Welcome to my personal A to Z Challenge on the subject of Home. The goal, in a year time, is to elaborate and dissect topics regarding the Home not as containers of stuff, but as a cocoon for the soul, mind and heart. I will touch on decorations, style, trends, history of home and sometimes technical information. On Jan. 14, 2014, my challenge will be over, I am almost ready to reach my finishing line.
Do you think the kitchen, the bath or the bedroom are the most important rooms in the house? If you ask me, I could say that a chef pantry is very important as much as a walk-in closet. People’s needs are so variegated that it’s almost impossible to determine the importance of rooms in order of entry.
I can say for sure that the landing outside the entry door and the foyer are like a business card of you, your family and lifestyle. These spaces have a split of a second to make a good impression. Guests invited to the house for a few hours don’t go roaming around in all the rooms to check if everything is clean, orderly and stylish, they will never see the master bedroom or master bathroom. They will be directed to a living room, maybe a dining area or kitchen and the powder room.
The areas guests will see first will be the entry door landing and the foyer, these are the areas that will give them the prelude of what the rest of the house looks like. Perhaps there is a garden pathway before arriving at the house and give them time to admire a well-cared pathway or dislike what they see. Approaching someone’s home for the first time and with fresh eyes, guests see things they have not seen before and probably will try to stick some adjectives to describe the picture forming in their mind of the house and the people living in it: clean, messy, stylish, old-fashion, outdated, contemporary, artistic, eclectic, wacky, original and so on. That’s because the eye wanders and rests on the shiny objects before noticing all the other details. The eye sees the outdoor light fixtures, sculptures, and creations that stick out from the ground with an imposing height, house numbers, mailbox, doorbell, door knockers, hardware attached to gates and doors and the color of the door. Then they will notice vegetation, smell, sounds, and texture.
“God Is In the Details” said Mies Van Der Rohe. A well-studied, well-planned and architecturally pleasing home needs exceptional details, after all hardware is the jewelry of the home, but even a modest home needs its fair share of beauty. Impress your guests with hardware that make strong statements. In the end, when selling a house, every little thing counts for adding value to the property, even hardware and how well the house has been maintained through the years.
As far as interior door hardware, I suggest selecting wrist blade door handles versus the turning doorknob balls. The wrist blade hardware is easy on people suffering arthritis and it is available in any finish and any style. If planning on staying in the house for a long time and want to remodel the home, think about the mature age when you are young, making plans to live an easier life free of impediments.
A little touch of whimsy doesn’t hurt; I have a door harp hanging on my entry door greeting people with a piece of pleasant harp music and a rooster sitting on a bell in the kitchen that calls my people when food is ready. If in doubt call the expert, my Skype line is always on. Ciao,
Valentina
http://www.valentinadesigns.com
Copyright © 2014 Valentina Cirasola, All Rights Reserved
Valentina Cirasola has been in business as a designer since 1990. She has helped a variegated group of fun people realizing their dreams with homes, offices, interiors, and exteriors. She is a designer well-known to bring originality to people’s homes. As an Italian designer and true to her origins, she provides only the best workmanship and design solutions. Check out her books on
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