Suddenly, it’s almost summer. And if your rooms still look like the middle of winter, lighten up.
Our grandmothers greeted the warmer months by flipping the rugs or removing them completely. They tossed a cotton cover over the sofa and liberated the iced-tea pitcher from the back of the cabinet.
Their top-down cleaning included washing every window, inside and out, cleaning under and behind the furniture, turning the mattresses and polishing wood until their reflection beamed in it.
Today, design experts recommend not just spring cleaning, but decluttering rooms to prepare them for a seasonal makeover.
“I think the easiest things to think about are to clean, do a little editing and add some color,” says Carolyn Sollis, style director at House & Garden magazine. The June issue focuses on getting furnishings in a few days – from window coverings to upholstered furniture – from a variety of sources.
“In the winter, we surround ourselves with what makes us feel comfortable – the brass candlesticks, the wool throws,” she says. For summer, it’s time to switch to silver and slipcovers, she says.
Create a scheme outlining what you want to do and then start looking in magazines, catalogs and stores, says Sollis, who suggests shopping at the big-box stores, as well as designer showrooms. “Take a Polaroid of the room and get out your measuring tape so you can figure out what you need.”
Think about accessorizing your rooms as you do your wardrobe, say the pros. Just as you substitute sandals and a straw tote bag for boots and a heavy leather purse when warm weather comes around, a change of accessories can update a room for the season.
“I always suggest you put money into good pieces of furniture, and from there you can change from trend to trend,” says Molly Keenan, a Denver interior designer who recently did a room for the Junior Symphony Guild show house.
“Ninety percent of what I do is paint and powder,” Keenan says. “Clients are looking for someone to come in and help them update. You can do that with paint, fabrics and drapes.”
It also helps to have an outsider’s opinion, even if it’s not a designer. “Get someone who doesn’t look at the room every day to help you move things around and accessorize,” Keenan says.
And don’t try to tackle the whole house at once. In fact, give yourself a couple of weekends rather than just a day or two for a makeover, recommends Debbie Travis, the host of two television series on home design and the author of numerous books.
She suggests spending Saturday decluttering your home and Sunday selling what you don’t want. The following weekend, prep a room one day and paint the next day.
“Paint is the most obvious way you can freshen up a room,” says Travis, whose latest book, “Debbie Travis’ Facelift” (Clarkson Potter, $19.95), dissects some of the projects she’s tackled on her TV shows.
“People today realize that paint doesn’t have to last 30 years,” Travis says. “For summer you can put on a pale pistachio or a duck egg blue, and the lightest pink on the ceiling. It gives a warm glow to a room.”
Keep in mind, adds Sollis, that there’s no right way or wrong way to decorate. If your taste runs to Moroccan and exotic, “go the hippie route,” she says. If you like English gardens, fill your rooms with flowers.
And when you get tired of something, change it.
In any room
Add plants and a ceiling fan to make the space feel cool and breezy.
Remove and store velvet or heavy curtains, replacing them with sheers.
Add pillows in summer colors and prints.
Select a focus wall and paint it a bright color.
Paint a border or use stencils to update the walls in a room without the trouble of painting the whole room.
Consider an oversized pattern if you’re thinking about wallpaper.
