Choosing a design for different rooms
Design translated from English means not only to design, but also a plan, drawing, drawing. Therefore, it is better not to keep the design of a home in your head, but to transfer it to paper. Fortunately, the possibilities of the Internet are so great that you can do interior design yourself without hiring professional designers for a lot of money.
Living room design
The living room has long ceased to be exclusively a room for receiving guests. A room in which no one lives permanently, but at the same time serving as a room for the whole family to spend time together, is called a living room.
The living room should be bright, cozy, bring warmth and comfort. The room should be equally pleasant for adults and children. Therefore, it is necessary to achieve a feeling of space, light and cleanliness.
When developing a living room design based on a white floor, you can achieve an expansion of space and a visual increase in area. To do this, you also need to leave the walls a light shade. If you overdo it with white, you can turn a room from cozy and comfortable into cold, distant.
To avoid transition, the design of the living room should contain finishing elements (or decorative elements) in bright or dark colors. These could be doors, baseboards, trim, picture frames, sofas, chairs.
Bedroom design
The bedroom, unlike the living room, does not require visual enlargement. The room may be small, but it must be a cozy space.
To make the bedroom seem warmer, light floors must be complemented by walls in dark pastel colors. Sand, plum, caramel, and chocolate colors are perfect. A dark floor is not the best choice for a bedroom space.
Additionally, you need to think about the color of the furniture and accessories for the bedroom.
If the walls are quite dark, then it is better to choose light curtains, sconces and bedspreads, matching the color of the floor. If the floor and walls remain light, then the textiles must be dark. This will prevent the bedroom from turning into a room without shapes and colors. A harmonious combination of light shades in decoration and dark shades in furniture will add a sense of style, warmth, and harmony to the bedroom. A large number of combinations of white tones will add coldness.
Kitchen and bathroom design
The kitchen and bathroom are rooms where the word “cleanliness” comes first. It is recommended to use the same material for the floor of both rooms. So let's combine them.
The kitchen and bathroom are high-use areas. The number of visits to these places far exceeds the use of the bedroom or living room.
Frequent use of a room increases the level of pollution. Therefore, it is recommended to use a design based on the dark color of the doors, the dark, non-stainable color of the floor, trim, and baseboards. The use of dark color is explained by the low level of soiling, which leads to the need to wipe the product less often, and, accordingly, to less wear.
In fact, everything is far from true. Rooms such as the kitchen and bathroom are cleaned regardless of the appearance of contamination. Rooms with high humidity levels that require special care. Such a room is at risk of mold growth. Therefore, regular ventilation and wiping is a necessary procedure.
Grease stains from cooking require frequent cleaning. Accordingly, using a light color to decorate the kitchen and bathroom is not at all scary and is completely acceptable.
When choosing a light-colored floor when designing a kitchen, you can use the principle of zoning the room. For example, near the kitchen unit, in the passage areas, the shade of the floor can be lighter; the place where the table will be installed can be highlighted with a dark floor.
The advantage of a light-colored floor in these rooms is its versatility. Against the background of a white, coffee, or light gray floor, any wall color will look beautiful. We combine a light floor with any color of the kitchen unit; brightly colored furniture will appear juicier.
A light-colored floor can not only expand the room visually, but also add a sense of cleanliness. A dark floor is significantly inferior in characteristics to a white floor. The color of the floor should hide traces of water drops and stains.
In what cases is light parquet suitable?
Light parquet will fit perfectly into modern design. Ideally, this type of flooring will fit into modern, minimalist, country and ethno styles. Dark wood species will decorate a room decorated in Rococo, Baroque and Antique styles. Such parquet will give the room an atmosphere of prosperity and will look elegant.
Parquet adds sophistication and beauty to the room
It will be possible to make parquet flooring in a light color if you give preference to such solid wood as:
- maple;
- oak;
- beech;
- ash.
Parquet will never lose its color or fade in the sun if the surface is treated with a high-quality finishing coating during installation.
