living room Archives | KAREN MILLS

Interior Design: 3 Tips for Designing a Monochromatic Living…

December 27, 2019February 13, 2020

Custom design by interior designer Karen Mills – Overland Park

Choose One Color Hue – When an interior designer says the word hue, we are referring to a color family such as blue, white, or black, for example. By focusing on one color like the white we selected for this family room area, you can make a huge impact. Here the whites vary from walls and trim to finishes, furniture, and floor coverings.

2. Use softer variation of color hue on upholstery or walls. In this lobby living area space, a darker color of pumpkin grounds the floor, while lighter upholstery fabrics and tile on pillars repeat the color scheme

Karen Mills' blog — Custom Design by interior designer Karen Mills – Mission Hills

3. Layer in multiple textures. Even though we created custom upholstery in a solid neutral brown, the soothing gray blue green color scheme selected still makes a strong statement while evoking a calming vibe. A darker contemporary wool rug we designed grounds the room, while the custom pillows and throws we created enhance the monochromatic hue along with blue walls beyond.

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Interior Design/Interior Decorating

Interior Design: 3 Blue Color Scheme Options for the…

December 12, 2019February 13, 2020

One of the biggest questions I get asked as an interior designer is what color scheme to use in decorating or designing a space. If you’re not sure what color is best, trying shopping your closet for inspiration because your favorite outfits or jewelry are often the colors that look best. Read on for three possibilities for a blue color scheme in your living space.

2. Red, White, and Blue

In this living space blue and red has been used quite effectively to create a little drama. By starting with a neutral base of white and blue gray that’s more relaxing, red decor – tables, pillow patterns, and accents, can be added without overpowering the space.

3. Blue, Warm Gray, Beige, and White

When you have a room that already has bold finishes – patterns and color like this one, you might want to introduce lighter neutral colors with little or no pattern for everything else. Here we introduced lighter upholstery, pillows, decor, and an area rug with interesting textures and less pattern to create a calming effect.

Karen Mills' blog example of pattern — Interior design by Karen Mills

3. Blue, Orange, White, and Taupe

Inspiration for this color scheme came from the existing mermaid artwork over the mantel. To bring it all together we started with a light neutral sofa and coffee table, then layered in custom blue draperies and fun toss pillows along with an existing rug to create a cohesive color scheme with the artwork. In addition by using orange and blue together, you create a more energetic vibe since they are opposites on the color wheel.

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Interior Design/Interior Decorating

Interior Design: 3 Tips for Creating a Relaxing Living…

June 26, 2019June 26, 2019

Nothing’s better than coming home to an inviting home where you can relax and unwind. That’s why my focus as an interior designer has always been function first, then beauty. Read on for my three tips on how to create a comfortable living room design of your own.

example of comfortable seating — Interior design by Karen MIlls

1. Comfortable seating. When selecting a sofa, opt for upholstery cushions that are comfortable for long periods of time. As an interior designer I always tell my clients to also make sure their feet can touch the floor – unless they’re planning to just curl up on the sofa instead, plus remember to ensure the seat depth is right.

Here in this living space, we utilized a custom designed chair to create a cozy nook where our client could entertain or just relax.

2. Create a Cozy Seating Area for Conversation After coming up with an overall design concept for style/color with your interior design, the next step is to create a floor plan. In the living room make sure you focus on creating intimate conversation areas that draw you into the space like shown here.

By creating an U shaped seating area you give everyone the chance to become part of the conversation. Texture was added with a hand knotted area rug, a stone fireplace, textural fabrics and rough hewn wood furniture while pops of color were introduced through blue vases, pillows, and other decorative items.

example of texture and color — Interior design by Karen Mills

3. Layer in texture and color As an interior designer I love adding texture to a boring room because suddenly the space comes to life by just layering in a few additions such as a rug, decor, and drapes like we did here in this great room.

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Interior Design/Interior Decorating

Interior Decorating: 3 Tips for Refreshing Living Room with…

June 13, 2019June 13, 2019

One Day Makeover Tips

If you haven’t updated your interior for 5 years or more, it may be time for a refresh. If your budget doesn’t allow you to start completely over, why not opt for a one day makeover instead?

In this photo above our interior design firm reupholstered an existing sofa and chairs to freshen up the space along with refinishing the kitchen table top and updating the room’s finishes including the floor, light fixtures and walls.

If you’re ready to refresh your space, here are my top three tips!

Interior design by Karen Mills

1. Create an inviting floor plan that emphasizes your focal point whether its a fireplace or bed, for example. If you don’t have a focal point, design one yourself by grouping items together such as a sofa table or chest with a piece of artwork overhead plus a table lamp and/or tabletop decor.

In this room the client started with a favorite piece of art over the mantel and we replaced the fireplace tile along with upholstering the existing chairs and ottoman to create a fabulous new look!

