Mixing Accessories

My Mom has finally moved to the area and in doing so, we have had to place her things in the new house. Finding the right balance of accessories for this new space has been a challenge. Her old home was traditional in the layout with lots of walls on which to hang artwork and accessories. The new house has an open floor plan that has fewer walls but one or two that are gigantic in size. The challenge has been to take the older, more traditional items and make them work in the new space. Ever had that happen to you? What came to mind as we worked to dress the walls were the tried and true design principles that apply to these situations. First, remember to balance your purchases in size and scale. My mom has a ton of wonderful artwork; however, most of it is smaller in scale. She needs to purchase one or two oversized pieces to balance all of the smaller items. The same goes for tablescapes. You don’t want everything on your end tables, chests, or bookcases to be similar in size. Pair an oversized box with a small frame and a medium size candle. Choose one large decorative accessory and showcase it on its own shelf. Leaving some book shelves minimally adorned will help the eye rest from all of the visual stimulation of book covers.
For wall groupings, remember to hang like things together for impact. To further the impact, frame the items all alike. For instance, my Mom is working on a family wall grouping. She has chosen candid black and white photos of all of her grandchildren. She is going to change those photos that are in color to black and white. All of the frames are similar in finish. She has chosen different sizes for interest, but the unity of the photos and frames will make for a beautiful wall arrangement. Just so you know, we are still working on the enormous dining room wall. Together we are looking for just the right mix to keep the wall from dwarfing the room. You know what that means... SHOPPING!