8 Things Every Room Needs

This month we wanted to share our top list of items every room cannot live without! Although a room will come in a variety of sizes, shapes and functions, a space can be made better by adding these simple touches.

Books and Magazines

What a terrific way to let your personality shine! Not only for your reading pleasure, but to also express your interests.  By layering cookbooks in your kitchen, Danielle Steele in your bedroom or a collection of magazines that reflect your personality, you will enjoy them each and every time you walk into the room.

Whether you’re a literature buff or not, you’ll have a ball collecting your favorites!

A bookcase craves books, a fun tip is to hit up your local library to browse the shelves in search of just the right color palette or subject matter that suit your taste and interests. If you’re collecting books as space fillers, remember that you can remove the sleeves and display the binding color. Collect color palettes that enhance your room, black, tan and brown are always great stand-in’s, but you can always take a leap by adding sage greens or pale pinks for added fun and style.

Have fun and let your personality shine!

Select a color scheme and buy books within that range.

Greeneries and Flowers

Every room is better with touches of greens and flowers all throughout the year.  Whether you have a green thumb or not, there are options for you. Take a weekly trip to your local market and grab a bouquet of fresh cut flowers and add them to your favorite glass vase!  Have fun arranging them and being creative mixing the varieties you purchase. If you’re up for the challenge, live plants are always a nice addition.

Favorite Tip for live plants: Pot them in all alike containers, example; white, cream, gray or black pots.  Keep the pots neutral so your plant varieties will sparkle.  We also advise to keep your live plants in collections, try layering them on plant shelves.  Have fun being creative.

There are wonderful alternatives for those of us not born with a green thumb!  Permanent foliage in a variety of greenery options or beautiful silk florals are realistic, maintenance free and easy to clean.

Whether you choose to add a permanent Yucca plant in your great room or live herbs in your kitchen, either option will breathe oxygen and life into your home or office.

Candy Dish

Grab your grandmother’s crystal dish or your favorite clay bowl and have a ball filling them with treats for your guests (and yourself)!  Keep it simple with Peppermints, M&M’s, Hershey Kisses or have fun with trips to your favorite candy store for a variety of caramels, chocolates or tarts. Your guests will love the added touch and your family will welcome the treat with each visit. Candy alternative, try some nuts or granola!

Scents

Nothing sets a mood quite like the scent of something delicious. Aromas can be acquired in a variety of ways; candles, incense, room fresheners, oils and diffusers can all be tailored to your individual senses. Each scent has its own characteristics, so choosing the one right for you can be fun and challenging.

Whether your taste are citrus, sweet, floral or woodsy, you may discover the scent that suits you will also fit the style of your space. Selecting your signature scent will certainly be a subtle addition to your home or office and guests will associate the aroma with you after each visit.

Window Treatments

We consider a window covering the finishing touch to any room. Window coverings should be tailored to fit the needs of the window and the room that it is within. Some windows may require sunlight control or privacy, try beautiful operable roman shades, screen shades, shutters or wood blinds.

LL&A Interior Design Homearama Office Louisville
Woven roman shades offer a simple privacy solution with added texture.

Each option will provide something unique to the window and fulfill the needs of the space. Drapery panels or valances are the perfect final touch to complete the design of the window and room. Selecting the perfect fabric, style, hardware, and trim are essential to the overall window covering. 

Size matters! Take the time to measure and install correctly to enjoy the treatment for years to come. Invest wisely and consider custom treatments that will be designed with beautiful fabrics, trim and hardware for your room tailored to your specific needs.

The combination of silver metallic wooden poles, crystal finials, beaded trim, button detail, tiebacks and lush fabric produced this stunning custom window treatment scheme in this formal master bedroom.

Color

The use of color can be expressed in a variety of ways. Color has the ability to change our mood and our minds, so we must choose wisely. Choosing your color palette should reflect the overall vibration you are trying to achieve. 

colorful interior design

You can express color in a variety of methods such as paint, fabric, carpets, accessories and artwork, each an avenue of color distribution.  Bold, soft, striking or delicate, color can be your best source of expression. You will have the freedom to do a lot or a little and exercise your personality and style.

Many beautiful spaces have a neutral color scheme that layers white, cream, gray, linen and wheat. By adding greenery, candy, books or magazines you will add that splash of color to attract visual interest that a room needs to deliver character.

Lighting

Good lighting is essential to any room. Light sources are offered in a variety of options and applications. Recess can lighting with LED bulbs keep things clean and simple and offer overall disbursement of light within a room & can be placed accordingly to suit the room requirements. Overhead lighting such as chandeliers, flush mounts or pendants accomplish a variety of needs while accent lighting offer nuances that will attract the eye towards artwork, bookcases, steps and cabinetry. Lamps are a terrific way to add style and intimacy to a room, choosing lamps with 3-way bulbs give options for the lamp’s usage. Remember, using consistent temperature bulbs is a must in any room and certainly sets the tone of your space!

Balance

Every room requires balance. Balance with shapes, scale, color, and texture. Mixing all of these design elements are equal to the success of a space. A room should not feel weighted on one end versus the other or color not distributed evenly. Accessories should be placed with effort and conciseness while artwork should be considered to fit the size of the wall it is being placed on.

Every space has an aura, a mood or a vibe. Have fun connecting to yours by trying some or all of these simple tips. You will appreciate connecting to your space and really making it “feel” the way it looks.