Fits perfectly in many styles
Light parquet, in our opinion, will give the room a feeling of lightness and help the apartment's inhabitants relax. Ideally the material will be combined with light walls. The choice of decor and furniture in this case will not be difficult. Dark or bright furniture will allow you to create a noticeable contrast with parquet.
We recommend installing parquet of this shade in the nursery, bedroom or kitchen. The flooring is not suitable for the corridor, as this room quickly becomes dirty, which is why the parquet board will quickly lose its presentable appearance. For those who decide to lay solid wood in the hallway, it is better to choose dark shades.
Don't forget to use a topcoat
Light parquet will help hide the flaws of the room and highlight its advantages. Using the coating you can achieve the following effect:
- Parquet boards of this shade will complement a small room well. Parquet will visually increase the space, especially if the walls are decorated in a similar color.
- When the room faces the north side and there is not enough light in it, a light array will also come to the rescue.
- It will be possible to visually increase the height of the room if the floor is lighter in color than the walls.
A light floor increases space
Choosing wall color
Options for combining the colors of floors and walls have already been presented a little higher. Let's consider the issue in more detail. When combining a white floor with the color of the walls, remember the following:
- Light floors and walls give a feeling of spaciousness. But too much light - and the room lost any outline. It did not turn into a spacious room, but became a shapeless, huge, even cold room. When combining light with light, the shade of one of the elements should be different. For example, the floor is milky, the walls are white. Or the walls are peach-colored - the floor is light brown, two shades darker than the walls.
- A light floor, dark side walls and a light back wall (viewed from the door) will bring the feeling of a tunnel. If the room is too square, then creating a tunnel effect is acceptable. If the room is rectangular (most rooms in city apartments have a rectangular shape), then any furniture will be “lost” in the room.
- A light floor and a dark back wall will steal the depth. The room will seem smaller, warmer, even in feel. It is unacceptable to use a room with a total area of less than 18 m2.
An excess of white color - we repeat - instead of feelings of purity and calmness, it will bring a feeling of coldness and detachment. It is necessary to “dilute” the light floor with additional elements, details of a different color scheme. A combination of a dark floor with light walls will look more harmonious.
Light shades of the floor harmonize perfectly with dark and bright colors. Depending on the type of room, wishes, and lifestyle of the owners, the walls can be painted in any color. The rules for distributing color in a room remain unchanged.
When choosing a color for the walls in a design with a light floor, you should stick to a uniform color. The brightness and richness of the design should be added with decor or pieces of furniture. For a room with a light floor, a variety of furniture options are suitable - classic, modern, hi-tech.
The right combination of dark and light wallpaper in the interior
Beautiful combinations of colors in the interior of a room are the dream of any person who has started a renovation. Today, many combination methods have been developed.
Pay attention to the advice of professionals on how to visually increase the height of the ceiling:
There are universal ways to select colors:
- Easy combination. This method is characterized by the use of two colors.
- Complex combination. This method involves combining more than two colors and shades.
- Unusual combinations. This method involves combining more than three different shades.
When combining dark and light wallpaper, it is important to decide what result a person wants to see after the renovation. When using dark and light tones, one of the colors will definitely prevail. Light wallpaper is not necessarily white or beige, it can be pink, pistachio and peach colors. A dark wall will be a kind of interesting accent in the room.
A great option is to decorate the room with black and white wallpaper. This combination is bold, daring and interesting. Black and white wallpaper is ideal for a classic or high-tech style.
Choosing colors for doors and skirting boards
Doors and baseboards are irreplaceable elements of the overall style of the room. The first thing to note is that the doors must match the style of the floor. For example, the floor is wooden and a plastic door is installed. This combination is unacceptable. The wrong choice of material and color can destroy any harmony.
The basic rule of designers is that the floor, door and baseboard should be the same color. The presence of a dark-colored floor in the room leaves no choice; the door and baseboard are automatically matched to it.
The light floor gives free rein to your imagination. Doors in dark shades and those as light as the floor itself are perfect for a light-colored floor. Dark doors can add clarity to the interior of a light room, while a dark baseboard will highlight geometric shapes.
