Tags Posts tagged with "Interior Design Society of Long Island"

Interior Design Society of Long Island

by -
0 1891
Glam-style living room, carefully designed by Port Washington-based Fox + Chenko Interiors. Photo from Fox + Chenko

Long Island is springing back to life, and Mother Nature isn’t the only one getting a makeover.

Just as April showers help give birth to May flowers, spring is giving life to some new looks inside homes — a focus on modernized glamour décor, with ice colors like white and gray becoming more popular, according to some Long Island designers.

From one designer’s perspective, the rise of glam could be signaling a shift in mood among the masses from depression to hope.

“I think that people are feeling optimistic,” said Daryl Pines, president of the Interior Design Society of Long Island — a group with membership of residential interior designers from across the Island. That could be largely financial — the economy’s bouncing back, some say, as the unemployment rate is currently the lowest it has been in several years. “We’ve been in a downturn [for] a long time and I think people just want better things in their lives. So if you think that people [want] to be home and make their own glamour, maybe they’re just saying, ‘Enough! I don’t want to be downtrodden anymore. I don’t want to be depressed. I want to make something glamorous at home.’”

Designer Jen Fox, co-owner of Fox + Chenko Interiors in Port Washington, said she has definitely noticed a “cleaner and sophisticated” look gaining popularity, and a “phasing out” from the early 2000s, where everything was warmer in color tones, like greens, olives, reds and mustards. She’s also noticed, along with the cleaner, sleeker look, a lot more texture in items like fabrics, rugs, wall coverings and mirrored surfaces. This inclusion of texture is taking the place of other items people might have in their homes, Fox said. “I think people are looking just maybe to live more simply in terms of the sheer volume of things to decorate with,” she added.

Designer Caroline Wilkes, of Merrick-based Caroline Wilkes Interiors made a similar observation.

“It is the details in design that are a key trend this spring, with a spotlight on surface texture,” Wilkes said in an email. “This embellishment can be found on anything from custom furnishings, window treatment fabrics and accessories. It is this attention to detail that shapes a decor into something very special and noteworthy, making a room feel personalized.”

As far as colors go, Pines said she’s noticed blue being of greater interest to clients, particularly to South Shore residents who are still in the process of rebuilding their homes after Hurricane Sandy destroyed them.

“They’re all water-based people and attracted to a little bit of that blue in what they’re doing,” she said.

Some popular pieces have taken on some modernized looks, according to Fox. For example, textured items like sisal rugs are taking the place of colorful Persian rugs that gained popularity years ago — where the pattern is emphasized more in the weave of the rug, versus the rug’s color. A wing chair, a more traditional piece, can be made into a more transitional item with a metallic look, Fox said, noting that metallic is big in the glam look.

Overall, there’s a return to the deeper tones and a greater saturation in color in this season’s looks, Pine said.

“It’s a happier feeling, but it’s juxtaposed against a very pale, [glam],” she said.

For more information, visit the Interior Design Society of Long Island’s website at www.idslongisland.org.