home interior design ideas

In the public rooms a variety of lighting conditions sets the moods for the many interactions that are likely to happen. The sparkle and brightness which accompany festive occasions, the dusky half-light for quiet conversations, the even wash of light for brisk businesslike contacts, the soft surround of light for encouraging new friendships, as well as many other possibilities for memorable human contact, are helped along by the fixtures we choose.

Rooms that are mostly used at night provide unique stages for lighting. The surrounding darkness signals a slowing of pace, a separation of the public and private. It’s time to replenish the spirit, refresh the body, get ready for the activities of the next sunrise.

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The social patterns of eating used to be pretty clear cut. The well-off ate in formal splendour in a well appointed dining room, their children well out of the way in the nursery. Today, with less room and even fewer helpers, people have to plan to eat as pleasureably as possible according to a vastly different set of of circumstances. We like to have it both ways – a bit of elegance and formality when it is called for, and a cosy place for an easy-going family meal. In either case the eating place must be close to the kitchen.

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Seating arrangements, should be conductive to conversation and relaxation and further the feeling of togetherness. Seating furniture, meaning chairs and sofas, are the nucleus of a good living room. This means chairs and sofas to suit different tastes and purposes ; a sofa on which one can stretch out ; a chair offering head and neck support with perhaps a footrest ; a chair that is comfortable for needlework or reading. Think out of possible ways of sitting and relaxing before making a final choice.

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