You have probably heard of various interior design styles already: modern, contemporary, traditional, farmhouse, industrial, minimalism, and maximalism, just to name a few that are commonplace at the moment. We, at Design to Build Spaces, love working with absolutely any style you throw at us.
But what happens when you don’t want to stick to only one style in particular? What happens when you want to mix within these styles to create something that is unique, different, and reflective of your personality?
Is it even possible to create a coherent, cohesive interior design solution if you don’t apply a single style, a single palette, or a single thought process? In a word, yes. As long as you follow certain basic premises to keep things from going absolutely crazy, you can end up with a cohesive space that draws from multiple styles, various inspirations, and a multitude of colors.
So, in short, what happens when you apply your personality to the space and cross styles, designs, and language to tailor something to you? You end up with an eclectic space and vibrant and fun room interior design.
The word eclectic has Greek roots and literally translates to choosing the best of all given choices. The term itself has taken a long journey, transitioning from philosophy to architecture, after which it eventually made its way to design in general, interior design specifically, and even home decor.
Choosing the best in this case is a subjective set of choices as “the best” will be determined differently based on the specific situation, client, and space.
Eclectic design hinges on the sensibilities of the interior designer being in line with those of the client and drawing from various inspiration points in a client’s life like their experiences, travels, and exposure to create an amalgam that works uniquely for the client and the space.
A good eclectic living room design, for instance, will tell you a lot about the users. Their influences, their lifestyle, where they like to travel, and cultures that they have been inspired by.
Eclectic design comes with its own set of challenges which is why designers are weary of going anywhere near it. There is a fine line between an eclectic space and an absolute mess, and it all comes down to an eye for detail.
The designer has to follow certain principles to keep things cohesive and keep the space livable. When it comes down to residentials specifically, it is becoming the norm to opt for a ‘less is more’ approach and skew towards the minimalist aesthetic. If that’s truly reflective of your personality, by all means, go for it.
But there is a school of thought, not as popular, that embraces the ‘more is more’ lifestyle and we know that it is indicative of many great personalities we’ve met as well. Design to Build spaces loves to design for the maximalist as well.
So how does one go about creating an eclectic space that works in the context of residential interior design? How does one do ‘more’ without it becoming ‘too much’? This is what we will go on to talk about. There are certain things to keep in mind to keep an eclectic design soothing while still embracing the vibrant notion of the style.
1. Maintaining a cohesive color palette beforehand: One of the things to have the largest impact on a space is color. Eclectic design hinges on using many colors to create vibrance, life, and dynamic energy but in order to prevent clashing, it is important to maintain a cohesive color palette beforehand. The color palette itself can be as eccentric as the client chooses but the cohesion between the colors and color theory itself must be applied to keep the room from becoming an eye-sore.
2. Mixed textures, colors, and print: After the designer sets the color palette, the room to truly go wild begins. Now the designer can add a cohesive mix of color, pattern, print, and texture that are all from the chosen color family. The success of the design hinges on playing with the massing of these elements to create something emblematic of your client.
3. Combining decor that is both old-world and modern: As we have talked about earlier, eclectic design doesn’t resign you to any single time period of design. The client can bring in vintage decor that the designer can marry with newer-designed pieces in order to create a harmonious space that is relevant in today’s context but filled with pieces from different times. It’s a fun place to explore bedroom interior design ideas.
4. Influences from all over the world: Just like there are no constraints when it comes to time period, design language, or interior style, there are no geographical lines either. Eclectic design allows the designer to draw from any culture that the client resonates with and bring in the culture’s art, ornamentation, and motifs into the space. Again, an eye for balance from the designer is important to make sure the space isn’t incoherent.
5. Feature walls or gallery walls: These are a great way to show multiple experiences or mix multiple influences on the same wall. The impact of a gallery wall depends on the visuals chosen and the balance, symmetry, and contrast maintained between these.
6. Balancing furnishings with wall finishings and vice versa: The point of an eclectic design isn’t to go crazy. A good thumb rule to follow is that if you’re going for a bright pattern/texture/color/print on the wall, you keep your furnishings in a complimentary neutral palette and vice versa.
7. Remembering to watch out for overcrowding: The last tip we could give you is one that comes from one of the oldest standing mantras in fashion. Right after you feel you have hit the perfect cohesion, take one element out. With this design language specifically, clutter is very easily what you will end up with so one thing you will have to be extra watchful of is keeping the space from becoming overcrowded.
Reach out to us at Design to Build Spaces to have an eclectic space designed for your home in Bangalore, India today! Come and book your consultation with young, fresh interior designers in Bangalore.
