15 Great Ideas From One Grand Room – and its Soane-ian Inspiration

Decorating, like life, is full of pre-conceived notions and beliefs disguised as facts. Letting go of them is not only liberating but leads to new possibilities. Living in limited space does not dictate limited beauty or even limited things. Edited, yes, but that is true of any good design. In great testament to that are the big ideas in House Beautiful’s July/August Small Spaces issue is. One in particular took me somewhere new: the one-room-loft of New York architects Bill Brockschmidt and Richard Dragisic. Interiors by (the same) Brockschmidt & (Courtney) Coleman, whose classic-with-a-twist looks we love.

The blogosphere also loved the HB small spaces issue and this loft in particular, with an especially good post at the polished and indispensable Apartment Therapy blog some days ago.

‘Course if you’re going to live in one room, this would be a good one to do it in. The HB piece is entitled “One-Room Grandeur,” and that’s what it is. The room’s scale and proportions enable it tremendously, but there is much to glean here even for those of us who do not have 15-foot ceilings.

1. Pictures and curtains hung all the way to the ceiling draw the eye up and enhance the sense of height and scale. 2. See that tiny molding painted black? It gives a sense of “architecture.” A nice detail. 3. How about the bookcases built in under the stairs? 4. And the desk! Love how it is lined in the same zippy Adelphi wallpaper that also covers the folding doors in front of the closet and kitchen.

5. And how about the pictures hung right on the doors like they’re not even there. Sometimes if you ignore something it really does go away. (Note this theory does not apply to your health.) 6. The trick to hanging a group of pictures is to space them evenly apart. With frames of varying size it can’t always work out perfectly, but that is the rule of thumb. Work out your arrangement on the floor first.

7. Of course you ca layer a beautiful rug over a sisal carpet. 8. A room doesn’t have to be as big as this to handle a strong color, but it’s certainly a statement, and a strong background for the art and objects.

9. The chandelier is lit only by candlelight. Romantic and beautiful at night. 10. A dining table doubles as a library table. Ditto with the room itself – a good multi-tasking solution is to have a dining room double as library.  11. A custom-made harpsichord is a heck of a conversation piece.

12. Inexpensive kitchens can be made to look great. These are Ikea cabinets jazzed up with paint, formica counters, and subway tile as backsplash. 13. Dress up a tiny sleeping alcove with a cornice, curtains (attached with Velcro for easy removal and cleaning), and trim. 14. Use sconces as bedside reading lamps when space is tight. Or even when it isn’t. Bedside tables and storage are hidden behind the curtains.

In Lisa Cregan’s fine interview for HB, Bill also mentions that they are influenced by the work of Sir John Soane, and if you’ve ever been to the great classicist and collector’s house-museum in London you see it immediately. Here are a few images from the Sir John Soane House Museum, via their website.

15. Travel is always a source of inspiration, for whatever you do. Don’t you agree?

All House Beautiful images by Simon Watson. The two noted are via HouseBeautiful.com, and the others are FS photos of the magazine pages.