Emphasize the decoration of the room. Interior Design Fundamentals: Emphasis

You can place stress and add accents not only in the language, but also in the interior. Choose one of the walls in the living room, bedroom or nursery and make it impact force the entire interior using color, decor or texture. The result will exceed all expectations and will certainly not go unnoticed.

Living room design Seattle Staged to Sell and Design LLC

Benefits of an accent wall

An accent wall is one of the most favorite techniques of modern designers, which until recently was practically unknown to the general public. However, there is nothing difficult in creating this spectacular decorative trick, the main thing is to choose the right wall for decoration.

Accent with wallpaper with large pattern, wallpaper My Collection

Photos and accessories to create a focal point in the interior, Pottery Barn

Usually, the wall opposite the entrance to the room is chosen as an accent wall, on which the eye immediately falls, but there are no strict rules here. So, for example, in the bedroom it can be a wall behind the head of the bed, if you want to draw attention specifically to sleeping place, or the opposite wall if you want to admire interesting decor lying down. In the living room there is a wall behind a sofa or a soft group, or, on the contrary, the one on which a TV, a collection of photographs, etc. is placed.

3D panels as an accent, Steuler-Fliesen

Pros of an accent wall:

• helps to divert attention from flaws in planning and renovation
• visually moves away or brings one of the walls closer
• delimits various functional areas
• saves money on finishing, because expensive materials are used only on one of the walls
• allow the use of dark and bright colors or unusual textures without visually overloading the space

Photo: Chris Snook

In terms of composition, accent walls can differ significantly: you can select one or several adjacent walls entirely, or you can only select a small plane, which is usually done to emphasize the vertical or horizontal.

Classic accent wall design options

They encountered the design option for the accent wall as a child, however, hanging on the wall in every second Soviet apartment, the carpet can hardly be called a positive example. But let's not talk about the sad, it is better to look at really successful interior solutions!

Designed by Benco Construction

Colour

The simplest, cheapest and most popular option for solving an accent wall is to highlight it in color in contrast to the rest of the finish. In this case, a bright and saturated color is chosen for the accent, and all other planes are solved in a neutral colors: white, gray, beige, etc. Walls can be plastered and painted or used textured plaster or wallpaper for painting.

Hallway accent wall designed by Knight Architects LLC

Memo: the accent wall needs to be perfectly aligned, do you want to draw the attention of guests to crooked corners and flaws in the renovation?

Texture

Bright colors and contrasts in a room are not for you? A calmer and noble option for creating an accent wall, playing on the contrast of textures. Brickwork, fake diamond, wooden panels and mosaics, when it comes to a humid room, will help create a harmonious and noble interior.

Wooden panels in the interior of the living room, Maienza- Wilson Interior Design

Advice: accents with the help of texture will look especially good in loft, art deco or eco-style interiors.

Accent bathroom decor with tiles from Ceramiche Coem

Natural materials in decoration always create a sense of luxury and good taste, however, they can be too heavy or dark, not to mention their cost. An accent wall in this version is just a reasonable compromise.

Black and white accents in the interior always look very advantageous, Tubadzin

Drawing or pattern

Do you want to bring a real zest to the room? A panel with a large image or wallpaper with a striking ornament is exactly what you need for an unusual accent in the interior. Digital printing technology allows you to print almost any image for an accent wall, even yours own photo, and large geometric or floral patterns will go well with the textile decor of the interior.

Large flower ornament always looks good as an accent, Wall & Deco wallpaper

Want to save money on buying stylish wallpapers? Stencil painting, vinyl stickers and even multi-colored tape will help you to do this without much difficulty.

Wallpaper panels, Glamora

Advice: the accent wall does not have to be very contrasting. Choose a collection of neutral wallpapers that are uniform throughout the room and have an unobtrusive pattern for the accent wall. This technique is very useful for zoning.

Accent wall with vinyl decal for an unobtrusive interior in the nursery, designed by Beekmans Design

Paintings, posters and shelves

I would like to freshen up the interior, but the renovation has already been completed, or you are simply not sure that you will like the idea with accent wall? Place a large panel, poster, family collection of photographs or paintings on only one of the walls. If you create a single, harmonious composition out of them, such a wall will surely not go unnoticed.

Paintings as an accent, Pottery Barn

Decorative hinged shelves with unusual design or collections of trinkets posted on them: from minerals and corals, to your grandmother's favorite porcelain elephants and the family library.

Large abstract panel as an accent, designed by Hang My Art!

