Empty to Fabulous!

May 23, 2020 by Suzanne Lasky

S Interior Design was hired to furnish an entire home including all of the finishing touches. We created a unique, contemporary , elegant, comfortable and easy to care for home that reflects the homeowners life stage and lifestyle. They love to entertain family and friends and the multiple seating and dining areas both inside and outside allow them to do that with ease. A neutral palette of colors combine with pops of blue through out the home. Mixed metals were incorporated in the light fixtures and accessories. Organic inspired design features include petrified wood , marble, concrete and more. The original abstract art work was sourced from local artists.

Here are some photos of the completed design project by
S Interior Design . Enjoy!

To see more photos please visit :

What Every Home Buyer Wants

October 21, 2015 by Suzanne Lasky

Below is a guest post that discusses what a new home buyer may be looking for in terms of features or upgrades. S Interior Design has added commentary (shown in italics ) throughout the posting.

What Every Home Buyer Wants

Every new home buyer, has some wishes that he/she looks for before making a step towards buying or owning a home. Different features and factors which include home location, the size of the home and also interior features are mostly common in any buyers wish lists. This determines how willing/interested a buyer will be when it comes to purchasing the home.

Many buyers are willing to spend more money above the price of the home to have certain interior and exterior features put in place. Some of the wishes that every home buyer will look for when buying a home (and something you might want to consider when remodeling or doing home improvements) will include the following:

Stainless steel appliances
Most home buyers prefer having stainless appliances fitted in their homes ranging from doors and other indoor appliances. This is because stainless steel is more attractive and makes the house have an elegant view.

While stainless steel appliances are still desirable, black, slate and even white appliances are becoming more popular.

Security

A well secured home with quality doors and locks will be mostly preferred by home buyers. Good quality and affordable doors can be found with barn door hardware. The hardware offers better quality doors in different designs. They also offer track systems and other door accessories to make sure that your home is well guarded against break-ins. In some homes, break-ins are inevitable and home buyers are looking for homes where a warranty is given in cases of break-ins or wear out. A home warranty is considered as a major component before buying a home.

Key pad entry pads and even wireless entry is now available .

More Bedrooms

Privacy is key in any bedroom and home buyers will prefer a home with more bedrooms which can accommodate more people in case there are visitors. Anyone should feel comfortable sleeping in a bedroom in which there is privacy. A walk-in closet in the bedroom is also a status symbol since most people want to have more clothes, be more organized and on top of that, look presentable.

You can add privacy door sets to any room in which you desire extra privacy. Every home buyer/home owner has distinct needs. More is not always better!

More Bathrooms
It’s no doubt that washrooms are a very sensitive area of the house. To maintain hygiene and a healthy lifestyle, washrooms should not be shared among every person who lives in a house. Therefore, most home buyers will prefer having more bathrooms in their house to maintain hygiene.

Keep in mind more bathrooms mean more bathrooms to clean!

Laundry Room
A place where people can wash, fold clothes and store other laundry materials will be a key factor to anyone who wants to own a home. Laundry rooms help people to keep the mess out of their living room keeping it tidy and homey.

Older homes may have a laundry area or space versus an acutual room. You need to think about where you will fold your laundry and iron in the house if there is not a dedicated room for that purpose.

More Exterior Lighting

A well designed exterior lighting captures customers’ attention on the first sight. Be it wall lanterns and landscape lights above the ground provides a scenic view which attracts potential buyers before they even get inside a house. The light illuminates paths at night.

Good Kitchen Design (Eat-In Kitchens)
For home buyers, especially those with families, an eat-in kitchen is a must have. This helps people interact during breakfast or dinner since they congregate in the kitchen for their meals. The kitchen should be spacious enough to accommodate a large number of people.

Your specific lifestyle and family make up will help to determine your needs in terms of how large of a space and eating table / area is needed.

A Fireplace

One or more fireplaces may become more popular as speculated. This is because many people spend less time watching TV. A fireplace will be an ideal place where home owners can relax or just share highlights from their day with family or friends.

We have not witnessed this trend. Our clients are fully committed to having televisions in multiple rooms of their homes. Fireplaces in dining rooms and bedrooms are are great option along with the more standard living room or great room spaces.

Spacious Garage and Storage Room

The increase in resources results in home buyers looking for spacious storage to accommodate equipment used in homes. For buyers with families, a spacious garage is most likely to have an upper hand since a family may have a number of cars to accommodate in a garage. A seller should ensure garage and other storage rooms are spacious.

Good storage spaces are definitely a plus especially in areas such as Arizona where basements and storage areas in basements are less commonly available.

Floors /Design
Though carpets are considered to conserve energy and offer a comfortable feeling, they may be hard to clean. Most home buyers who host guests often, prefer hardwood floors, which are durable and easy to clean.

Other hard floor surfaces to consider are laminate, luxury vinyl planks, cork and porcelain tile.

Home Office

Most people take office work home so that they can work on it either in the evening or during weekends. Buyers may prefer to have a place in the house where work-related documents are kept (e.g. books, laptops and more). Home offices make your work more manageable.

