Hotel rooms become homier with calm and comfortable accessories
Q: I grew up in a house filled with "accessories," my mother called them. I call all those items tacky and don't want it in my contemporary home. But last weekend, I overheard my cousins talking about my house and they said it looked sterile - like "a hotel room where nobody lives."
It made me mad at first, but now I wonder if living without clutter could be considered hostile. What do you think?
A: Evidently, your cousins haven't stayed in a good hotel recently. The trend in hospitality design is to make hotel guest-rooms look and feel as comfortable and personal as home. And, yes, that includes good art and well-chosen accessories, as well as posh bedding, state-of-the-art electronics, and good feng shui to keep guests' chi (energy) flowing freely.
Creators Syndicate photo courtesy of Michael Wilson
"We involve our feng shui consultants to make sure the space is designed with energy and inspiration," says Wilson.
And that's not limited to hotels in Shanghai or Singapore. Dallas-based Wilson & Associates also has offices in New York, Los Angeles and Johannesburg, South Africa.
Hotel guests and homeowners "are looking for the same thing - a space to live in that offers comfort and luxury," Wilson reports.
After designing more than a million hotel rooms, one of the tips she would share with home decorators is: "art and accessories can really enhance" a space. "A wonderful piece of art when it is appropriately placed can carry any room."
So there, the voice of experience is urging you to relax and rethink those empty walls and bare table tops. Whether or not you are overreacting to your mother's tendency to over-"accessorize," don't be afraid to express your individuality through art and other items you enjoy. Every room needs personality to make it a home, even in a hotel.
You can check out other homey hotel rooms by Wilson & Associates at www.wilsonassoc.com.
Q: Here's a decorating problem I've never seen you tackle: Where do you put old furniture when you buy something new? We live in the country where there's no such thing as bulk pickup - we'd be stuck with anything we get rid of in order to make room to redecorate. It's a Catch-22.
A: Do I have good news for you, and for anyone sitting around with an old sofa on the front porch or in the side yard? Not Catch-22, but Help1Up - the nationwide charity affiliated with the National Furniture Bank Association (NFBA). Help1Up collects gently used and new home furnishings from homeowners and gives them to individuals and families in need.
More than 100,000 families were helped last year, including 40,000 Hurricane Katrina evacuees. Here's another statistic that should send you racing to your phone or computer: 250,000 American children will have to sleep on the floor tonight.
Lift them up, literally, by donating serviceable beds and other furnishings. To locate a furniture bank near you visit www.help1up.org or call 800-576-0774.
Rose Bennett Gilbert is the co-author of "Hampton Style" and associate editor of Country Decorating Ideas. To find out more about Rose Bennett Gilbert, visit the Creators Syndicate Web site at www.creators.com. Decor Score