DESIGN IDEAS DEFINED

Art Deco:

Fashion influenced by primitive art and cubism.  More color, pattern, and grand ornamentation including motifs such as zigzags, and skyscrappers. 

Arts and Crafts:

Simple designs executed in natural woods.  Emphasis on handmade craftsmanship with strong, clean lines.  Stickley chairs are a fine example of this type of design.

City Chic or Transitional:

Neutral colors utlizing blacks, white, and grays in luxurious, high quality textures.  Polished chrome, steel, and wood with plenty of sheen to add glamour.  Muted colors add a sophisticated and tailored style.  Patterns tends to be woven, monochromatic, not patterned.

Coastal:

Usually a mix of blue, white, and beige.  The colors are taken from nature.  Often rustic wooden accents and textured fabrics are added to create a warmer look.  Decorated pottery, pewter, and Americana art adds a much needed flair.

Contemporary:

Means of the moment and usually combines influences, trends, and technology without a strict adherence to any one design principle. 

Country Cottage:

Look for dressmaker details such as ruffles, trims, a mixture of pleats, ribbons, and weltings add to this feminine and lovely look.  Colors run the gamut from pastels to small and large scale patterns.

Country French:

Earthy textures and bright patterns make this look exceedingly popular.  Colors are strong utilizing mustard, rusty reds, indigo, and warm greens.  Walls are often faux in natural colors.

Gothic Revival:

An emphasis on natural materials.  Arched top chair crests, rails and knobs, and lots of turnings in the kitchen and dining room.

English Manor:

A traditional style of floral, small prints, with a play on pattern.  Often jewel-tone colors in bright reds, yellows, blues, greens, purples, and oranges are found encased by printed wallcoverings, draperies, and upholstery.  Accessories abound as each table and shelf are filled with books and collectibles.

Lodge:

From Indian rugs to the American west; the use of rugs provides direction.  Twig, leather, and braided furniture are often trademarks of this style.  Accessories include iron, bronze, and heavy wooden beams.

Shabby Chic:

Faded paint, antique whites, soft ivories, faded roses make up this much sought after way to design.  As popularized by Rachel Ashwell, chandeliers, tables, headboards, and armoires are chipped, nicked, with discreet accents accentuating a pale backdrop.  Chandeliers drap from the ceilings.

Shaker:

Traditional furniture designs with little or no decoration or turnings.  Tends to be plain in appearance, using natural materials with a strong leaning towards function.

Villa Style:

The Tuscan homes of Italy inspire this look of earthy, weathered gold and rust colored stone and plastered walls.  Dark, rich, and rustic woods augment this look with an emphasis on wrought iron and woven tapestries.

Chippendale:

Features generous scale and chairs with straight legs.  Tends to be masculine, less curvy than Queen Anne styled chairs and lighter than Sheraton and Hepplewhite.

Federal Style:

Furniture designed during the early years of the formation of the United States, heavily influenced by classic Greek ideals and art.  Duncan Phyfe was the best known of these furniture designers.

Georgian:

Classical details influenced from Germany and Italy, this furniture tended to be heavy in proportion and details.

Louis XIV:

Large scaled furniture, excessive ornamentation, and strong color best exemplified the furniture stylings of the French Sun King.

Louis XV:

This style was feminine, sentimental, and delicate.  Smaller rooms forced more curved forms and more intricate details.

Louis XVI:

A reinterpretation of Greek and Roman styles, these designs showcased clean lines and balanced ornamentation.  Straight lines, compass curves, and Greek influences were keenly felt.

Queen Anne:

Named for the Monarch of England, this style featured cruved designs and Oriental input.  The famous chair used a generous curved (or cabriole) leg and remains popular even today.

Regency:

Graceful scrolls and curves were displayed but with restraint.  A transitional style that reflected an economic shift in the classic Rococo design.

Sheraton:

Delicately scaled furniture with Neoclassical elements as well as elaborate design motifs.

Victorian:

A period of decorative excess was also known as the mauve decade.  The use of wine-pink and eggplant colors created and copied nostalgic inspired Gothic, Renaissance, and Oriental designs.

FABRIC DEFINITIONS

Calico:

A cotton fabric that uses small, brightly colored prints .  Cheerful and modest, this type of material works best with a Country style of decorating.

Chintz:

Features large scaled floral arrangements in a variety of colors.  It is typically associated with the English Manor style of design.

Flame Stitch:

Multicolored and tetural, flame stitch tends to work best with traditional, more masculine furniture.

Gingham:

This pattern consists of a two colored check or buffalo check (blue and white, red and white, yellow and white) and usually is a woven cotton fabric. 

Herringbone:

A diagonal ridge that reverses direction gives this weave a vertical stripe effect.  Closely associated with fashion designer Ralph Lauren, it compliments chintz, stripes, and flame stitch.

Stripes:

Repeated vertical lines, they come in a variety of patterns from awning (big, broad, & monochromatic; roman (alternating bright colors of varying widths); satin (matte and dull combined in silk and synthetic fabrics); and ticking (narrow, cotton material most over used for pillows and slipcovers).

Tree of Life:

Oriental rendering of sprawling trees with patterns of other plants and animals.  Usually large in size, it works well in formal living and dining rooms.