June 15, 2003|By Elaine Markoutsas | Elaine Markoutsas,Universal Press Syndicate
There's a renewed spirit in home design. Lean and clean are fast becoming buzzwords. Accompanied by dazzling technology, what with slim plasma TVs that hang on walls like art, minimalism has us thinking that perhaps we have too many tchotchkes -- too much stuff.
There's other evidence. Check out the design magazines at your local supermarket. Many covers and layouts are stripping down elements in favor of simpler images and graphics. Lifestyle publications like Real Simple promote stress-free living for home, body and soul.
"We went through a decade and a half of clutter," says Vicki Ingham, author of New Classic Style (Meredith, $34.95). "It was excess in the name of coziness. Today people want to declutter, to get rid of all the stuff. But, by the same token, we can't live in totally minimal environments. The question is how to streamline without making your home stark and cold."
But it's not just about eliminating the fat from furnishings. Elements of modern design such as stainless steel, today's favorite material for kitchen appliances, have been moving into other rooms of more traditionally appointed households.
The converse also is happening: Modernists are cozying up their cool chrome-and-glass tables with everything from 19th-century lacquered Chinese cabinets to baroque mirrors.
"Many have had a long-standing prejudice against modern," Ingham says. Some think the look is "plastic, cheap, cold.... But any hard-edged surface can be tempered."
What emerges is a blend: Traditional pieces can anchor a modern room, lending a comfortable familiarity. And modern pieces can loosen up a traditional room.
In short, both traditional and modern camps are morphing, the cautious and more conservative acclimating to tailored shapes sometimes seasoned with bold color and pattern. And form-follows-function diehards are growing accustomed to a dash of ornamentation. The result is a warmer, but less cluttered, look.
This balance is apparent in the west elm catalog launched last summer. Targeted at Gen X-ers, west elm is the newest division of Williams Sonoma Inc. Dominated by chocolate-finished furniture with straight lines, west elm's Zen-like urban spaces are punctuated by geometric elements in rugs and concrete floors.
Pottery and glass celebrate shape and color. Fabrics are textural, such as velvets and linens. There is evidence of ornamentation -- quilting, embroidery or beads -- yet it all has modernist sensibilities.
Ingham's book shows that it's acceptable to mix something old and something new -- in fact, it's best if you do.
Her own epiphany came when visiting a Boston loft to be photographed for a decorating book. As one who grew up with 18th-century reproduction Duncan Phyfe mahogany furniture, she was captivated by mid-20th-century modern furnishings mingled with 19th-century antiques and folk art.
"The mix struck me as so appealing. It was clean, and yet warm. The antiques anchored the modern stuff and gave it a feeling of depth," Ingham says. Mixing old and new takes sophistication and boldness.
Chicago shop owners Boyce Moffitt and Lee Pomerance live in a loft that blends off-the-rack IKEA with classic antique Steuben glass. Their loft, which appears in Ingham's book, also focuses on designs they carry in their store, No Place Like. Pomerance says either extreme of strictly modern or strictly Victorian seems "flat."
Mixing, for fresh style
Successfully integrating different styles to create the kind of eclecticism that's fresh requires a few basic tips.
* Pay attention to scale. A lot of mid-century modern pieces are lower and smaller than more traditional furniture. "If (furnishings) are out of scale, they're not going to look right," says Vicki Ingham, author of New Classic Style (Meredith, $34.95).
* Use color to unite design elements. So long as the shade of the wood or the fabric harmonizes, pieces from different periods can work.
* Repeating shapes creates unity. But creating counterpoints can be just as effective. Modern tubular steel chairs might easily suit a setting dominated by antiques in highly figured woods and rich tapestries.
* Practice. "The more people are exposed to mixing," Ingham says, "the more comfortable they'll be with it. They'll find that it has much to offer in the way of uncluttered comfort."
Sources
Ethan Allen Home Interiors
888-324-3571 www.ethanallen.com
west elm
800-699-2297 www.westelm.com
Pottery Barn
888-779-5176 www.potterybarn.com
Crate & Barrel
800-967-6696 www.crateandbarrel.com
