Tricks of the Trade
by Karen Templeton  

~ Combine opposite elements for a warmer, more interesting feel. Add velvet or nubby pillows to a smooth leather sofa, for example. To add visual appeal, try pairing components of shiny and matte, straight lines and curves, dark and light, rough and smooth.

~ Use an area rug to define a conversational grouping. This anchors the elements of a seating arrangement and helps to create a more intimate feel. An area rug also serves as a natural inspiration from which to pull color palette direction for a room.

~ Hang artwork so it is related to your furnishings. Wall art should be an extension of a vignette or piece of furniture, not merely filling a blank wall or floating off in space. To further ground artwork displays, slightly overlap the edge of an arrangement with a nearby item.

~ Create a second conversation grouping if you have a large room, rather than one arrangement whose seating pieces are “shouting distance” apart. And it is always preferable to create furniture groupings that cause a path to go around a conversation rather than through it.

~ Bring the outside indoors through the use of plants and dried elements such as salt cedar or curly willow. Placed to interrupt the edge of a window, plants serve to blur the line between inside and out. Try utilizing flora appropriate to the season, such as amaryllis or evergreens in winter.