Unusual solutions for an accent wall

The above options are on the list of the most popular, but no one bothers you to show your maximum imagination and ingenuity in the decor, because virtually anyone that attracts you can act as an accent. Special attention subject or group of them.

Pottery barn

Modern designers are ready to hang everything on the walls: from frayed window frames to oars and wicker baskets. You can also choose beautiful crockery, mirrors in unusual frames, a sculptural object or your personal collection of baseball caps as your decor if it matches the rest of the decor.

A chair on the wall, why not? Pottery barn

A little imagination and a little more sense of proportion, and you will become the owner for real unique interior without extra costs and effort!

Apartment design

It has long been known that even a small amount bright color can enliven the environment by giving general view interest, attractiveness, showiness. This technique works great for almost any interiors, as well as for the landscape, and for external appearance person. For example, a bright tie transforms a man with a formal suit, and bright accent scarves and bags transform women with neutral clothes. Even a small flower bed is enough to make the whole garden even more beautiful. By adding not a large number of bright accents, we bring some freshness to the interior.

Placing bright accents for the interior is not as easy as it seems at first glance. The main problems arise during the definition of an accent color and the choice of its amount. If, for example, there are too many color accents, then the room will become excessively bright. And the accent effect can be completely lost, since the accent color will dissolve in the surrounding colorful space and go into the auxiliary one. Conversely, if there are few accents, we will not be able to achieve the desired result.

Bright accents in the interior. Color selection

Interior color accents are elements that have a color different from the main surfaces that prevail in the room. For example, furniture, textiles, decor and accessories in a pale blue room are the color accents. But the light blue elements for the same room are in addition to the main color. For a violet-beige room, green accessories will be accents, and lilac, lavender or cream will be an addition. For a beige room, they will be accents, and pale brown ones will be complementary.

So, the basic rule of accent color is: if you need to add bright accents, then you need to choose a different color, and not a different shade. But which one? The choice will depend on the desired effect.

1. Option "Cold and warm". If you need to emphasize the "sultry" of a room in which warm colors prevail (orange, apricot, yellow, terracotta, red, etc.), a cold spectrum is better for an accent. For example, there can be shades of purple,. Besides the fact that cool accents will accentuate the warmth of the room, they will cool the ardor a little more.

And by analogy: if you like cool surroundings created with fresh, light, or slightly dark tones, then its coolness can be distinguished by contrast with accents warm colors... To do this, you need to apply accents of honey, yellow, orange, terracotta shades.

2. Option "Similar". If you need to create an atmosphere of calmness, you need to take the accent color located on the color wheel next to the secondary or primary.

For example, if the room is made in blue tones, then it is better to take accents of pale purple (lavender, lilac) or green. The apricot room will be refreshed by bright red accents of berry shades.

With this type of accentuation, harmony and peace reign in the interior. As a result, such a scheme is better suited for lounges, bedrooms, offices, etc.

3. Option "Additional". In order to add more energy, life and color to the interior, they use another option - "additional". For this scheme, a color that is complementary to the primary or secondary is used to accentuate.

Complementary colors are colors that are opposite each other on the color wheel.

For example, if the main room is in the room, then for additional accents you need to select shades of blue or light blue, and vice versa. In a green room, purple or red accents are placed in the same way.

The "Additional" option is rather complicated - it creates a powerful energy supply to the interior. As a result, this scheme is recommended to be used only in dining rooms, living rooms, playrooms, etc.

4. Bright accents for a neutral interior. Suppose there are only neutral tones in the room, for example, black, white, beige, gray, brown, then any existing color can be taken for an accent. In addition, there can be many such colors.

The good thing about a neutral interior is that you can change accents in it according to your mood. Or, let's say, taking the season as a basis. V winter time- in blue and light blue colors; in autumn - red orange tones; in summer - green tones; in spring - delicate floral shades.

In neutral interiors, very light colors you can add several different colors at once, and it does not matter where they are on the color wheel in relation to each other. But it is desirable that these accent colors are in harmony with each other in terms of brightness and saturation. For example, light blue can easily get along with pistachio, lilac, pink, but not with dark purple, jade or burgundy.

A bright accent obtained with the sofa. Yellow accents in the interior

Bright accents in the interior. Keeping a balance

There is a classical axiom. Or rather, even a certain formula. It looks like this: 60-30-10. How can you decipher this?