To explain idea — Interior design by Karen Mills

2. Shop your entire house for furniture/furnishings you can use in your room. Keep those items you discover in mind as you start to put together your room, bringing ones you think might work to a staging area nearby.

In this living area, the client wanted to keep an existing coffee table that had been passed down through her family in the interior design of this living room so we had to ensure we had similar warm hues – the outdoor fireplace beyond, to create a cohesive feel with the antique table.

Interior design by Karen Mills

3. Add a pop of color with accents throughout your room with pillows, art, drapes, decor or an area rug. Remember, you can repaint or re purpose items to use in your refreshed roomtoo. In this great room the client wanted to keep the mermaid art over the mantel so we tied in the furnishings to the art by layering in orange and blue pillows along with luxurious blue drapes beyond.

Looking for more great budget friendly decorating ideas that you can implement this summer? SIgn up for our weekly interior design blog here

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Interior Design/Interior Decorating

3 Ways To Update Your Room for Less

February 28, 2019May 2, 2019

Tips for Updating Your Living Space with Budget Savvy Ideas

If you haven’t updated your living room for 5 years or more, it may be time for a refresh. If your budget doesn’t allow you to start completely over, why not opt for a one day makeover or refresh instead?

Even though the majority of my time as an interior designer is spent on custom design and remodel projects, when I have a spare hour or two I love helping enthusiast homeowners style their space using existing furnishings in their home to create a fresh new look. So if you’re ready to refresh your space or update using existing furnishings, here are my top three tips!

1. Create an inviting floor plan that emphasizes your focal point whether its a fireplace or view, for example. If you don’t have a focal point, design one yourself by grouping items together such as a sofa table or chest with a piece of artwork overhead and a table lamp and/or tabletop decor.

In this room the client started with a favorite piece of art over the mantel and we replaced the fireplace tile along with upholstering the existing chairs and ottoman to create a fabulous new look!

As an interior designer I often re purpose items to make them work in a space such as this family room where we reupholstered the sofa and chairs along with layering in a new rug, repainting the walls, adding a new light fixture, and decor.

3. Add a pop of color with accents throughout your room with pillows, art, drapes, decor or an area rug. Remember, you can repaint or re purpose items to use in your refreshed room also.

For example, a chest could repainted and moved to your entry, used as a focal point in a living space, or even placed behind a sofa. Ottomans can be upholstered and tucked under a sofa table for extra seating, used as a coffee table or pulled up to a comfy chair.

In this fabulous ocean blue living room, we began with existing mermaid art as inspiration, introducing bold blue and orange pillows along with custom blue drapes.

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Interior Design/Interior Decorating

Interior Design: 3 Big Mistakes People Make in Living…

January 17, 2019January 17, 2019

Lack of a Focal Point Often the best spot to emphasize in a living space is the fireplace or great view outside but if you don’t have those options, create a vignette (grouping) of furniture/accessories that will grab your attention. Then group your upholstery around the focal point to emphasize it. Here in this living room a focal point was created on the back wall to entice people into the space for a closer look.

2. Purchasing Over Sized Upholstery Or Too Many Pieces Have you ever decided you wanted to buy a new living room grouping but didn’t bother creating a floor plan or measuring the space first? Suddenly your furniture arrives and the furniture takes up so much real estate you can barely walk through or don’t have room? As an interior designer I can’t tell you how many frantic calls I’ve received from homeowners requesting help with their space planning only to discover the wrong furniture was already purchased and they want me to fix it which we know is impossible. In this living room, the right size furniture was used and strategically placed to not only enhance the focal point (fireplace) but also leave ample room for someone to pass through.

3. Selecting The Wrong Wall Color After working on 1200+ interior design projects I see this mistake happen more than any other. We might want to blame a decorating network like HGTV or DIY for making us believe that picking paint colors is easy but I think its because the general public doesn’t realize how much a color can change when it goes from a tiny paint swatch to an entire room or house. In this room, we selected the paint color during day that not only coordinated with the finishes and furniture but also played well with other rooms in view.

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Interior Design/Interior Decorating

Interior Design: 3 Savvy Ways to Makeover Your Living…

June 1, 2018June 1, 2018

One Day Makeover Tips

If you haven’t updated your interior for 5 years or more, it may be time for a refresh. If your budget doesn’t allow you to start completely over, why not opt for a one day makeover instead?

If you’re ready to refresh your space, here are my top three tips!

Interior design by Karen Mills

In this room the client started with a favorite piece of art over the mantel and we replaced the fireplace tile along with upholstering the existing chairs and ottoman to create a fabulous new look!

3. Shop your entire house for furniture/furnishings you can use in your room. Keep those items you discover in mind as you start to put together your room, bringing ones you think might work to a staging area nearby.