Dark doors against a light floor can add visible space. For rooms with an area of 2 * 3 m2, dark doors will turn into an absurd bulky structure.
If there are two doors to a room, located next to each other, then they should be the same color, while light doors may get lost against the background of a light floor and walls. If these doors hide the bathroom and toilet, then this is exactly the effect you want.
When choosing the color of the baseboard, you can rely solely on personal preferences. The plinth can be white, black and colored. The main thing is that in the overall design the plinth does not “harm” the eye. The color and shape of the baseboard matches the door frames perfectly. Designers recommend using the same material for the platband and baseboard.
Light floors: main disadvantages
Supporters of dark-colored flooring can name quite a few disadvantages of light parquet in the interior. The main ones:
- Unnaturalness. In many ways, how light parquet will play in the interior depends on the color of the walls, furniture, textiles and lighting. Often, bleached parquet looks yellowish or beige, i.e. you may not get the effect you expected.
- On a light-colored floor, all the slightest dirt is visible. Therefore, such a coating is highly not recommended for installation in the hallway.
- Excess light. Visual expansion and a certain airiness of the interior with improper planning are often incompatible with home elitism and comfort. Having achieved one goal, you can easily damage another aspect of the interior. For example: an excessive abundance of light colors will give an atmosphere of facelessness and coldness. Therefore, when choosing light parquet, you need to carefully consider contrasts.
In conclusion, it can be noted that with the competent development of a project for the future interior of an apartment/house, any minus will turn into an unconditional plus. There is no need to be afraid of bold decisions, be inspired by modern ideas - the main thing should be harmony everywhere.
for cleaning parquet
Selecting curtains
When choosing curtains for a room with a light floor, it is necessary to maintain a feeling of harmony, cleanliness, and space. The choice of fabric color should be in harmony with the overall design of the room. The fabric material is airy, transparent, light. Chiffon, satin or organza are perfect. The type of fastening does not matter.
Where is herringbone parquet used?
In our opinion, the simplest and most understandable floor covering is in the form of a classic herringbone. The dies here form a pattern in the form of a symmetrical Christmas tree, which is why the parquet board got its name. When laying parquet, the tiles can be made in one shade or in different shades, shading each other.
“Herringbone” looks no less impressive
Using the herringbone pattern is important when arranging a room in a style such as:
- Modern . The parquet board will give the overall design an atmosphere of mystery.
- Classic . A room made in this style will look harmonious with parquet; the flooring will add a touch of elegance.
- Provence . The coating will add an element of warmth and additional comfort to the French style.
Let's add a touch of elegance with this pattern
Lighting
For an interior with light flooring, lighting plays a big role. The white tint of the floor adds light to the room, but only with sufficient natural light.
When using one chandelier, the floor will appear white - directly under the lamp, and dark - in the corners of the room.
To avoid a visible transition, it is recommended to supplement the interior with lighting in the corners. You can consider lighting options directly for pieces of furniture - sconces, floor lamps, hanging lamps.
In an interior with a light and dark floor, halogen lighting around the perimeter of the room looks great.
Advantages of modular parquet
In our opinion, a real natural analogue of tiles is modular parquet. Each element here is designed in the form of a square with a pattern in the middle. This material can be used in any room in the house. If the dies are resistant to moisture, then it will look great not only in the main rooms of the house, but also in the kitchen.
Classic versions of modular parquet will perfectly complement the Baroque or Empire style. It is this coating that will allow you to plunge into the era of the 15-16th century. Coatings where the pattern imitates ceramics, stone or metal can be used in high-tech style.
Modular option can be placed in any room
Thanks to the universal texture of modular slabs, they can be combined with other floor coverings. A combination of parquet with laminate or even ceramic tiles will give any room in the apartment a special personality . When laying modular parquet, a beautiful patterned canvas is formed that perfectly matches other decor. Such a floor can also, on the contrary, stand out brightly against the general background of the room.
Selecting flooring material
There are not many options for choosing flooring:
- natural wood (parquet);
- laminate;
- linoleum;
- ceramic tile.
