beauty stays at the top.

5. CREATE COHERENT ROOM ARRANGEMENTS.

• Study your lifestyle before arranging your spaces.
• Work out focal points, traffic patterns, and density levels.
• Draw floor plans and elevations to scale.

6. USE LIGHT AS REVELATION.

• Evaluate existing lighting, both functions and fixtures.
• Decide how much ambient, task, and accent light you need.
• Use light to reveal your works of art.

7. PLAY WITH THE MAGIC OF COLOR.

• Look at color as a personal matter.
• Learn the basics: hue, value, intensity.
• Experiment with unique color concepts.

8. GO SHOPPING AT LAST.

• Identify the best sources, and concentrate on quality.
• Consider hiring a designer to buy for you at a discount.
• Find out how to make shopping a gratifying experience.

9. PULL YOUR ROOMS TOGETHER ARTFULLY.

• Study esthetic principals and apply them three-dimensionally.
• Create active rooms for comfortable living.
• Learn how to display collections and artworks.

10. HAVE A PARTY!

• Edit what you’ve already accomplished – and then embellish.
• Be open to change: the best décor is evolutionary.