The Rural Voice, 2001-06, Page 46Home Decorating
June's a perfect time to plan improvements
By Patti Robertson
June — what a perfect month to
surrey one's home and property with
the intention of restyling and
updating the exterior of our humble
abode!
Of interest is the fact that whether
one's real estate holdings are of
grand proportion or quaint and cozy
in size. the same rules apply — the
most charming stylings are always
devoid of pretense. It is of utmost
importance that one is aware of the
identity of one's home's historical
styling. Is it a Classic Gothic, (fondly
referred to as the typical Ontario
farmhouse)? Is it Victorian,
Georgian, a Cape Cod cottage, or a
bi-level hillside home? Knowing the
style of one's home and the historical
detailing along with the customary
accessories and features will greatly
enhance your renovation project.
To start with, I suggest you walk
your property. Start in the front yard
and make notes of all the "bits and
pieces" and "odds and ends" which
both call to you and are endearing
features, or the ones that need to be
amended. Make at least a three-part
list under the headings of "needs to
be done now (ASAP)", "would add
value to home", and finally a "wish
list".
Now evaluate your site's styling.
Are buildings and the property
working to your advantage? Are the
walkways wide enough? Is there
plenty of storage for the barbecue,
lawn mower, kids' toys, etc.? Do you
need to add fences, patios or a deck,
etc.? Is the garden located to your
liking? Do the kids have a suitable
play area or is there a better location
for the doghouse? Put all these
notations onto paper.
Now measure your property,
gardens, trees, outbuildings,
laneways, walkways, etc. and transfer
your data to a scaled -grid plan. Make
lots of copies of your graph. Take
pictures of all sides of your home and
all angles of your property. On
several occasions I have used a black
and white photo or a sketch of our
home to test out a new colour scheme
with pencil crayons before applying
42 THE RURAL VOICE
the actual paint. Once you' \
completed a background study of
your home and property it's time to
look at the elements of design in
relationship to your home's
requirements.
The element of space: our home.
gardens, fences, garage, etc. all take
up space on our
lot and, as a
result of our
emotions, come
into play with
the effect being
presented. What
is happening to
your feelings
and emotions in
relationship to
the presentation
of your home?
Do you have
feelings of
protection, or
being exposed?
Or possibly a lonely, or isolated
feeling or a feeling of being trapped?
Analyze any resulting effect and set
about balancing the problem area —
sometimes this is as simple as
erecting a privacy fence or removing
the overgrown shrubs from in front of
a window.
Next we evaluate the shapes and
forms of our home and outbuildings,
gardens, etc. — are they harmonizing
with each other and the space they
utilize? Is there some variation
amongst the shapes and forms to lead
the eye, give direction and create an
overall interesting effect to one's
property?
Now, analyze the lines of your
home. What is the dominating line
and what effect is it creating? Is it a
vertical, created from the home's
high elevation or tall columns, or
long windows or possibly the very
tall trees surrounding the home? Or is
it more horizontal in styling as in a
tanch style, or a long low verandah?
Is there enough variety with the
introduction of curved, diagonal or
fanciful type line which are
introduced through the use of
Palladian windows, stairways or ,
railings or the brickwork? Remember
Taken an
inventory of your
home's assets
one line should always be the
dominant effect while another line is
added purely to create interest and to
lead the eye.
Landscaping should serve the
main purpose of blending or
"marrying" our home into the natural
surroundings on which it is situated.
Texture is another element of
design with a major impact on the
final presentation. Are the various
mediums being used in the design of
one's home working and blending
tastefully with one another, creating a
complementary effect?
Take a good look at the siding in
relationship to the brickwork and to
the materials used on the garage and
the deck, etc. Concrete, wood,
wrought iron, stone, shrubberies, etc.
all have texture which is either formal
or informal in effect and need to be
addressed to achieve a suitable
desired effect.
Now let's move on to the
cosmetics of our homes, namely the
use of colour. Colour is the magical
design element that can change the
apparent size and shape of one's
home. Research what colourations
are historically correct for your
home's style. Often a three -tone
colour scheme is desirable for the
optimum effect when correctly
applied. Note also, that a smaller
home most often benefits from a
narrow tonal range in colourations,
while a larger home can often sport a
greater range of colour quite
gracefully. Always ensure that your
front entrance receives special
attention, thereby creating the most
dominant focal point on the entire
facade! I also suggest that the florals
and shrubbery you choose also blend
and enhance the colourations in use
on your home.
Presently most major paint
companies have created colour charts
that assist the homeowner with
selecting three colour scheme ranges
for optimum effect. Always "test
drive" your desired choice of colour
first on a sample board leaned up
against your home and viewed in all
the various lights your home falls
under, for a simulated effect.