Perhaps some readers of the article would classify carpet as a floor covering, but this is not so. Carpet or carpet is an external decorative protective covering; the basis will still be the materials from the listed list.
The floor covering rarely changes, so it must be strong from the very beginning. It is unacceptable to use flooring materials that do not match the type of room.
The color of the floor should match the design, light flooring should match the colors of the walls, dark floor should match the doors and baseboards.
Natural wood
To produce flooring materials in light shades, oak, maple, ash, birch, and hornbeam are used.
Any of these materials has a big advantage - naturalness and environmental friendliness. But there are also disadvantages:
- Artificial lightening. Natural wood, when processed into parquet, is lightened in factories in large batches. When released, the color turns out to be monochromatic, especially if the manufacturer cares about its image. But how natural wood will behave under the influence of light, moisture and other external factors can only be guessed at. In some places, if exposed to direct sunlight, stains and discoloration may appear.
- Stylistic affiliation. Natural wood flooring is used for minimalist and sometimes modern interiors. In a modern high-tech style, the naturalness of wood will become an absurd design mistake.
Laminate
Laminate is a universal floor covering for any room. The modern market allows you to choose laminate flooring in a wide variety of shades, even white.
With the right choice of characteristics, laminate can be used in the kitchen, living room, hallway, even in the bathroom. For places where moisture accumulates, care must be taken to ensure that the laminate has moisture-resistant qualities.
The only disadvantage of laminate as a covering for light-colored floors is the method of its installation. If the laminate is laid across the line of light, the joints will be too visible. For a dark shade of laminate, the problem is also important. The laminate must be laid along the line of light.
Linoleum
The most common type of floor covering, linoleum, gained its popularity back in the last century. This material is practical for use in any room, washes well, and fits comfortably when laying.
In construction stores you can choose linoleum in different colors, including light shades that imitate wood or laminate.
Light-colored linoleum flooring is difficult to distinguish from a well-laid laminate.
Linoleum is sold in cut pieces of standard width - from 1.5 m to 4 m. If the room is wider, the covering has to be glued together. This is done using a special technology, preferably by professional layers, but the seam at the joint is noticeable in any case. Over time, it can come unglued, water from cleaning gets into the gap, and the overall unattractive appearance of the floor becomes visible.
Another disadvantage of linoleum can be considered that it belongs to the household, semi-commercial, commercial class. The higher the class, the greater the wear resistance of the material (the ability to withstand the weight of furniture, resistance to pressure from heels, etc.) The higher the durability, the higher the price.
About additional design elements
It is believed that floors in light colors are so universal that they can be used with any other colors. However, it is important that there is a noticeable contrast in the room.
The perfect combination of a couple of bright accents with an overall neutral finish on the floor, walls and ceiling
Bedroom interior in pastel colors, diluted with olive textiles
You can achieve 100% harmony in an interior where light colors predominate using the tips below:
- You should approach the choice of fittings responsibly - the furniture should never merge with the walls.
- Dark shades are a must, but not going overboard with their abundance is also important for the mood of the apartment.
- It is appropriate to use decorative pillows or blankets with patterns, bright frames, and vases.
Bright accents of turquoise shades in the interior of a gray living room
Light-colored floors are part of a classic interior that is constantly evolving and acquiring new features. Neoclassicism has contrasting minimalism, stylish laconicism and is widespread. Thanks to these qualities, light-colored floors are also one of the most popular design solutions.
Glossy floor in a spacious classic-style bathroom
Light laminate flooring in a Scandinavian style living room
Wooden plank floor in a Provence style kitchen
See alsoZoning a room into a bedroom and living room
American walnut
American walnut flooring looks very unusual in interior design. You can choose parquet boards in various shades - from gray-brown to rich chocolate. In some cases, dark woods have a beautiful purple hue, which gives the room an atmosphere of mystery and sophistication.
Application of solid walnut board
The beautiful wave-like pattern of dies with curls is great for decorating a room. We do not recommend using parquet darker than American walnut in the interior. It is on American walnut that dust is not visible, and the rich chocolate shade of the parquet creates a beautiful contrast with the light walls.