Decorating an Empty Room

Starting from scratch? Here are some tips on getting the decor just right.

I've been working in the home decor arena for a bazillion years (OK, seven), and I couldn't begin to count the amount of times that family members, friends, friends-of-friends and restaurant delivery guys have asked me for decorating advice. I'm happy to help because frankly there's nothing I love more than waxing poetic on the topic of paint colors, area rugs and accessories. Plus, I appreciate how overwhelming it can be to design a space -- especially one from scratch.

My friend Jess recently emailed me with a design dilemma that is fairly common among new homeowners. Her boyfriend bought his first home but felt a bit overwhelmed when it came to decorating all those empty rooms. When you buy your first house, you want to get it just right.

With the exception of a few basic furnishings he brought with him from his previous rental, the home has been sitting stagnant for a few months. No better time than now to get the ball rolling.

Here's what I told him:

1. When you're overwhelmed by a large project, start small. Focus on one room at a time. Once you tackle one small space, it'll motivate you to move onto the next. For Jess, I opted to start with the dining room, a small but important space since he was eager to entertain friends and family.

2. Don't feel pigeonholed by current pieces of furniture -- or fixtures. Having an oriental rug and floral still-life artwork doesn't mean you have to decorate the entire room with the same scheme. Shop for items that you love and don't limit yourself to one design genre -- there's always a way to make it work.


3. When it comes to selecting furnishings, err on the side of neutral. Paint, textiles and accessories can always add the extra color or pattern that you desire. When you tire of them or want a new look, they're much easier to swap out than a 400 pound dining table or an expensive set of chairs.

Here's an example -- seen above. For Jess's dining room, I opted for a a statesman-like wood dining table (on the traditional side, but not frilly) with a modern set of hyacinth chairs. And unless you find yourself attached to the standard fixtures that come with the house (see the chandelier in Jess's house at top), I'd swap it out with something more original. The light fixture in a formal dining room should always have an element of "wow" -- so I selected the glamorous Boulevard Chandelier from Z Gallerie. It kicks the formality up a notch. (Like what you see above? It's the Manchester Dining Table, $1,499; Hyacinth Chair, $99; and Boulevard Chandelier, $400 all at Z Gallerie. Metallic Finish Terra Cotta Vases, $30 and $40, World Market.)




4. In a dining room, never have a full set of the same chairs (yawn). Make a room look more thoughtful by adding a couple of chairs with a contrasting shape and/or upholstery, and place them at the heads of the table. To pair with the casual hyacinth chairs shown above, my top choice would be this understated wing chair (above, top). The formality contrasts in such a cool way with the side chairs. It's always great to add in two arm chairs to break up the monotony of all those side chairs (the middle chair is another option), but you could also bring in pops of color, such as the red slipper chair shown. (Like what you see? From top, it's the Sylvia Arm Chair, $582, High Fashion Home; Soho Cream Arm Chair in Linen, $230, Overstock.com; Lauren Upholstered Dining Chair set of 2, $200, World Market)

5. Space plan before you shop! Too often I hear of people heading out blindly to their local home goods store and purchasing what they think they need. ("Dining table; check. Chairs; check. China cabinet; check.") There's no such thing as a universal prescription for each room; decide first what you need and second what you have space for. You can always find something to improvise with if the "prescribed" item (such as a china cabinet) won't fit. In Jess's dining room, a large dining table doesn't leave too much extra space for a hefty china cabinet or full-sized buffet table, so I found a console table that could double as a buffett (seen above, at right). It has extra shelves for fancy glassware and drawers for special-occasion flatware. (Like what you see? It's the Tiered Marble Top Console, $899, Wisteria; Uttermost Jelani Buffet Lamp, $192, Lamps Plus; Agave Bowl, $67, Crate & Barrel.)

6. Plan, paint, then purchase. It's always easiest to paint without any furnishings in your way -- but you don't want to select a random paint color; it's better to know exactly what will furnish the space and then choose a color accordingly. This is when starting from scratch gives you the upper hand in achieving the perfectly pulled together space. Plan your shopping list, select and paint your walls, then move in all your furnishings. Take a deep breath and continue on to the next room...