Now dim the lights, open the blinds, grab a Hershey Kiss, read a book and water those flowers, and “Oh Yeah” …turn on some music and dance! Set your Aura!

Buds, Blossoms and Bouquets

Spring is springing upon us and we are ready for some beauty in our communities!

Grass will shortly be turning into thick green carpet spread across our soil, trees will be budding with fluffy leaves and the fragrance of honeysuckle will fill the air.

Ready Or Not, Here It Comes!! (Thankfully)

Undeniably, Mother Nature produces breathtaking varieties of plant life and botanicals. We love to bring the outdoors in with a variety of plants, florals and trees. Adding touches of foliage in any space creates a sense of oxygen and life. However, for those of us who do not have a green thumb attached to our hand, we have the perfect solution.

Permanent arrangements are not only maintenance free, but they are beautiful, colorful, lush and tailored to our individual needs & style. Whether you add a lush tree in a corner, a delicate orchid on a tabletop or a statement wall divider — quality foliage can be just the right finishing touch to complete a space.

Regardless if your style is Coastal, Tropical, Desert or Woodland the varieties are abundant and realistic. Assortments of succulents, orchids, ferns, palm leaf, boxwood, moss and agave are terrific options to consider in your space.

Adding a dash of green completes a space with just the right touch of vine and vegetation. Trust us, you will love the results!

At LL&A, we offer a variety of florals and greenery perfect for any space and season!

Mood Swings

Can you imagine the seven layers of moods under one roof of seven women bonded to Interior Design?

We can!

Driven by a common love of space, color, pattern and light, our group of talent brings something for everyone when it comes to what makes us tick as individuals. Each day we focus on the needs of our clients by creating spaces that reflect their personalities, carefully listening to the clues that will make their surroundings their own.

We were curious—what moves us & what inspires us? Boy oh boy, did we learn a lot about ourselves and each other. What fun we had exploring ourselves, digging deep and uncovering the obvious. In doing so, we discovered our team had more in common than expected, some more than others, but needless to say our personalities did shine!

Our assignment was to create an inspiration or mood board that would reflect where we are likely to draw upon for sources of imagination and creativity. Fun, fun, fun! 

We are excited to share our Mood Boards with you—do YOU think they match our personalities?

Katie

Warm, earthy, sophisticated and fun all best describe my personal style. I am inspired by comforting spaces, rich with texture & pops of pattern. Art, fashion, makeup and architecture are also areas that I gain momentum in creativity. I love the contrast between dark vs light, organic vs geometric, and old vs new. Converging these elements helps me to create aesthetically pleasing and functional spaces.

Mallory

I am inspired by natural elements such as the beach and flowers, accents of soft but impactful colors, a touch of glam and an assortment of soft elements to sweeten the space. I favor gold accents over silver, black or bronze. Most of my design personality was founded during my travels abroad, my favorite places were always on or near the ocean or sea with the beautiful colors of the water. Soft whites and pinks of London, the blues of Greece and the florals of Italy were truly inspiring to me and I hope to carry these elements throughout my design career.

Shelby

I have always been a girly girl. As a sophomore in college, I began watching classic films and discovered I am obsessed with Parisian fashion, architecture and lifestyle. I draw much of my inspiration from the Rococo period and am drawn to organic shapes and patterns. The details are everything, honey! Oh, and I like the color pink just a bit.

Sarah

Timeless patterns, materials and bold modern accents integrated together are combinations I love! I am inspired by the colors of nature, the variety of elements it offers, and the ever changing light throughout each day and the mood it brings. I’m drawn to “bringing the outside in” and using natural materials, finishes, and textures in a modern application. Sleek, timeless, bold, earthy and moody spaces are what I am most drawn to.

Lauren

Neutrals, clean lines, modern country and Scandi rustic best describe my personal style. Most of my inspiration comes from nature and the outdoors. I am drawn to organic finishes & textures and consider myself a minimalist. Balancing new, repurposed or vintage pieces will always attract my attention.

Tammy

Mother nature is my largest source of inspiration. Earth, Wind & Fire. I love opposites, my favorite view is the skyline touching the treetops or mountain range, where the earth meets the sky. Plants, water, soil, stones, wood and metal all work in tandem effortlessly to produce peaceful and tranquil spaces. I am a maximalist, meaning I love things, many things, having them around me brings me a source of contentment. I have to admit, I have a soft spot for pottery, baskets, stones and incense!

Leslie

Just as the river meets the ocean, design to me is the seamless flow, harmony and rhythm of each of these elements merging together in a wonderful way.  What I love and draw my largest source of inspiration from is natural light and happy spaces. Creating spaces that are welcoming, comfortable, timeless, simple yet sophisticated bring me joy and fulfillment.  I am drawn to texture, animal print accents, navy, salmon and moss green. Completing a room with fresh cut flowers and the touch of sparkle from cut crystal adds just the right finishing touch for me.


We had a blast creating our Mood Boards and most of us realized that we could create more than one!

So… for fun, we decided to create a mash up of our personalities and watch the mood swing to a whole new set of emotions! Are you ready?!

Riding pink horses to the beach, wearing brown clogs and halos made of flowers or riding vintage bicycles through the woods with our eyes painted green would suit each of us all too well! See, we told you we were more alike than not!

On the corner where hip meets happy, we are a melting pot of personalities inspired by all that is beautiful in this world.

What Are You In The MOOD For? We invite you to create your own mood board for fun. Create one for yourself, your spouse or friend and share them with us on Facebook or Instagram!