Overwhelming desire for the majority of home owners! Most newly built homes will offer 1 or more options for home office space.
Though the list is endless depending on people’s tastes and preferences, most home buyers are willing to cough up extra money to have their homes customized. In this digital era, a good home should therefore contain modern facilities which are not only attractive, but also act as a status symbol to many.

A place to store and a place to sit

September 4, 2014 by Suzanne Lasky

A place to store and a place to sit.

S Interior Design LOVES multi-functional furnishings such as the storage ottoman fabricated by Pacific Manufacturing. Great in a family room, master bedroom or guest bedroom to store a multitude of things you want or need close by, but don’t want to see out in plan sight.

S. Interior Design Pamlcroft

July 24, 2014 by Suzanne Lasky

S. Interior Design Pamlcroft

Welted Arm, Built to the floor, swivel, tight back, Palmcroft Arm, Transitional, contemporary

One of several custom upholstered furniture pieces we designed for a Desert Mountain client looking for some color in her interior environment. Thanks Pacific Manufacturing for making it so easy !

Traditional Design Elements

March 9, 2014 by Suzanne Lasky

Below is a guest post entitled ‘How to Create a Traditional Style Living Room’.
S Interior Design often has residential design clients who have what could be described as traditional style furnishings that they want to keep, yet update with more contemporary surrounding design elements. One of our favorite things to do is to re-upholster a traditional style accent chair in modern fabrics. It becomes a unique piece that can be the focal point of a seating arrangement.

This is an example we completed recently.

Accent Chair Now upholstered in this fabric

A home that mixes design styles is one that is reflective of the owner’s unique personality. Mix away and don’t be afraid!

Guest Post:

How to create a traditional style living room

Not so long ago, traditional style was regarded as the grandmother’s home style, with impossibly uncomfortable furniture, pristine carpets and vintage wallpaper. I am very pleased to say that this is longer the case. Traditional home styles have been toned down considerably and are now more cleanly lined than ever. The traditional style covers a wide range of time periods and cultures, and can include just about anything, whether ornate and opulent or simple and spare. One of the reasons this style is regarded as traditional is due to the familiarity of silhouette and the use of architectural details.

Quite often, living rooms with a traditional style tend to be older and possess an abundance of suave architectural details such as elaborate chunky moldings, columns, arches, wood floor patterns, and inbuilt cabinetry. The reason these shapes are familiar is because they have a real sense of historical influence. The majority of the textiles and furnishings are labeled “traditional” because the patterns and shapes have been used for long periods of time.

Traditional style is no longer stale or fussy; instead it is now more casual and welcoming. The traditional style is literally the little black dress of the design world, looks great, always appropriate, feels fantastic, and goes with just about everything.

Below are a few ideas to help you create a traditional style living room:

Textiles

Luxurious fabrics can be used in traditional style but not limited to cashmere, velvet, mohair, and silk. Other more humble fabrics such as cotton and linen can also be found. In reality, not many homeowners can get away with a sofa that is upholstered in high maintenance fabrics such as silk, but this doesn’t mean they can’t be utilized in low traffic areas such as pillows or curtains. Start off with a pivotal fabric and then blend other patters from the same color palate. A layering of texture and pattern will add interest to the space. Damask, paisley, floral, and even geometrics are common patterns. Rugs are highly people because traditional homes usually have very hard floors, either tile or wood.

Artwork

Artwork introduces texture, mood, personality, and color. It is often beneficial to choose room arrangements and a color palate based on a great art piece. If you do not have the budget to buy a large piece of art, there are other more cost-effective ways to create impact. Try grouping similar images in matched frames to create a graphic punch.

Colors

Try to develop a consistent theme throughout your living room that is based on color. Neutral color tones are often utilized on large upholstery pieces and walls. Homeowners and designers often mute color pallets to show off other elements such as rugs and impressive pieces of art. An all white color palette is extremely popular because it can lend both minimalism and opulence depending on how it’s applied. Balance should be one of the key considerations when choosing colors; you should only use bright colors if they are offset by neutral tones.

Furnishings

Furnishings found in traditional styles commonly have a familiar shape that is recognizable and iconic to the majority of people. A perfect example of this is the wing back chair; although it is quite often reinterpreted and updated, it is mostly at home in traditional décor styles. Pieces of upholstery are often comfortable and neutral, a lot less fussy than in previous years. Traditional leather sofas are available in a variety of colors and styles; these can be mixed with contemporary pieces, reproductions, and antiques to create a relaxed feeling of elegance. Painted pieces and rich wood tones are also common in traditional styling.

Piecing it all together

The key to a great living space is the way in which pieces are put together. Be sure to create a focal point, this will give the human eye a resting place. Not only does it ground the room, but everything can be positioned in relation to it. Focal points can be artwork, a fireplace, or even an item of furniture such as a sofa or bed. Make use of symmetry to keep a sense of balance within the space. For example, you could have two chairs on either side of your fireplace. They do not have to be identical, but they should have similar proportions.

Author byline:

This article was written by David at Thomas Lloyd Leather Furniture, David is an interior design and home improvement enthusiast that has written articles for numerous magazines and blogs.