Another Round Of Rapid Fire Design Questions From You, Answered By Me

Today is round two of my Q&A design lightning round series (if you missed round one head here). You have questions, I have answers… and you also have some questions and that I also sometimes don’t know the answer to even though I kinda think I should at this point (ha!), but HERE GOES.

design by tom filicia | photo by pieter estersohn | via architectural digest

“Colored trim: yay or nay? Can you just do one room, or should it extend throughout the entire house?”

Colored trim – YAY, but know that it’s a choice that you might change your mind on long term (and it’s ok, it’s just paint). Now painting trim is harder than walls for sure, so it’s not such an easy “don’t worry!” kind of advice. Here’s what I’d do – mock it up somehow. Either paint a piece of paper and tape it along the window or use colored tape to do one window and see how it feels before you do all of them. By the way, I think the crown and base mouldings aren’t that big of a deal to paint more than once, but door and window mouldings are because they need to open and close without sticking and the amount of times you paint does affect that.

And oh my gosh I’ve wondered that second part of your question so many times myself. I think ideally anything architectural should be consistent throughout the house (or consistently inconsistent). We wanted to paint the kid’s room trim (base, window frames, and doors) the same as the walls, but it was weird because then do you paint one side of the door one color and the other (say into the hallway or bathroom) another? That felt weird. So I think you’d do both sides. BUT what if that color didn’t look good in that next room? I think this decision is easier when you are renovating and you make that same decision throughout the whole house – where the rooms can be different, but at least they are all different. For us, we stayed with white because the entire house has white trim and it felt a little try hard to have just ONE room different. Also, our windows are so old and have been painted so many times that we didn’t want to accidentally paint them shut. I think one thing I’ve always gotten stuck on is I thought that the door color needed to match the moulding. It doesn’t. I’ve toyed around a lot with painting all our doors upstairs a color, but then I get scared…

design by dee murphy dee design| photos by zeke ruelas

“I get overwhelmed with choosing colors for each room of the house. How do you determine what to use in each room so everything looks like it flows together?”

I think it really depends on the house. Here’s what I’ve learned – older homes or more traditional homes that are more chopped up with traditional “rooms” can have different colors and can really be addressed design-wise as individuals. Once you get to a more open space plan and you can see rooms through other rooms, you need to be more curated. The mountain house is so open that I want it all to flow and to visually not break up the space with colors. But I’ve been to so many homes where each room is its own thing and that is very exciting, too. I love when you walk into a room and you get a new experience from it that you didn’t in other rooms. Dee Murphy (above) is a GREAT example of this. We shot her house for the book (not those photos) and I was so impressed with her bravery, she just went for it in each room and while they all feel collected and happy, they feel different and individually designed.

design by thurman design studio | photo by david tsay

“Are any matching sets ever stylish? Or should we always mix and match? (Bedroom, living room, dining.)”

Yes, they can be stylish. They are coming back, guys. I think eclectic is ALWAYS in, but I think for minimalists who want to play with just a few finishes and get a more streamlined look it can look really good, if you choose wisely. I think it more comes down to what you choose. Very few “sets” of furniture bring in personality (except when you have chairs like the two above that Laura Thurman used above). Generally, I would stick to a simple headboard with simple nightstands, that really just create a basic backdrop (if you are going for a set). For the living room, I like a sofa + matching chair set, but I haven’t seen a room in a long time that I’ve loved where the sofa and both chairs all match. I’m not saying it can’t work, but it can also look like you just went to your local furniture store and bought floor models. It’s also a bigger commitment that you might regret, whereas doing a more eclectic look is actually easier to pull off (especially when you mix in vintage).

from: the portland dining room reveal

“I’m looking for dinner plates and wallpaper (unrelated) but I’m having so much trouble sourcing them because there are so many options for both and I can’t tell where to start or what’s good. Are there any Em-Henderson-approved suggestions so I can at least narrow my search parameters a little bit?”

I REALLY wanted you to say that you want your wallpaper and dinner plates to match, I would LOVE to be your friend and eat in that dining room. Short answer, yes, there are a WHOLE BUNCH of Em Henderson-approved vendors in this post. Scroll down to Tabletop and then to Wallpaper — these are the brands we turn to when we’re sourcing for a shoot or for our own homes!

photo by sara ligorria-tramp | book 2 sneak peek