For those of you who dont already know him, its time to crawl out from the poorly decorated rock youve been living under and get acquainted with Karl Lohnes. As both the on-air Home Design Expert for CTVs Canada AM and the man behind the monthly decor report on CHUM FMs All About Style with Marilyn Denis, Lohnes is an authority on all things home related. From renovation to decoration, shopping, entertaining, and more, Karl does it all. And he also knows it all, although not in an annoying kind of way; more in a Gee, you just saved me a ton of time, money and effort kind of way. And who doesnt love that?
So forget raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens (Sorry, Julie Andrews), its high time you learned about a few of Karl Lohnes favourite things, as well as heard his tips on how or how not to incorporate them into your home. But before you go Googling the heck out of him, take a look at Homesavs handy list of The Five Things You Aught To Know About Karl Lohnes.
1) Hes a Barry big fan of Barbara
Los Angeles-based it designer Barbara Barry is a close acquaintance of Lohnes and a source of great inspiration. In fact, when asked which designer he would happily shadow for a day, Lohnes picked Barry immediately, admitting, I would love the opportunity to follow her for a day actually, a week would be fantastic! And who could blame him? Barrys sophisticated yet livable style is what all of us covet, and is frankly not too far off from Lohnes own aesthetic.
Image Source: Barbara Barry
2) Hes a real Nature Boy
Lohnes cites the great outdoors as another of his biggest sources of inspiration, and insists that every room needs fresh plants or flowers. Whether its trees, tulips or cacti, says Lohnes, its the best way to prevent your interior from looking lifeless. To him, two of the cheapest and easiest ways to reinvigorate a room are by simply adding some greenery and opening a window: Fresh air does wonders for our senses.
3) Where theres Smoke, theres Karl
When it comes to colour, Lohnes says, It isnt necessary to opt for an unusual tone. A simple dark grey, green, taupe or brown can have just as much of an impact. Thats why he cites Benjamin Moores Smoky Green (CC-700) as one of his favourite paint colours. Says Lohnes, On a sunny day, its green, on a cloudy day its blue and at night, it turns warm grey. It teams beautifully with neutral colours like charcoal grey or camel and looks exceptional with crisp white. So exceptional, in fact, that the hue is a fixture in Lohnes own home.
The designer is also fond of Benjamin Moores Smoke (2122-40), a rich blue-grey colour that he says perfectly complements neutrals like dark brown and grey, and also looks great alongside trendier tones like purple, teal and yellow.
4) To Karl, size DOES matter
Drapes that are too short, rugs that dont completely anchor a room, and furniture whose scale is out of whack: these are some of Lohnes pet peeves. To help combat them, hes devised a few formulas that can be easily adapted to any space.
When it comes to light fixtures, for example, he advises, For every foot of the width of the room, multiply that number by two for the diameter in inches of the chandelier that will work in that particular room. For example, if the width of your room is 12 feet, then your chandelier should be 24 inches in diameter (12 x 2 = 24).
As for area rugs, he states, An area rug should allow for a 12- to 16-inch border of flooring around a rooms perimeter; anything smaller, and the rug will look too insignificant. Remember: The front legs of your furniture should sit on the area rug, so the rug doesnt appear to float in the middle of the room.
Image Source: Decorpad.com
5) Hes got your number
And that number, according to Karl, is three. One of his tried-and-true triads of successful room styling: introduce no more than three different wood stains in a room; that goes for flooring, cabinetry, tables and furnishings.
When editing the contents of your space, Karl suggest that the easiest method is to dress your room completely and then take away 1/3 of the accessories, such as candles, picture frames and decorative pieces. That will leave room to add items as the decor develops over time.
Karl also suggests, Try dividing a long, narrow room by using the two-thirds/one-third rule: make two-thirds of your room the main seating area, and one-third a space for a desk, reading chair or piano. Dont be afraid to show the back of a chair or sofa by using the piece to divide the room.
Image Source: atmosphereinteriordesign.com
Finding this all pretty helpful? We hate to say we told you so, but we really did. For a more complete list of Karl Lohnes decorating Dos and Donts, check out the ultra-concise article he wrote as Contributing Style Editor for Style At Home magazine: http://www.styleathome.com/decorating-and-design/styling-secrets/25-decorating-mistakes-and-how-to-avoid-them/a/451/3
Have any of your own handy-dandy design equations? What are your fave tips and tricks? Let us know!
Via: Getting To Know Him A Little Better; Design According To Karl
Getting To Know Him A Little Better; Design According To Karl Gallery
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