Architectural interest is usually something to embrace
I love the funky and uneven features of an older home. Certainly there are many oddball qualities and conditions that might frustrate you as a renter or homeowner, but often they can be turned into assets.
Renters are particularly aware they have to live with strange issues; you accept things that are too costly to revamp on your own and you make the best of them. That's where paint, area rugs and portable folding screens become handy.
Ugly bathroom or kitchen tile is at the top of my list.
Not all that long ago, intense yellow tile with black trim pieces from the 1930s and '40s would have made me personally cringe. It's funny how the perspective of time can change things. With the resurgence in popularity of midcentury design, some of those colors don't seem so terrible. In 1956, General Electric advertised refrigerators in yellow, turquoise, pink, deep brown and white. The mix-or-match colors extended to fabrics, linoleum, countertops, tile and small appliances. That's why so many older homes are adorned with period colors. These are features that must be embraced because they are not elements that can be hidden away.
Color is a design element intentionally manipulated by the Color Marketing Group and as such is a constantly changing fad, subject to the whim of each era.
During the Depression, the U.S. Commerce Department proclaimed six standard colors for refrigerators, a new appliance at the time in this country. Where color chaos existed, the agency decided that these would be “the” color standards: White, Delphinium Blue, Royal Blue, Ivory, Red and Kitchen Green. So whatever odd color you might have, embrace the fact that once it was the cat's meow!
Ugly carpet or tile can be covered up with area rugs or carpet tiles. Check out Flor.com for a wonderful selection of modular carpet tiles.
Area rugs come in solids that might allow you to create a fresh background for your room that ignores shabby wall-to-wall carpet in an unacceptable color. Visit The Perfect Rug website for a very user-friendly Internet-based resource.
Other value engineered floor coverings are available via IKEA, Crate + Barrel and Pottery Barn. Another option is to buy carpet off the roll and just “loose lay” it in a room.
When you have an odd angle, such as seen in this photo, turn it into a feature with accent paint. However, it is often difficult to get intense colors to look perfect. A bed wall might be converted into an entire wall of headboard by using a special treatment like a wall covering.
Peculiar architectural features come in all sorts of shapes, from boxed-in pipes to hiding of an old fireplace. You may not know why a room has an awkward and bulky wall configuration, but it is legitimate to want to blend them in with the walls.
Have fun with old-fashioned wood moldings, too. Consider repeating any accent color in throw pillows, bedding or window treatments so it works better with the overall color scheme.
Finally, remember the magic that can be achieved by using movable folding screens. A creepy old radiator that no longer functions or an ugly boxed pillar might be camouflaged well by a portable screen. From wicker to Oriental to fabric-covered, you can build your own or hunt through vintage furniture malls to find one perfect for your room. A small room generally can fit the compact folding screen as a decorative way to hide a little visual “sin.”
• Christine Brun is a San Diego-based interior designer and the author of “Small Space Living.” Send questions and comments to her by email at christinebrun@sbcglobal.net.
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