Interior design by Karen Mills

3. Add a pop of color with accents throughout your room with pillows, art, drapes, decor or an area rug. Remember, you can repaint or re purpose items to use in your refreshed room too. In this great room the client wanted to keep the mermaid art over the mantel so we tied in the furnishings to the art by layering in orange and blue pillows along with luxurious blue drapes beyond.

Looking for more great budget friendly decorating ideas that you can implement this summer? SIgn up for our weekly interior design blog here

Plus become a fan of Kansas City’s interior designer and former host of the Living Large design show, Karen Mills, on Facebook here!

or instagram here!

Interior Design/Interior Decorating

Interior Decorating: 3 Ways to Make Your Living Room…

March 22, 2018

If you’re like me you’re ready for warmer weather and cheerful colors. Here are 3 ways to make your room bloom!

1. Add bold pops of spring color

In this room bold patterned pillows, a cheerful blue vase and red throw mimic the colors of the brightly colored area rug underneath to give a spring like feel to this beautiful room by Kravet furniture.

2. Introduce fresh flowers and/or plants

This dining room gets a touch of spring with fresh flowers on the table that replicate the colors in the artwork on the furniture to add life to this space.

Photo courtesy of Lillian White for Hickory furniture

3. Swap out dark furnishings for lighter ones when possible

If you have a lighter area rug like the one pictured here that you can swap out for a darker one, the entire room can be transformed from winter to spring. Fresh leaf clippings, a red pillow, and purple throw add to the fresh spring atmosphere of this living room.

For more great ideas on interior design sign up for our weekly interior design blog here

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Interior Design/Interior Decorating

Interior Decorating: 3 Color Scheme Options for Your Living…

January 26, 2018January 26, 2018

One of the biggest questions I get asked as an interior designer is what color scheme to use in decorating or designing a space. If you’re not sure what color is best, trying shopping your closet for inspiration because often your favorite outfits or jewelry are the colors that look best. Read on for three possibilities for your living space.

1. Blue and Orange

Here in this photo I snapped before the rug was placed to tie everything together, we incorporated cool turquoise pillows to calm down the bold pops of orange along with introducing pillows with both colors to lessen the impact.

This living room is another example of how to decorate with blue and orange. Our inspiration for the color scheme came from the existing water blue and orange artwork over the mantel. To bring it all together we started with a light neutral sofa and coffee, then layered in custom blue draperies and fun toss pillows to create a cohesive color scheme with the artwork.

2. Blue and Red

3. Taupe gray and beige

When you have a room that already has bold patterns and color in its finishes like this one, you might want to introduce lighter neutral colors with little or no pattern. Here we introduced lighter upholstery and an area rug with interesting textures and less pattern to create a calming effect.

For more great ideas on interior decorating sign up for our weekly interior design blog here

plus become a fan of Kansas City’s interior designer and former host of the Living Large design show, Karen Mills, on Facebook here!

and check out our latest interior design article on Houzz here

https://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/97946595/list/redecorating-lite-6-quick-updates-to-liven-up-your-living-spaces/

Interior Design/Interior Decorating

Interior Design: 3 Ways to Successfully Mix n Match…

June 23, 2017June 23, 2017

As an interior designer who’s designed or decorated over 1100 homes, I understand how overwhelming it can be for a homeowner to bring together their disparate furnishings to create a beautifully designed interior. Read on for 3 steps you can take today to created a more finished look.

1. Repetition – To coordinate mismatched furniture or accessories I recommend tying them together by repeating a color from one piece to onto another like the pillow, rug, and art in this photo that helps unify the furnishings to create a beautiful interior design. The branches, rug, artwork, and cloth fabrics also provide a welcome contrast to the hard surfaces of the floor, windows, walls, and table.

2. Opposites Attract – One great way to combine furnishings is by juxtaposing shiny finishes with dull, textural with smooth or formal with casual to give your room life and keep it interesting. The upholstery, branches, stone formation, and rug contrast beautifully against the hard surface of the tables while the brown pillow on the sofa marries the sofa to the chair.

3. Size (and shape) Matters – When creating vignettes of accessories in your space whether its for a tabletop or shelves, try to place objects of various heights, sizes, texture, and shapes together to create a cohesive whole like this photo, while keeping taller items at the back for a graduated look. Pillows, artwork, and blue accessories bring together the color palette, while the yellow vases provide an unexpected pop of color.

Click here to watch one of my recent TV interviews with Gina Bullard on Better Kansas City on KCTV5 about how to create rooms with staying power

http://www.kctv5.com/clip/13418623/home-design-with-staying-power

plus sign up for our weekly interior design and decorating blog here

and become a fan of Kansas City’s interior designer and former host of Living Large design show, Karen Mills, on Facebook here!