60% is the main color of the interior
30% is a secondary color (additional) or color shades of the main one in the interior
10% is the accent color of the interior

This formula is completely valid for the image of a person in classic clothes. It looks like this: 60% is a classic suit, 30% is a shirt, 10% is a tie, which is an accent.

Here's an example for the interior. Suppose the walls of the room are painted with beige paint, and the TV stand, shelving unit and flooring have a wood texture. As a result, the brown-beige range predominates, accounting for approximately 60%. Let's say that the upholstered furniture and textiles in this room are in purple flowers... in this case, it is a secondary color, approximately occupying 30%. The accents can be yellow, green or blue, it all depends on the intended effect. About 10% must remain on them: this can be, for example, a small carpet in front of the sofa, an ottoman, several sofa cushions, a cushion for an armchair and a floor vase.

Next example. Upholstered furniture and wall structures are made in blue and blue colors (60%). Furniture and flooring are gray (30%). Accents - orange (10%).

These figures are, of course, rather arbitrary and approximate. You just need to understand that the main color should take up not much more than half. Secondary colors (or adjacent to the main tone) are almost half the size of the main one. And the accent color is about one tenth of the main one.

Since wood color is a neutral color, it may not be included in our formula. That is, you can not take wooden floors for the calculation, but a carpet located on the floor is mandatory. You can do the same with white ceilings and walls, wooden or white doors and window frames, a section of a wall lined with stone, a brick-faced fireplace, etc.

If your interior is monochrome and does not have a secondary color, then accents can take up not much more than 10%.

Sometimes, just one bright accent in the interior is enough. But he must be either very effective or large. For a monochrome interior, it can be, for example, stunning or. Single accents can make a room look very impressive. Comparisons pop up in my head: a completely white snow-covered forest with one blood-red rowan bush or a completely black cat with green eyes.

The less accent color, the more it stands out, riveting attention to itself, and to everything around it.

Bright accents in the interior. Location

To create a color accent for any interior, various decorative elements are usually used: figurines, vases, photo frames, sofa cushions, blankets, carpets. Although works of art, pieces of furniture, and surfaces can act as accents.

With regards to furniture, poufs and armchairs, sometimes sofas, are often accentuated. For the bedroom interior, the headboard can be an accent. In the kitchen - some part of the facades kitchen set and chairs.

The accent can be the entire wall or part of it. For example, the area behind the TV, behind the head of the bed or behind the sofa. It is logical to make an accent in the kitchen. In this case, you should always remember about the 10% rule.

Curtains, like other textiles, can also be accent: napkins, chair covers, bed covers, tablecloths.

Today, the use of accent lamps is popular, for example, in the kitchen and dining room.

Of course, not everywhere and not always necessary.... Non-vibrant two-tone or monochrome interiors are beautiful on their own. But you can always, if you wish, intersperse a small amount of color into them, since you do not need to spend a large amount for this. Money and radically change the situation. The interior will be able to transform and sparkle with new colors!

The bedroom is an intimate room - "not for prying eyes", so here you can realize all your desires and ideas, give free rein to all your imagination! Just do not forget about some of the nuances, in order to avoid getting too pretentious and flashy atmosphere in the room, not comfortable for staying in it. But the bedroom is a place for relaxation, for mental and physical rest. Although, of course, everything "tastes and colors."

A few rules:

• it is best to accentuate the wall that first "catches" your eye when you enter the room;
• it is enough to focus on one wall, at most two, and three walls are already overkill;
• it is not necessary to select the entire wall as a whole, sometimes it is enough (or even more appropriate) to use only its fragments, ledges, piers;
• to create a calm atmosphere in the room, the accent in shade should be close to the main color of the walls;
• if you want a bright and dynamic interior, then to achieve the desired effect, the accent should be chosen in a contrasting color;
• if the main color of the walls is neutral, then the accent can be of any color;
• warm shades (red, orange, yellow, brown) are able to visually bring the object closer. That is, if it is framed in a warm shade short wall a rectangular room, then its shape will approach the "square", and if the wall is long, the room will become visually even more elongated. Don't forget about it!
• Cold shades (blue, green, purple) on the contrary, the object is visually removed. Respectively, long walls v rectangular room best done in cool colors. Thus, you can slightly expand the space.

The story of designer Maria Vatolina about the redevelopment sounds like an illustration of the game of tagging: “Previously, there was a bedroom in the place of the kitchen. The kitchen was in the living room, right on the spot where the cabinet is now. The door to the storeroom served as the entrance to the apartment. And in the room where my husband and I are now located, there was also a kitchen. "

Living room. Table, Bo Concept. Wardrobes with mirrored fronts are made according to the designer's sketches. Vintage sofa, 1953, once adorned the interior of the hotel "Ukraine". Above the sofa is a painting by Ekaterina Rozhkova.

