If you have been led to believe that the essence of luxury is contained in buying the most expensive sofa or collecting the rarest original art pieces then this article will help correct these ideas. Real luxury living cannot ever truly be bought. It is an organic process, beginning as a seed deep within the soul and blossoming through our lifestyle choices.
Treat luxury design as a journey rather than a product, follow these luxury interior design ideas and your living space will forever shine with a rare and authentic light. These following tips will help you create your own luxury living space!
1) Prepare the Ground
The biggest barrier to most people’s attempts to create a luxury home is the junk that accumulates over time. Therefore, the first step of the journey is to ruthlessly declutter.
At the end, all you should be left with are the practical necessities for day-to-day living and a few possessions that mean the most to you (either because they are part of your personal history or of your authentic personality).
If you ever watch those TV shows about compulsive hoarders you will understand that your possessions are intricately linked with your sense of self.
When we are in pain we hold on and stay stuck. We can never live a luxurious life of freedom until we learn to let go.
2) Transforming Your Tech
What does technology have to do with luxury? Not a huge amount but unless you want to live a pre-Internet age lifestyle it is a necessary part of the infrastructure of your home.
Over time, we have learnt how to hide and build around plumbing and household wiring but we are still learning to integrate electronics such as TVs, routers and games consoles into our homes. Things are moving in the right direction with creations such as wireless charging pads (as seen in the latest Apple iPhone releases). There are also plenty of ways to hide and cover cables and blend in devices such as TVs with the surroundings. Even choosing the color and style of your mobile devices and accessories will at least help them to blend in rather than spoil your overall effect.
It is easiest to deal with technology when you have fully decluttered space, so take care of this next.
3) The Tantra of Texture
Now it’s time to move on to the fun part. Playing with color, texture and shape to create the effect you want. As so much has been written about color, this article will focus on texture and shape.
The Sanskrit word tantra has sexual connotations but it is literally based on the word ‘tan’ which broadly means ‘to weave together.’ The texture of fabrics has an important effect on our subconscious mind and is used to great effect in the most luxurious homes.
Play with the softness of velvet, the airiness of feather, the grainy earthiness of wood, and the bright clarity of metal and the sensual allure of high quality leather. Texture helps to create a feeling of depth to your design and evokes the many layers of the mature personality.
4) The Power of Sculpture
Shape is another element that has a deep effect on the subconscious and if you look around and can only see square edges and flat surfaces then this needs addressing in your home. Sculpture is usually thought of in connection with statues, buildings or fancy clay pots but whenever we model the shape of something to create a desired effect we are sculpting. When designing your luxury space, explore the sensuality of curves, the mystery of spirals, the explosive power of a starburst and the unspoiled perfection of natural objects.
5) Natural Chic
Expanding the previous section, natural forms such as plants, rocks and animals can be used in design in many ways. Each has its own texture and shape which may be used directly or by inspiring design.
As we move increasingly towards living with nature, interior designers have started to use more recycled and recyclable materials and experimented with blending the concepts of inside and outside (e.g. building bathrooms outside and bringing living trees inside).
6) The Wisdom of Age
Aged items bring a different sort of depth to a home: the depth of experience. Whether it’s the patina effect seen in ancient metal or the prestigious presence of an antique bookcase, the value of old items is in the story that comes with them.
In a decluttered home, a few sentimental old pieces will inevitably attract the attention of friends and visitors. By only keeping those items that bring back a special moment in your life or a personal historical or cultural fascination, your home will reverberate with the richness of time.
7) Envisioning the Whole
Hopefully you will now understand that high-end interior design is more than about arranging chandeliers and luxury chairs to somebody else’s preconceived pattern of symmetry. It is about bringing forth the real diamond that shines within us all. In your home, it is your life, your story, and your understanding of luxury that matters.
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