Design Q&A With Christopher Lowell
Christopher Lowell, interior designer and host of Fine Living's Work That Room , knows a thing or two about creating jaw-dropping spaces that solve problems for design-starved homeowners.
We asked Christopher about his design process and got his expert tips to help you create stunning spaces on your own.
How would you sum up your design philosophy?
In residential spaces, the client's the boss. We are there only to translate their abstract emotional feelings into 3-D spaces that reflect conversations [with the client]. Commercially, what I design must look as fresh, flexible and sexy a decade from now as it does the moment I design it.
When people with two distinct styles try to decorate a space together, can you think of good first steps to compromise? What are some techniques you use to blend style?
For years I've always asked both people together and separately, "What is or was your very favorite hotel space you ever spent time in?" I find that people can unite around physical experiences they had in public spaces.
You often head to hotels to get inspiration. If people like a specific public space, what is the best way for them to translate that into their home?
Take lots of pictures. Make special note of how these spaces make you feel. The photos and the wordscapes can then be given to a designer in a single one-hour consultation. Observation is the cheapest way to define your own style.
Don't forget to write down the flaws, too. The lamp switch too far from the bed, bad lighting in the shower area of the bathroom — it's good to know your "deal-breakers" too.
What is the most unexpected place you've found design inspiration?
For me nature is always the key to getting color, texture and scale correct. I've thought many times that I'd hit upon a great manmade idea, only to again trace its real inspiration back to nature — it's all there if you train your eye.
What are the most common design dilemmas clients come to you with? How do you solve those problems?
Scale and color are the two areas that seem to elude many clients. Rooms that could hold a lot of furniture often don't have enough. Or things are too small and look like room dandruff. Placement and size is what creates drama, tells good visual stories and promotes better function. So I start rearranging what clients already have, and it blows them away.
Color courage is also lacking for many. They spend a fortune in furnishings and leave the walls white — passing up the easiest way to re-theme any room. I always choose a paint color that the client could live with and tell them that when the room's finished and they still don't like the paint color, I'll change it back to white on my own dime. I've never had to repaint a single room!
What are some of the most common design or color misconceptions your clients have?
Many finally have the courage to paint their walls, but they leave the ceilings white, which looks like they've hung a bed sheet over their walls. I call the ceiling the fifth wall, and therefore it should be treated as such.
Lighting is the most over looked element of the amateur's rooms. Lighting and shadow together creates the kind of intimacy and mood people want. Just turning your ceiling into Swiss cheese with recessed lighting won't do it. It's like having McDonald's on a dimmer switch. There should be wash light, down light, up light and pools of light that work with task lighting (lamps) and overheads.
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