Flair Egypt Magazine (Dec 2012) - Designing a residential project is far beyond a materialistic, lifeless experience. It’s truly personal; “we design a home not just a house “ is one of my strong convictions. I always stress on the necessity that homeowners who choose to handle that ordeal personally and not hire a professional to tackle the job, should educate themselves on certain basics in order to prevent reoccurring and common faux-pas. While reading through the deadly sins, I am sure you will find that many of them sound familiar.

1. feature
The Seven
Deadly Sins of
Interior Design
Designing a residential project is far beyond
a materialistic, lifeless experience. It’s truly
personal; “we design a home not just a house
“ is one of my strong convictions. I always
stress on the necessity that homeowners who
choose to handle that ordeal personally and
not hire a professional to tackle the job, should
educate themselves on certain basics in order
to prevent reoccurring and common faux-pas.
While reading through the deadly sins, I am
sure you will find that many of them sound
familiar. Nevertheless, the most common
mistakes are easier critiqued and discussed,
than actually prevented, while other, less-
orthodox misses, easily slip the mind of
an inexperienced homeowner. Avoiding
these mistakes will undoubtedly save time
and money, the two most vital factors that
affect your dream project as well as assist
in achieving the harmonious, coherent,
interior space that you aspire to have.
By Dalia Sadany
Deadly Sin # 1 - Plan & Budget
Many people get enthusiastic about their project with-
out thinking ahead, and eventually find themselves
stranded halfway and out of ideas. Several homeowners
get absolutely engulfed in an interior assignment that
exceeds their pre-planned finances.
Solution:
Have a vision of what you’re going to do from the start,
and plan it out properly. Many people spend more time
organizing their grocery list then actually sitting down
with a pen and paper to jot down a redecorating plan
that could cost thousands of pounds. Write your vision
or thoughts down and share them with your co-resi-
dents. Once everyone agrees, STICK WITH IT! Effective
interior designing requires a lot of planning and orga-
nization. If you rush through a few steps, you may find
yourself making decisions that have unfortunate conse-
quences. So be careful! Deadly Sin #2 - Slave to “Fad”
Money, Money, Money. Don’t let your imagination over- Pictures in magazines are usually exceptionally flashy and
power your bank balance. It’s nice to visualize your tempting to copy, especially the so called “in trends” and garding your living space, or else you might end up with an
home once you’ve finished it, but make sure it’s not some people tend to get caught up in that endless endeavor. incoherent design, where nothing falls into place, blends
going to bankrupt you. Keep your plans in line with your Solution: in, or resembles you and/or your family; in other words,
estimated budget and if you think you’re going too far, Remember that the house is yours–inside and out; it your space will very quickly go from “glamorous” to “ri-
pull back and take another look at it. Remember to should mirror, reflect and resemble you, your personal diculous.” Remember, that just like in the fashion world,
always pay close attention to your maintenance cost; preferences, your life style, and your interests. Always be fads and trends do not last, so do not “force” yourself
make sure it will not exceed your estimate. true to yourself when it comes to making decisions re- to live with a fad, which you might hate in a year or two.

2. Deadly Sin # 3 - Mimeses
Definition: allowing your taste to be over-influenced by that of other people to the extent
that you end up loosing your own “self,” and resort to duplicated theirs.
Solution:
Even if you are incredibly taken aback by your friend’s fabulous new place, do not resort to
cloning their style. What works for them might not necessarily work for you. As much as
a white Ultra-suede Fritz Hansen 3-seater is a sublime piece of art in your friend’s interior
space, it’s deeply doubtful that it would be a fruitful addition to your family’s living room, es-
pecially with your little 5-year-old sweetheart who just discovered the glories of finger-paints!
Deadly Sin #4 - Quality vs. Quantity
“Over vs. Under-priced purchases”
In other words, “trying too hard,” by purchasing a lot of expensive items in an at-
tempt to add value, while struggling to cut cost by compromising the quality of other
vital elements.
Solution:
When it comes to expensive, or designer, items, it’s better to have one exquisite
masterpiece known as a “focal point,” that pops out, rather than numerous ones,
which would create a cluttered effect. When it comes to cases like these, remem-
ber, that less is always more.
Avoid cheap knickknacks.The quality of good items will last and may hold resale value if
you choose to eliminate them later. Cheap products are always cheap and will end up in
a dumpster sooner or later. Just be sure that you are getting proper value for the amount
of money you’re investing. Also remember, that as much as the fact that expensive
does not always mean fabu-
lous, note that not all what is
cheap is a good deal, you have
to check durability, finishes,
as well as after-sale services,
which might be needed.
Deadly Sin #5 - Clutter
A multitude of people are more inclined to possess a surplus of items; in
some cases, people find it emotionally difficult to let go of old items, finding
themselves with a busy collage of even more find it emotionally difficult to let
go of old ones and end up with a busy collage of things lying around that will
give a disorganized and messy look to their abode.
Solution:
This is by far the most common mistake I see in my line of work. It has been
said that your room reflects your state of mind. An overcrowded room always
looks cluttered, disorganized and certainly smaller no matter how many times
you clean–or organize–it. Be sure to leave plenty of walking space.Try to grasp
some idea of what scale and proportion are all about. Scale is the size of each
piece, while proportion is how they relate to one another. Allow the room
to breathe. Stay away from the tendency to fill in the empty spaces. Having
furniture that is multi-functional will reduce the number of pieces in a room.
If you like to store items, at least keep them out of sight. Holding onto old,
inherited pieces is an addition if it is a designer-branded piece of furniture; un-
less you can remodel, repaint, reupholster that piece give it away. Everything
has a shelf line, holding onto something just because you have it, isn’t going
to glam-up your space. Be very precise about what you keep, what you let
go of, what you add to your new room, and eliminate items you seldom or
never use. Think Zen rather than flea market and you’ll be on the right track.
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3. Deadly Sin # 6 - Too much vs. Too little color
Mixing any two colors in an attempt to create a vivid palette and work on that, otherwise you will end up los- then nothing will stand out. Choose colors that coordinate
ambience, versus opting for a monochromatic color pal- ing the much-needed serenity your space should have. with each other.The room will look well organized and you
ette to tone down the designated space. Remember, you will most likely occupy this designated can make objects pop out instead of drowning everything in
Solution: living space for a while, and a bad color scheme could the same hue. Keep a comfortable and neutral color palette;
Don’t pick too many colors for one room. It will make wreck an otherwise excellent idea. don’t try to match different items with the same color, and
the room look too busy. Opt for one, compatible color In the mean time, if there is too much matching in one room remember, it’s always easier to contrast than to match.
Deadly Sin # 7 - Bad Lighting
An extremely common mistake that is usually poorly and table lamps for reading. Chandeliers offer overall
handled and continuously underrated is the lighting factor. ambience and illumination. Track and recessed lighting
Solution: provide accents for art and tasks. If you are going to use
Be certain that lighting makes or breaks a project. Light curtains, bear the following in mind: dark curtains drown
is truly the emotion of the room. You don’t want the a room. Use curtains or blinds that allow you to control
room to be too bright–increasing levels of tension and and manage the light. Natural lighting is the definitely
anxiety– and at the same time too dim, which will lead the best. Opt for types of lights that will enable you
to a gloomy atmosphere. There is a grand variety of to set the tone yourself when natural sources are no
lighting fixtures to choose from, so don’t be afraid of a longer ready at hand.
little research. Avoiding these generic traps could prevent your dream
Have several light sources in a space, and do not just interior task from turning into to a haunting nightmare
rely on one overhead ceiling fixture. Incorporate floor where amendments could bleed your pockets dry.