How brave are you?

Do you look conventional design in the face and scoff? Are you that decorating maverick who can make anything look good regardless of where you bought it? I’ve seen people drag furniture out of a dumpster who end up with the most stunning pieces versus some who will pay top dollar for everything and still not be able to make it look right.

I have met a few brave hearts in my day and they always stand out in my memory. One client was an artist who was exploring the combination of lime green and bright, sunny orange tones. She was renovating a bathroom and had fallen in love with a quartz countertop in the most vivid shade of green.

One look at that countertop and her mind raced ahead to the possibilities and she came at me with a monstrous palette of paints and fabrics which blended orange and green together.

It was such a fun project and we ended up expanding into commercial linoleum for the floors to get the exact hue of orange she was looking for.

Caesarstone still produces this delicious countertop, they call it ‘2710’, exciting…right? I still think about my client when I see a sample of this mind blowing colour. It reminds me of how much fun we had working on this renovation and the huge wow factor we were able to achieve in a small room simply because she was brave.

Clients will start out with a dose of ‘I want the WOW factor’ and then when presented with it, they back away and return to the safety of common place items. They either have shown their ideas to someone who talks them out of it or they worry about what future resale will be like if they take a chance.

There are two schools of thought on this. 1. How long do you plan to reside in this home and are you decorating for you or for that potential somebody who may look at your home? 2. If you decorate in colours and styles that you truly love you will be happy with it for years and years and won’t worry if it goes out of style.

Design your home for YOU! I find that people who play it safe are not fully satisfied with their homes and often redecorate within a few years. Clients have even said to me, “Oh well I will put this stuff in for now and rip it out and do it again”….why, oh why would you do that? Why not use all of your creativity and produce a home that is truly you?

If you are moving into this home, get funky and decorate just for you.

I always tell clients that I am here for guidance but I don’t live in their homes with them so it has to be products and colours that they love.

If you work with colours and hues that you love, I promise you will never get tired of looking at what you have created. Years and even decades from now you will still love what you have chosen, like a favorite piece of jewelry or art. You can invest in a colourful and vibrant signature piece and still love it for decades because it is a true reflection of your personality.

Be brave, take on a personal design challenge and get funky!

Kim Meckler is an interior designer in Red Deer with Carpet Colour Centre.