Lesson 29: White as the "Glue" of the Room (The White Series)

"Only purchase artwork and pieces of furniture that you truly love!" say most seasoned decorators. The idea is that our eye is naturally drawn to similar objects and color palettes. This rule of thumb inevitably enables buyers to end up with something of a put-together space.

But if you are a full-fledged color-lover, like me, you may find that your collected items, well, clash a bit.

If you've been around this week (if not click here and here), I bet you can guess what I'm going to suggest as one savior to this incredible mish-mashed dilemna.

Did you think white? Good, friends. The lessons are sinking in.

In the last post, I discussed how white can work as a great backdrop to highlight a unique print or object. What I am advocating for here is the idea that in using your white to highlight various pieces in one room, you will in essence be connecting said pieces. They become a cohesive unit, in that they all have one thing in common, white.

Not one thing in this room is the same color. And yet, it is a beautiful, unified space, because of its white base.

There is white in the curtain print, white in the rug, white atop the blue lamp, a white fireplace, a white poof, and on and on. The white flawlessly brings together the deep yellow, pale pink, black, turquoise, olive, magenta, and silver.

But, let's be honest. This room is also beautiful because everything in it is probably very expensive. Would you like a shot of a normal home that uses white as its glue? How about mine?

I recently purchased this chevron rug from Pottery Barn Teen for a great price. Talk about a wow factor!

 Look how I naturally incorporated it into my existing family room. The connecting thread: white.

(I apologize. My camera is not the greatest).

The turquoise rug and the yellow dhurrie do not match. Yet, they both have white elements. The lamp shade, one side of the chess set, the throw pillow, and the mat of the middle picture are all white as well.

Your eyes connect the various white pieces and as a whole, your eye likes the look of the entire vignette.(Or at least mine does.)

Though a whole lot of color is infused into this little space, you are not overwhelmed. The white allows you to rest.

Lesson Learned: Multiple white elements in a space blend to form a restful canvas in which you can effortlessly bring together potentially conflicting items.


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