A well-decorated room is often composed of many design elements. This can take form in textures, colors, and also materials. Just take a step back and assess the room that you are currently in. Look at the furniture selection, but also look at the flooring and walls to see how these details support one another to tie the room together. Each of these components equally contributes to creating the overall atmosphere and feel of a given room.
Style and aesthetics are certainly important in a room, as this is what gives a space a kick of personality, but it also creates a space where an individual can feel satisfied to be in. Beyond being visually pleasing, a room’s interior design and architectural design can actually have an impact on your mood, as indicated by multiple studies in the past.
But making a room look stylish is not just the mission of an interior designer. A skilled interior designer knows how to put into perspective the lifestyle needs of a client, and these considerations are then incorporated into the final design of a space.
Weighing the importance of style and the lifestyle needs of a client, an experienced interior designer will have a solid understanding of working with the right materials.
At Stewart-Schafer, we are committed to creating designs that are both aesthetically pleasing, but also functional. Making the right use of materials is one of the best ways to add functionality to a well-designed space.
But you may be wondering, what exactly is the importance of choosing the right materials? Follow along as we walk you through some of the basics, while also exploring some design tips that you may want to keep in mind for your future design projects.
Just like in architecture, choosing the right materials is important in order to create a structure that is durable, but also fulfills its design purpose. You probably would not use fragile materials like talc or chalk to construct a building, knowing that it will not be able to stand properly. Instead, you would probably use durable materials like concrete and steel as it is functional and proven to be effective as a foundational material.
Now apply this type of approach with interior design. Selecting the right materials is not just done for the purpose of making a room look nice, it is intended to actually add some form of functionality to make a space more practical and usable.
Looking at common soft and hard materials that are present in a room, consider some of our points as we look at how these are used to make the best use of style and function.
From textiles to fabrics, these materials can come in many shapes and forms. Rugs, curtains, towels, and pillows just to name a few are all categorized under soft materials. But when using soft materials, what are some common uses for it?
Let’s start with comfort. Beds and couches are obviously built with a sturdy structure, but for them to be functional and ergonomic to use, they are lined and decorated with soft materials so that they are comfortable to be used for their design purpose. An interior designer also knows that there’s a wide array of fabrics to choose from to use with these furniture pieces. Silk, linen, cotton, these materials are often paired well with pillowcases and blankets.
Another common use for soft materials is to incorporate balance into a room. While this point is more within the realm of design, the focus is still on both style and function. A room that relies on being just functional will be boring and lifeless. Soft materials can have some of the best decorative pieces like curtains and rugs.
It is always a good idea to mix in these soft materials with hard materials to add variety to a room, while also ensuring that it is put together nicely. A skilled interior designer will know how to strategically add soft materials to a room in the right places.
Everything needs structure, but figuratively in the context of interior design, a solid base is needed just to make sure that the furniture in your room is standing sturdily. While it may seem obvious as to why hard materials are important to have, still consider the common uses for it when it comes to design below.
For many, practicality is an important factor in interior design. Hard materials are best used for practical designs, as they fulfill the structural needs that are essential in a room. For instance, consider the materials that are used in flooring and walls. With flooring, in particular, materials such as hardwood and tile are best used in certain rooms for their durability and practicality. Compared to soft materials, hard materials can be easier to clean in most cases which make them ideal for those who are focused on having a practical design.
Hard materials can also be effectively used for design. Accessories and decorative objects like vases and shelves are design elements that tie in style and functionality together in a room. What makes hard materials ideal is the fact that they are often more durable than soft materials, with some exceptions of course.
A skilled interior designer knows how to turn practical designs derived from hard materials into creative and stylish designs that tie in both aesthetics and function.
Given the distinction of soft and hard materials, a combination of both is often essential in many rooms to make it both stylish and functional. In case you are looking for design tips with which materials to use in common rooms, look no further than some of the suggestions below.
Kitchens are one of the rooms in a house that will often get dirty the quickest. This is mainly due to the fact that tasks that require food preparation and usage of kitchen appliances contribute to this. With this in mind, hard materials that use tiles and stainless steel would be ideal for the kitchen. Although soft materials will be used in the form of towels and other decorative objects, it would be best to keep it minimal as soft materials can be harder to clean, and it may not be the most practical to have it in a space that can get dirty very quickly.
Much like kitchens, the amount of usage that a bathroom gets means that it can get quite dirty in a short amount of time. While keeping functionality in mind, tile is often best used as a hard material in bathrooms. From flooring to walls, having these hard materials would be recommended as they are easy to clean and do not absorb moisture. Using a material like hardwood may not be a good idea for a bathroom, given how it is not as water-resistant compared to tile. Soft materials can be used in a bathroom, particularly ones that are more water-absorbent to use as rugs.
Compared to kitchens and bathrooms, a bedroom can actually incorporate more soft materials, as this room is often associated with comfort in mind. A typical bedroom is often composed of many soft materials, with a variety of textiles and fabrics being used to decorate it in the best way possible. Even with flooring, soft material like carpet can actually be used, although it may require a little more maintenance compared to hard material flooring like hardwood.
These are just some common forms of advice when it comes to incorporating hard and soft materials in certain rooms. It is important to reiterate that a mixture of these materials is often necessary to create a design that is practical, but also beautiful.
Although it may require a bit of expertise to understand which materials work best, consulting with an interior designer is the best approach if you would like to better understand how certain materials can be best used in different rooms. An interior designer will often provide a wide variety of options to individuals so that they can find something that fulfills their design taste, while also finding the balance to satisfy the needs of practicality and function in design.
If you have an interior design project in New York or Connecticut that requires some professional expertise, contact us today! We offer no obligations phone calls to answer any of your questions or concerns.
Stewart Schafer is an Interior and Architectural firm based in New York and Connecticut, click here to view some of our past projects and see how we can help.
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