Such transformations may seem strange if you do not know that we are talking about an apartment made up of two. Moreover, the first was bought ten years ago, and the second only recently joined it.

Cabinet. Vintage Ball Chair, designed by Eero Aarnio. Tulip Chair, design by Eero Saarinen, Knoll. The carpet and hanging table are made according to the designer's sketches.

“The interior of my first one-room apartment was very girlish, with light turquoise walls,” recalls the designer. “However, after the“ unification ”, it became clear that not only the layout would have to be changed, but the entire interior as a whole. Fortunately, no major overhaul was required.

View from the living room to the study. In the foreground are vintage doors from the 1950s. Pendant lamp in the living room, Bo Concept. Sofa in the office, Innovation. Ceiling lamp Modo Chandelier by Jason Miller, Roll & Hill. On the wall is the work of Gabriele Toricelli.

So, having changed the places of the bedroom with the kitchen, we did not have to move the floor, because I do not like tiles and even in the kitchen I prefer parquet. Stucco cornices have remained from the past interior. I continued this idea in the new rooms. "

Kitchen. The facades of the wardrobes with a patina effect are made according to the designer's sketches. Bar stool Toledo Wood. On the windowsill is a candlestick by Tom Dixon. There is a vintage Czech crystal chandelier on the ceiling. Vases, Andrew

But the color scale from pastel light has become more saturated and bright. There are no two equally painted rooms in the apartment. Even the ceiling in the nursery is colored. “I love color and am not afraid of it,” says Maria. - With its help, you can place accents, change the proportions of rooms.

Children's room. Bunk bed and desk made to order according to the designer's sketches. Chair Tulip Chair, Knoll. Beanbag chair, Smartballs.

For example, thanks to the use of three different contrasting colors, I was able to split the corridor into three parts, making it visually not so narrow and long. " As for the general concept of interior design, everything here is based on a combination of the old and the modern.

Fragment of the corridor. There is a lamp on the wall, Oligo. Chair - vintage, 1953.

The aged fronts of the kitchen, as if assembled in parts at a flea market, coexist perfectly with lacquered tables and a futuristic lamp. Refurbished vintage doors from the 1950s are fitted with new trims and topped with tall portals.

Bathroom. The mirror is made to order according to the designer's sketches. Sink, Globo. Mixers, Hansgrohe.

And all this is complemented by iconic design objects from Eero Saarinen, Eero Aarnio and Werner Panton. “Have you noticed that most European interiors are not designed in one particular style?

Bedroom. The bed is made to order according to the designer's sketches. Armchair - vintage, 1953. Table, Minotti. Fixtures, Tom Dixon.

Objects from different eras easily coexist in them, says Maria. - This approach feels life. And this is what I was striving to create in my own home. "

An accent wall is an element that can coolly refresh the interior, add a touch of exclusivity to it and even change the space for the better. How to apply this technique correctly and in which rooms is it appropriate? We decided to figure it out and considered real examples use of an accent wall in the interior.

What is an accent wall and why is it needed?

Many have heard of such a concept as an accent wall, but not everyone knows what it is and what it is for. First of all, it is used to designate a particular area, for example, highlighting a living room or dining room in a studio apartment. But often this technique is used to visually deepen the space or divert attention from any imperfections in the room.

Cold and warm shades

The next question that interests many is what shades to focus on, warm or cold. It all depends not only on personal preferences. The size of the room, as well as its location depending on the cardinal points, are also important factors. If the room is small, then too active or warm colors should not be used in it, as they can only reduce the space. Cool, deep or refreshing colors will be appropriate here.

As for the cardinal points, in apartments where windows face the north and east side, it is better to use more warm shades, but cool colors will be appropriate in the south and west rooms.

Most often, an accent wall can be found in bedroom interiors. Such an element adorns the wall at the head of the bed and focuses on this particular area. This technique will help to visually stretch a cramped room and slightly deepen it. Especially if you use shades of blue, gray or green for decoration.

You can use bolder color combinations in the living room than in the bedroom. Here, the wall is often painted in a different color, directly, in the recreation area, where there is a sofa, and also often focus on the wall with a fireplace. This zoning method is great for the interior of one-room apartments and studio apartments.